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Sport, Commerce and the Law (LAWS70059)
Graduate coursework level 7Points: 12.5Not available in 2017
Overview
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Sport is both an industry of the modern age and a traditional activity that reaches to the core of the social fabric. Law and sport intersect in many and varied ways, some of which challenge established notions of thinking about law. Sport, Commerce and the Law is the flagship subject of the sports law program, surveying many areas of legal controversy in sport, with particular emphasis on the link between the commercialisation of sport and the emergence of sports law. This subject is the best place to start for students embarking on a program of sports law studies and, for the student with wider interests, the ideal subject through which to sample sports law. The lecturer is an established figure in the field and one of a small number of people in the world with the breadth of knowledge necessary to teach this subject.
This subject considers selected aspects of the relationship between the law and commercial and professional sporting activities. Particular attention is given to legal responses to the commercialisation of sport and how they influence sport.
Principal topics include:
- Athletes’ rights in relation to discipline, sex and racial discrimination, eligibility and selection, and drug use
- Amateurism and professionalism
- Protection and marketing of the athlete’s reputation
- Professional player contracts, including discipline, entitlement in the event of injury, assignment, inducing breach of contracts and remedies for breach
- Club and league structures and franchise ownership
- Advertising and sponsorship arrangements
- The impact of the common law doctrine of restraint of trade and the restrictive trade practices provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)
- Taxation of athletes and clubs
- International sports organisations.
Intended learning outcomes
A student who has successfully completed this subject will:
- Have an advanced and integrated understanding of the specific principles of law and regulation as they apply within the context of sport, including recent developments in these fields of law and practice
- Be able to critically examine, analyse, interpret and assess the effectiveness of these legal principles
- Be an engaged participant in debate regarding emerging and contemporary issues in the field, such as the emergence of sports law as a system of global law and regulation
- Have a sophisticated appreciation of the factors and processes driving parliamentary and sporting body revision of the legal and regulatory framework both domestically and internationally
- Have an advanced understanding of situations in which legal issues may arise in both elite and community based sporting relationships and management practices
- Have an understanding of sports law issues in an international context
- Have the cognitive and technical skills to generate critical and creative ideas relating to sports law, and to critically evaluate existing legal and regulatory theories, principles and concepts with creativity and autonomy
- Have the cognitive and technical skills to independently examine, research and analyse existing and emerging legal issues relating to sport
- Have the communication skills to clearly articulate and convey complex information regarding sports law issues relevant to specialist and non-specialist audiences
- Be able to demonstrate autonomy, expert judgment and responsibility as a practitioner and learner in the field of sport law.
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Recommended background knowledge
Applicants without legal qualifications should note that subjects are offered in the discipline of law at an advanced graduate level. While every effort will be made to meet the needs of students trained in other fields, concessions will not be made in the general level of instruction or assessment. Most subjects assume the knowledge usually acquired in a degree in law (LLB, JD or equivalent). Applicants should note that admission to some subjects in the Melbourne Law Masters will be dependent upon the individual applicant’s educational background and professional experience.
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Assessment
Additional details
10,000 word research paper (100%) on a topic approved by the subject coordinator
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Quotas apply to this subject
Dates & times
Not available in 2017
Time commitment details
The pre-teaching period commences four weeks before the subject commencement date. From this time, students are expected to access and review the Reading Guide that will be available from the LMS subject page and the subject materials provided by the subject coordinator, which will be available from Melbourne Law School. Refer to the Reading Guide for confirmation of which resources need to be read and what other preparation is required before the teaching period commences.
Additional delivery details
This subject has a quota of 30 students. Please refer to the Melbourne Law Masters website for further information about the management of subject quotas and waitlists.
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
Core subject materials will be provided free of charge to all students. Some subjects require further texts to be purchased. Details regarding any prescribed texts will be provided prior to the commencement of the subject.
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Graduate Diploma in Legal Studies Course Graduate Diploma in Sports Law Course Master of Commercial Law Course Master of Laws - Links to additional information
law.unimelb.edu.au
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
Additional information for this subject
If required, please contact law-admissions@unimelb.edu.au for subject coordinator approval.
Last updated: 3 November 2022