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Property (LAWS50030)
Graduate coursework level 5Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
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Overview
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This subject introduces students to the principles of real property in Australian law and examines the role of property law in defining and regulating relationships between private individuals, between the Crown and the public, and between the Crown and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Topics include:
- the concept of property in historical, social and political context, including the origins of property in the English common law and the role of property law in the colonisation of Australia;
- foundational common law concepts of property, including possession and title;
- the fragmentation of proprietary interests in land, including the doctrines of tenure and estates;
- an overview of the legislative regime governing adverse possession of property;
- the history of Australian property law including the acquisition of radical title, Crown powers to deal with land, and the introduction of the Torrens system;
- attempts to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights to land in Australian law, including an overview of the native title framework;
- the nature, acquisition, disposal, enforceability and registration of proprietary interests in land under the Torrens system of title by registration;
- the nature, creation, disposal and enforceability of equitable property interests;
- various categories of non-possessory interests in land, including security interests, easements, and profits á prèndre; and
- rules for deciding priority between valid but conflicting interests in real property.
Intended learning outcomes
By the end of this subject, students should be able to:
- Critically examine and discuss property law, including its historical development, key concepts, and its role in defining various social relationships;
- Apply legal rules and analyse complex property law problems, including the acquisition and disposal of proprietary interests and resolution of disputes;
- Critically evaluate policy issues related to property rights, recognise diverse judicial and theoretical approaches, and assess the social and political implications of key issues in property law;
- Recognise and, where relevant, apply the intersections between property and other areas of law, such as contract, tort, equity, and environment and planning law;
- Present legal analysis, arguments, and conclusions in a structured and clear manner; and
- Apply and adapt legal method and reasoning to solve complex property law problems in familiar and novel legal contexts.
Generic skills
On completion of the subject, students should have developed the following generic skills:
- attitudes towards knowledge that include valuing a rigorous approach to research and the presentation of information, openness to new ideas and ethics associated with knowledge creation and usage;
- the capacity for close reading and analysis of a range of primary and secondary sources;
- the capacity for critical and independent thought and reflection;
- the capacity to solve problems, including by collecting and evaluating information;
- the capacity to communicate effectively in a range of oral and written formats;
- the capacity to plan and manage time; and
- intercultural sensitivity and understanding.
In addition, on completion of the subject, students should have developed the following skills specific to the discipline of law:
- case reading and analysis, including an ability to:
- extract key legal meanings and rules from judgments;
- reconcile or distinguish judgments;
- evaluate the development of legal principles; and
- apply legal principles arising from case law and statutes to new situations.
- legal analysis and problem solving, including an ability to:
- identify legal issues arising in complex fact situations;
- identify and apply relevant legal, equitable and statutory principles; and
- provide advice as to the rights and obligations of the parties.
- reading, interpreting and analysing statutes and their application to given factual situations; and
- legal research and writing skills, including an ability to:
- locate current primary legal sources and to interpret the relative authority of the primary sources;
- find relevant and topical secondary sources;
- use case law, statutes and secondary sources as an effective component of legal analysis and commentary;
- identify and summarise legal principles and evaluate their relevance in given contexts;
- evaluate the significance and implications of judgments and issues to which they relate in applied and contextual exercises; and
- present an appropriately structured and well supported complex legal argument in written form.
Last updated: 8 November 2024