Course Title: Taxation Strategies and Issues for Investors

Part A: Course Overview

Course ID: 002981

Course Title: Taxation Strategies and Issues for Investors

Credit Points: 12

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
JUST1075	City Campus	Postgraduate	615H Accounting & Law	Distance / Correspondence	Sem 1 2006, Sem 2 2006, Sem 2 2007

Course Coordinator: John McLaren

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 99255716

Course Coordinator Email: John.mclaren@rmit.edu.au

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

Students should have completed the Course :Legal and Professional Framework -JUST1076.

Students are expected to have an basic understanding of the Australian legal system and the application of statutory law and common law. Students should be able to comprehend and communicate information in accurate, clear, concise and coherent language.

Course Description

The taxation system is one of the most significant and pervasive influences on the financial planning process. Every aspect of a client’s affairs will be affected to some extent by taxation provisions. Consequently, a financial planner must have a basic knowledge of the fundamental aspects of Australian taxation law. This subject is designed to provide students with a working knowledge of the main components of the Australian tax system.

The course aims to provide financial planners with a sound understanding of the principles of taxation in relation to income tax for individuals, companies and trusts. The course considers the provisions of the Income Tax Assessment Acts of 1936 and 1997 and gives emphasis to the issues of assessable income and allowable deductions in respect of both the common law as well as statutory provisions.

Students undertaking the course will further develop their legal skills in reading, understanding and applying complex and dynamic legislation, case material and taxation rulings. This involves development of the student’s ability to analyse legal problems and to express ideas in a precise manner. These skills, together with the appropriate legal knowledge, are essential for financial planners as well as for other business professionals. While aspects of legal knowledge are continually changing, the development of generic legal skills will enable financial planners to keep abreast of changes in the law and be in a position to provide appropriate advice.

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

On completion of this course, you should be able to:

• show an appreciation of the role and purpose of the legislative framework of the Income Tax Assessment Acts 1936 and 1997 and the general scheme by which these Acts operate
• understand the underlying principles of taxation law and how to apply these in various situations
• identify and apply relevant sections of legislation and principles of case law
• exercise skills in legal methodology in selected areas of taxation law
• effectively research electronic databases and internet resources relevant to taxation law and extract meaningful information
• develop awareness of how changes in taxation law may affect business practice and the provision of advice.

Successful completion of this Course means that you should be able to:

Understand and interpret relevant legal principles of taxation law and apply these principles to a variety of taxable entities and situations. 

In addition, the course provides an opportunity for you to develop generic capabilities. These include the ability to:

Apply these principles to hypothetical legal situations
Read and comprehend legislation
Read and comprehend relevant common law
Conduct effective legal research
Critically analyse legal problems and make judgements in the provision of sound, reasoned advice
Communicate analysis and reasoning in a written format which is precise and uses appropriate legal terminology

Overview of Learning Activities

To achieve the objectives and the development of the capabilities of this course requires you to participate in various learning activities. These activities comprise the following: 


• Participation in internet chat disicussions on technical issues raised by students on the Learning Hub
• Reading and studying the recommended textbooks, reading material and where necessary appropriate internet sites and data bases.
• Link the topic material in the course guide to the prescribed and recommended texts and then read and study the textbooks and where necessary appropriate internet sites and data bases.
• Formulation of legal argument and discussion of taxation issues arising from the topic material contained in the technical modules.
• Engaging in legal research including by means of searching electronic legal databases, internet resources and taxation law journals.

Overview of Learning Resources

Students will be advised of the prescribed texts for this course and other reading materials upon enrolment.

Distributed Learning System (DLS)
This course is supported online using the Learning Hub of the DLS. The DLS gives access to important announcements, staff contact details, the teaching schedule, assessment timelines and a variety of important teaching and learning materials. The Learning Hub of the DLS can be found at http://www.rmit.edu.au/online

Overview of Assessment

The assessment is normally a take home exam research exam.