2005 Handbooks

Law, Lawyers and Society fulfils two main objectives. The first is to provide a general introduction to the Australian legal system. To do this, the unit uses the High Court decision of Mabo v Queensland (No 2) as a case study to demonstrate the nature of legal disputes and the involvement of lawyers in these disputes, and to explain the development of case and statute law, the operation of the institutions of government and the categories of law which students will encounter later in their degree. The second related objective is to introduce students to the role of the legal profession and its place in the legal system. This objective will be met by considering the rules of practice and procedure which frame the professional duties of lawyers and by considering more broadly the ethical dimensions of being a lawyer and a citizen. In this unit students will learn to identify the values, rules and norms that lawyers should apply in practice through participation in hypothetical case studies, and the analysis of the relevant legal rules.