LLH305 Corporate Law


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Unit Outline: Summer 2024, Gardens Point, Internal

Unit code:LLH305
Credit points:12
Pre-requisite:(LLB204 and LLH201) or LWB244
Anti-requisite:LWB334
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

Corporate Law is designed to provide you with knowledge and understanding of the key legal principles and policy issues relevant to registered companies. This unit is a compulsory area of study in the law degree and is required for admission as a legal practitioner.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

  1. Critically analyse complex corporate problems by synthesising the law and policy and constructing arguments for their resolution (CLOs 1.1, 2.1, 2.3)
  2. Interpret and explain relevant provisions of corporate legislation and identify the various evolving contexts in which the law operates (CLOs 1.1, 1.4, 1.5)
  3. Use legal research methodologies to identify and evaluate relevant sources and complete a legal research task (CLOs 3.1, 3.2, 3.3)
  4. Apply appropriate writing conventions to communicate legal reasoning effectively (CLO 4.1)

Content

The content of this unit includes:

  • The context of Australian corporations law
  • Corporate personality 
  • The incorporation process 
  • The corporate constitution
  • Company contracts
  • Administration of companies and management of the business of companies
  • Duties and liabilities of directors and officers
  • Share capital and membership
  • Members' remedies 
  • Company credit and securities arrangements
  • Winding up of companies
  • The relevance of environmental, social and governance considerations to corporate law, including directors' duties, and
  • The impact of technology on corporate law and governance 

Learning Approaches

This unit employs real world learning through an authentic scenario-based approach to analysing and solving legal problems.

This unit employs an active and collaborative approach to learning. The learning has been designed to provide you with direct interaction with your instructors and peers and there is an expectation that you will attend live lectures and tutorials.

Prior to the live learning sessions, you will be supported through weekly unit material, interactive quizzes and formative learning activities that will introduce a range of practical and theoretical perspectives.

Your participation in the unit will include 

  • Engagement in live lectures
  • Participation and discussion in tutorials that allow you to develop and practice your oral communication, critical analysis and legal problem-solving skills 
  • Access to a wide range of resources designed to promote collaboration to assist you to work in teams to resolve complex problems

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You are provided with feedback to assist with your learning throughout the semester. The feedback is provided through:

  • Interaction with the tutor and other students during discussions in the interactive tutorials.
  • Self-paced learning activities that enable you to test your understanding of the unit content and concepts.
  • An online community platform.
  • The individual and generic feedback provided on the unit's assessment items.
  • Examples of past student assessment to facilitate self-reflection.
  • The option of consultation with members of the teaching team.

Assessment

Overview

In this unit you are graded on a scale of one to seven.

Students may be required to attend campus or an assessment centre for the purposes of assessment, regardless of the attendance mode for the unit.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Barrister's opinion

Acting in the role of a barrister, you will analyse a brief to counsel regarding a legal problem, research relevant legal sources and authorities, and write a barrister's opinion that
critiques competing approaches to resolving the legal issue and constructs an argument. In constructing your argument, you will consider the evolving contexts in which the law operates. 

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Weight: 50
Length: 2500 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 9
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4

Assessment: Examination

An end-of-semester examination (open book) will assess the depth of your knowledge and understanding of the topics of the unit as well as your ability to analyse and apply relevant legal rules and principles to solve defined problems. All topics covered in the unit are assessable. 

Weight: 50
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Central Examination Period
Central exam duration: 3:10 - Including 10 minute perusal
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 4

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

Resource Materials

Prescribed text(s)

P Hanrahan, I Ramsay, G Stapledon, Commercial Applications of Company Law (OUP, 23rd ed, 2022)

Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

Recommended text(s)

A Hargovan, C Brown and M Adams, Australian Corporate Law (LexisNexis Butterworths, 7th ed, 2020)
Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

P Lipton, A Herzberg and M Welsh, Understanding Company Law (Lawbook Co, 21st ed, 2021)

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no unusual risks in this unit.

Course Learning Outcomes

This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.

LW36 Bachelor of Laws (Honours)

  1. The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
    Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  2. The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse and changing contexts
    Relates to: ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  3. Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying law to legal problems and providing legal advice
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  4. Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, technological, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  5. Selecting and using contemporary technologies to effectively search, organise and use information
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  6. Selecting and applying appropriate research methods
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  7. Planning and executing a research project and presenting findings and recommendations
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  8. Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
    Relates to: ULO4, Barrister's opinion

LW37 Bachelor of Laws (Honours) (Graduate Entry)

  1. The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
    Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  2. The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse and changing contexts
    Relates to: ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  3. Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying law to legal problems and providing legal advice
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  4. Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, technological, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  5. Selecting and using contemporary technologies to effectively search, organise and use information
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  6. Selecting and applying appropriate research methods
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  7. Planning and executing a research project and presenting findings and recommendations
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  8. Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
    Relates to: ULO4, Barrister's opinion

LW38 Bachelor of Laws (Honours)

  1. The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
    Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  2. The role of law in achieving sustainable futures
    Relates to: ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  3. The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
    Relates to: ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  4. Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying law to legal problems and providing legal advice
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  5. Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  6. Selecting and using contemporary technologies to effectively search, organise and use information
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  7. Selecting and applying appropriate research methods
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  8. Planning and executing a research project and presenting findings and recommendations
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  9. Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
    Relates to: ULO4, Barrister's opinion, Examination

LW39 Bachelor of Laws (Honours) (Graduate Entry)

  1. The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
    Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  2. The role of law in achieving sustainable futures 
    Relates to: ULO2
  3. The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
    Relates to: ULO2, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  4. Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying the law to legal problems and providing legal advice
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  5. Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
    Relates to: ULO1, Barrister's opinion, Examination
  6. Selecting and using contemporary technologies to effectively search, organise and use information
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  7. Selecting and applying appropriate research methods
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  8. Planning and executing a research project and presenting findings and recommendations
    Relates to: ULO3, Barrister's opinion
  9. Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
    Relates to: ULO4, Barrister's opinion, Examination