Students

LAWS5060 – Environmental Law

2025 – Session 1, Online-scheduled-weekday

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Convenor
Shawkat Alam
Contact via ilearn
Room 214, 17 WW
Wednesday 12-1pm
Lecturer
Georgia Cam
Contact via ilearn
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
(130cp in LAW or LAWS units) or (130cp including ENVS2467 or ENV267)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit introduces students to the specialised and burgeoning area of environmental law on both the national and international stage. It evaluates the effectiveness of current environmental law in the context of ongoing and emerging challenges. The unit adopts a multidisciplinary perspective to help augment understanding of the complexity of environmental challenges and enhance the analysis of relevant legislation and case law. 

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: Identify the major global and Australian environmental challenges.
  • ULO2: Describe key ethical and multidisciplinary perspectives on the environment. 
  • ULO3: Apply environmental law at multiple governance scales, taking into account contextual factors. 
  • ULO4: Analyse the capacity of different forms of environmental regulations to manage environmental challenges. 

General Assessment Information

Please consult the unit iLearn page for detailed instructions for assessments in this unit.

Class participation

This assessment is about active engagement in tutorials; not mere attendance. Contributing to tutorial discussions and tutorial exercises throughout the entire semester will be the primary activity marked for this assessment. Online contributions to the weekly discussion forums can add to the class participation, not replace it - except when absence from a tutorial is notified in advance and approved as justified. 

All written assessments submitted electronically must be submitted through the link provided in iLearn. This unit will utilise Turnitin plagiarism detection software. Students should carefully check that they submit the correct file for an assessment, as re-submissions will not be accepted after the due date and time, including instances where students upload an incorrect file in error. The design, moderation and feedback of all assessments is in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Procedure (link provided under ‘Policies and Procedures’ below).  

Late Submission Policy A maximum penalty of five (5) percentage points of the total possible marks will be applied per day to late submissions, for up to a maximum of seven calendar days. Tasks that have not been submitted within the maximum number of additional late days will receive a mark of zero. This provision does not apply to online exams or other assessment with a time limit of less than 24 hours. Penalties for late submission will be applied consistently and equitably to all students enrolled in the unit. Where short-term, serious and unavoidable circumstances have affected their ability to submit an assessment task, a student must submit a formal application for Special Consideration as per the Special Consideration Policy. Students should not request an informal arrangement from their tutor, lecturer or Unit Convenor.  

Where an application for Special Consideration is approved, and the outcome is an extension to the due date of a task, submissions that are received after the new due date will be subject to late penalties that are calculated from the new due date. This only applies where the outcome is an extension to the due date – see the Special Consideration Policy for a schedule of all possible outcomes.  

Special Consideration Students should submit applications for Special Consideration electronically via the Service Connect portal, along with the supporting documentation. Before submitting their applications, students should refer to the Special Consideration Policy (link provided under ‘Policies and Procedures’ below).

 

 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Professional Skills 10% No Ongoing
Research Essay 50% No 13/04/2025
Take home assessment 40% No 01/06/2025

Professional Skills

Assessment Type 1: Practice-based task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 0 hours
Due: Ongoing
Weighting: 10%

 

Students will engage in classroom activities including mooting, presentations or demonstrations, structured discussion and problem solving, doctrinal analysis, simulated client consultations, and collaborative legal research. Through these activities students will develop skills in oral advocacy, legal analysis, critical reasoning, teamwork and team leadership, and/or strategic problem-solving. These activities are designed to strengthen students' ability to communicate legal concepts verbally and engage professionally within a supportive learning environment.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify the major global and Australian environmental challenges.
  • Describe key ethical and multidisciplinary perspectives on the environment. 

Research Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 13/04/2025
Weighting: 50%

 

Students will prepare a research essay that analyses a topic of environmental law.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Describe key ethical and multidisciplinary perspectives on the environment. 
  • Apply environmental law at multiple governance scales, taking into account contextual factors. 

Take home assessment

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 01/06/2025
Weighting: 40%

 

Students will submit responses to questions based on a hypothetical scenario

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify the major global and Australian environmental challenges.
  • Apply environmental law at multiple governance scales, taking into account contextual factors. 
  • Analyse the capacity of different forms of environmental regulations to manage environmental challenges. 

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

Delivery

Tutorials will commence in Week 2 and conclude in Week 13. Please consult the official timetable. Students are expected to watch pre-recorded weekly lectures that will be made available for each week in Echo 360 via the iLearn unit page.

Students are expected to have prepared for the tutorials by watching the lecture and reading the prescribed materials for that week, and preparing any tutorial execises assigned for that week on iLearn. Active participation in tutorials is assessed. This unit is worth 10 credit points, which equates to 150 hours of work. Therefore, students should expect to commit an average of 10 hours per week to this unit, including all scheduled and unscheduled activities and preparing and executing the assessment tasks.

Resources

Required textbook: Gerry Bates, Environmental Law in Australia (11th ed., 2023, LexisNexis).

Additional readings may be prescribed through iLearn.

Students require access to a computer, internet with decent speed and a secure/reliable server. The iLearn page contains all Unit requirements and a weekly schedule for teaching, readings and tutorials. Information about all assessment tasks is also available on iLearn

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 connect.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/

Academic Success

Academic Success 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 the Service Connect Portal, 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.


Unit information based on version 2025.02 of the Handbook