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Disability Human Rights Clinic (LAWS90004)

Graduate courseworkPoints: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)

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Overview

Availability(Quotas apply)
November
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Disability Human Rights Clinic will analyse and report on rights violations experienced by people with disabilities and will propose solutions. The clinic will have an interdisciplinary focus bringing together the fields of disability studies and international human rights law.

Students will undertake 12 days of clinical work at Melbourne Law School. Students will participate in a range of clinical projects including legislative submissions, amicus briefs, shadow reporting, and others. Students will be taught lawyering skills in persuasive writing, organisational collaboration, and advocacy.

The clinical work will be complemented by 18 hours of seminars (1.5 hours each clinic day). Through lecture and discussion, students will acquire substantive knowledge in international human rights law, disability rights law and disability studies. During the classes, students will also reflect on their ongoing clinical experience.

Intended learning outcomes

A student who successfully completes this subject will be able to analyse and reflect critically and meaningfully on:



  • The practical, interpersonal, technical skills and ethical awareness needed to practise effectively in a team of legal researchers, including in the areas of collaborative work, research, communication, file management and organisation;
  • their capacity for learning from experience;
  • the sources, breadth and effectiveness of the laws for addressing the challenges faced by individuals with a disability;
  • the parameters of human rights frameworks in the context of the disability movement; The application of disability human rights frameworks to legal regimes;
  • the most effective methods for conducting legal research in international human rights databases and sources;
  • best practice techniques for the production of policy and legal documents that analyse and apply disability human rights;
  • the availability and appropriate use of legal processes and different areas of law to a variety of client problems;
  • the capacity and role of law and lawyers to create social, economic and political change;
  • the multi-disciplinary approaches to clients’ dilemmas – including recognition of the non-legal aspects of clients’ problems and the ethical responsibilities of legal practitioners in advising across these non-legal aspects; and
  • effective methods for collaboration with external stakeholders including Disabled People's Organisations, international NGOs, civil society organisations and international human rights bodies (e.g. United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities).

Generic skills

Upon successful completion of the subject, students will have developed and demonstrated the following skills:

  • Thinking skills, including the ability to gather information, understand interests and context, apply knowledge and convey complex legal concepts to a non-legal audience in a way that is useful and effective;
  • applied research skills, including the ability to identify, research, evaluate and synthesise relevant factual, legal and policy issues in the context of a complex and emerging area of law;
  • legal practice skills, including critical legal analysis, legal writing and drafting of policy documents;
  • personal and professional skills, including learning autonomously, being accountable for one’s work, self-reflection on performance and ethical professional conduct and development;
  • skills required for effective workplace performance, such as communication, time management, co-worker collaboration and office organisation; and
  • research and reflection skills, the ability to engage in high-level analysis and critical reflection, and to develop and articulate legal reform ideas for social change based on theoretical and empirical knowledge of the operation of the law.

Last updated: 3 November 2022

Eligibility and requirements

Prerequisites

Only approved applicants can enrol into this subject.

Successful completion of all the below subjects:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS50023 Legal Method and Reasoning
Summer Term (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50024 Principles of Public Law
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50025 Torts
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50026 Obligations
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50028 Constitutional Law
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50029 Contracts
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50030 Property
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
LAWS50031 Legal Theory
December (On Campus - Parkville)
July (On Campus - Parkville)
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
Summer Term (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

and

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS50027 Dispute Resolution
Not available in 2024
 12.5
or
Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS90140 Disputes and Ethics
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

Corequisites

None

Non-allowed subjects

Students who have completed the below subject are not permitted to take LAWS90004 Disability Human Rights Clinic:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS90087 Disability Human Rights Law
May (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

Recommended background knowledge

Students would benefit from having completed the below subject:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS50049 International Human Rights Law
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

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

  • Supervised one hour open-book exam (30%) approxiamately one week past teaching period;
  • Clinical project, 3,000 words prepared during clinical work (50%) due at the conclusion of the teaching period;
  • Reflective writing, 1,000 words (20%) due approximately two weeks post teaching period.

The due dates of the above assessment will be available to students via the Assessment Schedule on the LMS Community.

Last updated: 3 November 2022

Quotas apply to this subject

Dates & times

  • November
    Principal coordinatorAnna Arstein-Kerslake
    Mode of deliveryOn Campus (Parkville)
    Contact hours12 full days (96 hours) of clinical work plus 18 hours of timetabled classes
    Total time commitment170 hours
    Pre teaching start date 4 November 2019
    Pre teaching requirementsStudents 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.
    Teaching period25 November 2019 to 13 December 2019
    Last self-enrol date11 November 2018
    Census date29 November 2019
    Last date to withdraw without fail20 December 2019
    Assessment period ends10 January 2020

    November contact information

    Graduate Services Coordinator (Work Integrated Learning)

    Email: law-wil@unimelb.edu.au
    Phone: +61 3 8344 4475
    Website: law.unimelb.edu.au

Additional delivery details

This subject has a quota of 20 students. Applicants are selected through a competitive application process. Please refer to the JD LMS Community for more details.

Last updated: 3 November 2022

Further information

  • Texts

    Prescribed texts

    • Philip Alston and Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights (Oxford University Press 2013).
    • Specialist materials will also be made available from Melbourne Law School.
  • Related Handbook entries

    This subject contributes to the following:

    TypeName
    CourseJuris Doctor

Last updated: 3 November 2022