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LAWS8030 – The Law of Obligations I - Contracts

2022 – Session 1, Online-scheduled-weekday

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Ilija Vickovich
ilija.vickovich@mq.edu.au
Lisa Spagnolo
lisa.spagnolo@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to GradCertLaw or GradDipLaw or Admission to JD
Corequisites Corequisites
LAWS600 or LAWS8001
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

A study of the law of contract is fundamental for any law student. In this unit students will study the foundational elements of contract law such as the formation of contract, the characterisation and interpretation of contractual terms, factors which vitiate the formation of a valid contract, the requirement for consideration, privity of contract and the discharge of contractual liabilities. Greater depth of understanding of significant issues in the historical and contemporary development of contract law is achieved through the examination and critique of competing philosophies of contract and international comparisons. Problem solving skills are also developed and tested through hypothetical problem questions. Research skills are tested with a research assignment.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

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

  • ULO1: Demonstrate a detailed and thorough knowledge of legal principles relating to contract law.
  • ULO2: Interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and concepts of contract law to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • ULO3: Analyse complex factual situations involving contract law and apply relevant legal principles to solving legal problems.
  • ULO4: Research, formulate, present and evaluate oral and written arguments on complex contract law problems and principles, drawing upon relevant legal authority and policy considerations.

General Assessment Information

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – 10 marks out of 100 credit will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted seven days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments - e.g. quizzes, online tests.

All assessments are submitted electronically. Turnitin plagiarism detection software is used to check all written assessments.

Students should carefully check that they submit the correct file for an assessment as no re-submissions will be accepted after the due date and time, including instances where students upload an incorrect file in error.

Word limits are strictly applied. Work above the word limit will not be marked.  Footnotes are to be used only for referencing. Referencing must conform to the requirements set out in the Australian Guide to Legal Citation 4th ed.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Online quizzes 30% No 20/03/22; 01/05/22; 29/05/22
Problem Question 20% No 20/04/22
Take Home Test 40% No 14/06/22
Class participation 10% No Weeks 1-13

Online quizzes

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 3 hours
Due: 20/03/22; 01/05/22; 29/05/22
Weighting: 30%

 

Students will undertake three online quizzes across semester, testing knowledge of material covered in the lectures and tutorials.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate a detailed and thorough knowledge of legal principles relating to contract law.
  • Interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and concepts of contract law to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • Analyse complex factual situations involving contract law and apply relevant legal principles to solving legal problems.

Problem Question

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 3 hours
Due: 20/04/22
Weighting: 20%

 

Hypothetical problem question.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate a detailed and thorough knowledge of legal principles relating to contract law.
  • Interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and concepts of contract law to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • Analyse complex factual situations involving contract law and apply relevant legal principles to solving legal problems.
  • Research, formulate, present and evaluate oral and written arguments on complex contract law problems and principles, drawing upon relevant legal authority and policy considerations.

Take Home Test

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: 14/06/22
Weighting: 40%

 

Students will complete a time limited take home test based on material covered in the unit.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate a detailed and thorough knowledge of legal principles relating to contract law.
  • Interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and concepts of contract law to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • Analyse complex factual situations involving contract law and apply relevant legal principles to solving legal problems.
  • Research, formulate, present and evaluate oral and written arguments on complex contract law problems and principles, drawing upon relevant legal authority and policy considerations.

Class participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 13 hours
Due: Weeks 1-13
Weighting: 10%

 

Students will participate in a one-hour tutorial every week that will provide the opportunity to explore, analyse and apply the principal doctrinal rules covered in lectures.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate a detailed and thorough knowledge of legal principles relating to contract law.
  • Interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and concepts of contract law to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • Analyse complex factual situations involving contract law and apply relevant legal principles to solving legal problems.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Prescribed Texts 

J Gooley, P Radan & I Vickovich, Principles of Australian Contract Law, 5th ed, LexisNexis, Sydney, 2021 

J Gooley, P Radan & I Vickovich, Principles of Australian Contract Law: Cases & Materials, 5th ed, LexisNexis, Sydney, 2021

Notes and other additional materials available on iLearn and Leganto.

Recommended Texts

J W Carter, Contract Law in Australia, 7th ed, LexisNexis, 2018

N Seddon & R Bigwood, Cheshire & Fifoot Law of Contract, 11th ed, LexisNexis, 2017

J D Heydon, Heydon on Contract, Thompson Reuters, 2019

J Robertson & A Paterson, Principles of Contract Law, 6th ed, Thompson Reuters, 2020.

Unit Schedule

LECTURE SCHEDULE

Session 1, 2022

Week

 

Week Commencing

Lecture Topic

Tutorial Topic

1

21 Feb

Introduction to Contracts; Overview of Contract Remedies

Legal Problem-Solving Model

 

 

2

28 Feb

Agreement – Offer and Acceptance

Introduction to Contracts; Overview of Contract Remedies

 

3

7 Mar

Consideration; Equitable Estoppel; Intention

Agreement – Offer and Acceptance

 

4

14 Mar

Certainty and Completeness; Capacity; Requirement of Writing

Consideration; Equitable Estoppel; Intention

 

5

21 Mar

Express Terms

Certainty and Completeness; Capacity; Requirement of Writing

6

28 Mar

Implied Terms; Construction of Terms; Exclusion Clauses

 

Express Terms

 

 

7

4 Apr

 

Misrepresentation; Misleading or Deceptive Conduct; Mistake

 

Implied Terms; Construction of Terms; Exclusion Clauses
    MID-SESSION BREAK  

8

25 Apr

Duress; Undue Influence; Unconscionability

 

Misrepresentation; Misleading or Deceptive Conduct; Mistake

 

9

 

2 May

 

Discharge by Agreement; Discharge by Performance

Duress; Undue Influence; Unconscionability

10

9 May

Discharge by Breach; Discharge by Frustration

Discharge by Agreement; Discharge by Performance

 

11

16 May

Illegality

Discharge by Breach; Discharge by Frustration

 

12

23 May

Privity of Contract; Contracts in Context

Illegality

 

13

30 May

Contract Theory; Exam Preparation

 

Privity of Contract

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
14/03/2022 The date for submission of the Assignment has been changed from 5 April to 20 April. This is to allow the majority of students (online) to have the benefit of the April mid-session tutorials.

Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook