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Consumer Law (BLAW20003)
Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
For information about the University’s phased return to campus and in-person activity in Winter and Semester 2, please refer to the on-campus subjects page.
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
Summer Term
Philip Clarke, Coordinator
Contact Stop 1
Please refer to the LMS for up-to-date subject information, including assessment and participation requirements, for subjects being offered in 2020.
Overview
Availability | Summer Term |
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Fees | Look up fees |
This subject examines the principal components of Australian consumer law. Parts 1 and 2 survey the relevant law and consider the purpose and policy issues associated with protecting consumers. Parts 3-9 then focus on the protections created by the Australian Consumer Law (ACL), the enforcement of those protections and the remedies available to consumers should suppliers not comply with them. It has a practical orientation, designed to assist consumers to know, understand and pursue their rights.
Topics include:
1. Scope
• Overview of consumer protection in Australia
• The Australian Consumer Law regime (ACL)
• Who are consumers?
• International comparisons
2. Purpose and economics of consumer protection
• The policy objectives of the ACL
• Indigenous consumer policy
• The costs and merits of consumer protection
3. Misleading conduct and false representations
• Misleading or deceptive conduct
• False or misleading advertising
• False or misleading representations
• Scams
4. Unconscionable or unfair conduct or terms
• Unfair practices
• Unconscionable conduct
• Unfair contract terms
• Unfair pricing or prices
5. Consumer transactions
• Guarantees for goods and services
• Supplier warranties
• Door to door transactions
• Lay-by agreements
• Gift cards
• Proof and billing
6. Product safety and liability
• Safety standards and bans
• Information standards
• Manufacturers’ liability
7. Financial services and credit
• Scope and operation of the ASIC Act
• Regulation of consumer credit
8. Electronic transactions
• Jurisdictional issues
• Social media and website liability
• Online auctions
• Electronic contracting
9. Enforcement and remedies
• Public enforcement
• Industry codes
• Consumer remedies
Intended learning outcomes
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Explain the policy objectives that underpin consumer protection legislation;
- Examine different forms of business behaviour with a view to identifying consumer protection law issues;
- Undertake statutory interpretation;
- Analyse and apply case law; and
- Construct and communicate a written legal argument based on understanding the facts, identifying the issues, analysing the applicable law and applying the law to the facts.
Generic skills
Students who successfully complete this subject will develop the following generic skills:
- The capacity for close reading and analysis of a range of sources;
- The capacity to communicate, both orally and in writing;
- The capacity to participate as a member of a team;
- The capacity to plan and manage time; and
- The capacity to solve problems, including through the collection and evaluation of information.
In addition, on completion of the subject, students should have developed the following skills specific to the discipline of law:
- Capacity to solve competition and consumer law problems by collecting and evaluating information from a variety of sources;
- Communicate solutions to competition and consumer law problems both orally and in writing;
- Ability to work in groups to solve competition and consumer law problems; and
- Critically analyse materials in a classroom setting.
Last updated: 11 April 2024