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Property (LAWS50030)
Graduate coursework level 5Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable (login required)(opens in new window)
Contact information
Overview
Availability | Semester 1 |
---|---|
Fees | Look up fees |
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: 5 February 2024
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
All of
Code | Name | Teaching period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
LAWS50023 | Legal Method and Reasoning | Summer Term (Dual-Delivery - Parkville) |
12.5 |
LAWS50024 | Principles of Public Law | 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 |
LAWS90140 | Disputes and Ethics | Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville) |
12.5 |
AND
All of
Code | Name | Teaching period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
LAWS50025 | Torts | Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville) |
12.5 |
Note: these can be taken concurrently (at the same time)
Corequisites
Non-allowed subjects
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: 5 February 2024
Assessment
Description | Timing | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Mid-Semester exam
| Mid semester | 20% |
Final examination
| During the examination period | 80% |
Additional details
More information on the above assessments will be available to students via the Assessment Schedule on the LMS Community.
Last updated: 5 February 2024
Dates & times
- Semester 1
Principal coordinator Cait Storr Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 48 hours Total time commitment 144 hours Teaching period 26 February 2024 to 26 May 2024 Last self-enrol date 8 March 2024 Census date 3 April 2024 Last date to withdraw without fail 3 May 2024 Assessment period ends 21 June 2024
What do these dates mean
Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:
- Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
- And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
- Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.
Last updated: 5 February 2024
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
- Brendan Edgeworth, Chris Rossiter, Pamela O’Connor, Andrew Godwin and Leon Terrill, Sackville & Neave: Australian Property Law (LexisNexis Butterworth, 11th ed, 2021); and
- Specialist subject materials will also be made available from Melbourne Law School.
Other materials (may be accessed online at www.legislation.vic.gov.au):
- Transfer of Land Act 1958 (Vic)
- Property Law Act 1958 (Vic)
Recommended texts and other resources
- Anthony Moore, Scott Grattan and Lynden Griggs, Australian Real Property Law (Lawbook Co., 7th ed, 2020)
- Robert Chambers, An Introduction to Property Law in Australia (Lawbook Company, 4th ed, 2019)
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Juris Doctor - 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.
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.
Last updated: 5 February 2024