Course Title: Apply legal principles in contract and consumer law
Part B: Course Detail
Teaching Period: Term1 2017
Course Code: LAW5732C
Course Title: Apply legal principles in contract and consumer law
School: 650T Vocational Business Education
Campus: City Campus
Program: C5347 - Diploma of Accounting
Course Contact: Ben Sethia
Course Contact Phone: +61 3 9925 5982
Course Contact Email: ben.sethia@rmit.edu.au
Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff
Leanne Ryan
Available by appointment only.
If you require an appointment, please email the details of your query, and the days and times you are available to meet.
I will respond to you asap to organise an appropriate appointment time.
Nominal Hours: 60
Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.
Pre-requisites and Co-requisites
None
Course Description
This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to research, analyse and apply legal principles to provide advice on contract and consumer law implications to clients.
It applies to individuals whose job role involves the application of knowledge of contract and consumer law in the workplace.
Work functions in the occupational areas where this unit may be used are subject to regulatory requirements. This unit is designed to meet educational requirements of the Tax Practitioner Board (TPB). Refer to the FNS Implementation Guide Companion Volume or the relevant regulator for specific guidance on requirements.
National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria
National Element Code & Title: |
FNSTPB503 Apply legal principles in contract and consumer law |
Element: |
1. Research legal aspects of contract and consumer law |
Performance Criteria: |
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Element: |
2. Analyse legal issues and risks associated with operation of a business |
Performance Criteria: |
2.1 Identify areas of risk in application of law in contract and consumer matters 2.2 Analyse how legal issues impact on different types of business structures and legal entities 2.3 Evaluate relevance to client circumstances and implication of risks for structure, operation and performance of different legal entities |
Element: |
3. Apply knowledge of contract and consumer laws to client circumstances |
Performance Criteria: |
3.1 Collect and collate client’s available information for analysis 3.2 Interpret, analyse and process available information to obtain required knowledge applicable to client’s circumstances 3.3 Seek advice and guidance of specialist, if required, to interpret, analyse and synthesise client and legal information 3.4 Provide advice to clients based on their circumstances and relevant law |
Element: |
4. Maintain legal knowledge |
Performance Criteria: |
4.1 Review client's circumstances and apply any changes in relevant aspects of contract or consumer law 4.2 Review relevant legal sources regularly and apply any changes in daily work 4.3 Access and use systems for keeping up with changes and maintaining up-to-date knowledge about relevant legal aspects of contract or consumer law
|
Learning Outcomes
Details of Learning Activities
A range of learning activities are planned for this course including self-paced and collaborative classroom based activities.
The self-paced activities will be delivered through various technology platforms and include your contribution to discussion threads, reflective journals, quizzes and interactive sessions.
The collaborative classroom based activities will include group discussion, group problem solving activities and opportunities to practice your skills in a simulated/real workplace environment.
You are expected to participate and contribute in all scheduled learning activities.
Teaching Schedule
Induction Session
Prior to training commencement a program level induction session will be conducted that comprises the following:
- Program overview and requirements
- MyRMIT/Blackboard
- Overview of assessment requirements
- Pre-Training Review including:
- Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfers
- Assessment of current skills and knowledge
- Competency/Grading Criteria
- Plagiarism
- Appeals
- Extensions
- Feedback
- Privacy
- Submission requirements
- Resubmission policy
- Where to get support
- Student responsibilities
The Teaching Schedule for this course is as follows but please note that it is subject to change.
| Week | Week Commencing | Topics | Assessment |
| 1 | 06/02/2017 |
Introduction to the course, including:
|
|
| 1 | 06/02/2017 | Introduction to Law and the Australian Legal System | |
| 2 | 13/02/2017 | Introduction to Contract Law; Introduction to Australian Consumer Law (ACL) | Assessment 1 distributed. Due week 5 |
| 3 | 20/02/2017 | Contract Formation: Elements of a Contract; Intention to Create Legal Relations; Agreement - offer and acceptance | |
| 4 | 27/02/2017 | Contract Formation: Consideration; Capacity of Parties | |
| 5 | 06/03/2017 | Legality; illegal contracts | Assessment 1 due |
| 6 | 13/03/2017 | Contract Terms: Express and Implied Terms |
|
| 7 | 20/03/2017 | Exemption (Exclusion) clauses | Assessment 1 returned. Feedback. |
| 8 | 27/03/17 |
Vitiating Factors: void and avoidable contracts
|
Assessment 2 distributed. Due week 11 |
| 9 | 03/04/17 | Discharge of contracts and remedies | |
| 10a | 10/04/17 | In class work on assessment task 2 | |
| 10b | 17/04/17 | In class work on assessment task 2 | |
| 11 | 24/04/17 | Law of Agency | Assessment 2 due |
| 12 | 01/05/17 | Australian Consumer Law - misleading and deceptive conduct | |
| 13 | 08/05/17 | Misleading and deceptive conduct | Assessment 2 returned; feedback |
| 14 | 15/05/17 | Revision | |
| 15 | 22/05/17 | Final assessment | Assessment 3 - supervised in class open book assessment |
| 16 | 29/05/17 | Re-assessment/re-sits |
The nominal hours associated with this are a guide only and represent the total teaching time and student effort required to successfully complete the course. This may include not only scheduled classes but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.
Learning Resources
Prescribed Texts
There are no prescribed texts for this course |
References
www.comlaw.gov.au |
|
Local Newspapers eg., The Age Newspaper, Victoria, Australia |
|
www.consumer.vic.gov.au (Consumer Affairs, including Fair Trading) |
|
www.austlii.edu.au (Resource of Australian and international legal materials, including cases and law) |
|
www.accc.gov.au (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) |
|
www.accc.gov.au (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) |
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www.australiancompetitionlaw.org |
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www.asic.gov.au (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) |
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www.justice.vic.gov.au |
|
Latimer, P. Australian Business Law, 2016, Oxford University Press |
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www.justice.vic.gov.au |
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Limbiris, M & Griffin, L. First Principles of Business Law, 2017, Oxford University Press |
Other Resources
Overview of Assessment
In order to achieve competency in this unit, you must provide:
Performance Evidence
Evidence of the ability to:
- research for any changes to, or new, legislative requirements in relation to contract or consumer law relevant to the client’s circumstances
- apply current statute, common law and equitable principles in relation to contract and consumer laws that are relevant to the client’s circumstances
- present a recommendation to the client after considering the client’s circumstances and relevant aspects of contract and/or consumer laws
Knowledge Evidence
To complete the unit requirements safely and effectively, you must:
- explain the operation of the Australian legal systems and processes relevant to contract and consumer law including:
- basic principles, current statute, common law and equitable principles
- roles and responsibilities of key organisations
- constitutional considerations
- separation of powers
- basic principles of contract law
- basic principles of the law of torts, particularly relating to negligence and negligent misstatement
- courts and regulatory bodies
- explain how laws are enacted and their underlying policy aims, and how those laws may be interpreted by existing common law and equitable rules, and apply to property laws
- examine legal concepts and scope of contract law with reference to:
- formation – agreement and intention to create legal relations
- formation – consideration, form, legality and capacity
- contents – express terms, exclusion clauses
- contents – implied terms, common law and statute (Commonwealth and state competition and consumer legislation)
- vitiating elements – unconscionability, misrepresentation, capacity
- discharge – remedies, including rescission for unconscionable conduct
- agency
- describe legal concepts and scope of consumer law
- misleading and deceptive conduct:
- function of the Competition and Consumer Act
- role and jurisdiction of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
Assessment Conditions
Assessment must be conducted in a safe environment where evidence gathered demonstrates consistent performance of typical activities experienced in the tax and legal fields of work and include access to:
- office equipment, technology, software and consumables
- relevant legislation, regulations and codes of practice
You are advised that you are likely to be asked to personally demonstrate your assessment work to your teacher to ensure that the relevant competency standards are being met.
Feedback
Feedback will be provided throughout the semester in class and/or online discussions. You are encouraged to ask and answer questions during class time and online sessions so that you can obtain feedback on your understanding of the concepts and issues being discussed. Finally, you can email or arrange an appointment with your teacher to gain more feedback on your progress.
You should take note of all feedback received and use this information to improve your learning outcomes and final performance in the course.
Assessment Tasks
Overview of Assessment
The assessments for this course have been designed to allow participants to apply their learning to particular simulated work scenarios and demonstrate their competence in a variety of ways.
TASK 1 (Due Date: Week 5 )
For this assessment task you are required to work in pairs to research the function of the Competition and Consumer Act, and how it applies to business and the consumer. You will be required to write a report that is to be presented to your work colleagues, explaining a recent situation (not more than six months previous) where the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has enforced consumer protection provisions of the Act.
TASK 2 (Due Date: Week 11)
For this assessment task you are required to answer a hypothetical advice question (case study) whereby you will review a client's circumstances and provide advice based on their circumstances and relevant law.
TASK 3 (Due Date: During class time, week 15)
For this assessment task you will be required to answer short advice type questions in class, under supervised open book conditions.
You must successfully complete all assessment tasks to achieve competency.
Assessment Matrix
The assessment matrix that maps all the assessment is available on Blackboard.
Other Information
Submission Requirements
You should:
• Ensure that you submit assessments on or before the due date.
• Always retain a copy of your assessment tasks. (hard copy and soft copy)
• When you submit work for assessment at RMIT University you need to use a cover sheet that includes a declaration and statement of authorship. You must complete, sign and submit a cover sheet with all work you submit for assessment, whether individual or group work. On the cover sheet you declare that the work you are presenting for assessment is your own work. An assignment cover sheet for submission of each assessment task is available on blackboard.
• Each page of your assessment should include footer with your name, student number, the title of the assessment, unit code and title and page numbers. For example, Leanne Ryan, 234567, Task 2, LAW5732C Contract and Consumer Law, Page 1 of 10.
Late Submission Procedures
You are required to submit assessment items and/or ensure performance based assessment is completed by the due dates.
If you are prevented from submitting an assessment item on time, by circumstances outside your control, you may apply in advance to your teacher for an extension to the due date of up to seven calendar days.
More Information: http://www.rmit.edu.au/students/assessment/extension
Form to use: http://mams.rmit.edu.au/seca86tti4g4z.pdf
Where an extension of greater than seven days is needed, you must apply for special consideration. Applications for special consideration must be submitted no later than two working days after the assessment task deadline or scheduled examination.
More Information: http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse;ID=g43abm17hc9w
Form to use: http://mams.rmit.edu.au/8a5dgcaqvaes1.pdf
Resubmissions (VET Programs):
If you are found to be unsuccessful in a Course Assessment Task you will be allowed one resubmission only. Your teacher will provide feedback regarding what you need to do to improve and will set a new deadline for the resubmission. The highest grade you will receive if your resubmission is successful is “CAG”.
If you are still not meeting the assessment requirements you must apply to your Program Manager in writing outlining the steps you will take to demonstrate competence in your course. Your submission will be considered by the Program Team and you will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible.
Adjustments to Assessment
In certain circumstances students may be eligible for an assessment adjustment. For more information about the circumstances under which the assessment arrangements might be granted please access the following website:
More Information: http://rmit.edu.au/browse;ID=7usdbki1fjf31
Marking Guide (Competency):
You must demonstrate that you have all the required skills/knowledge/elements in the unit of competency you are studying.
You will receive feedback on each assessment task that will inform you about your progress and how well you are performing.
Marking Guide (Grading)
After achieving competency we then grade your performance in the unit and you will achieve one of the following grades:
Final Grades table:
CHD Competent with High Distinction
CDI Competent with Distinction
CC Competent with Credit
CAG Competency Achieved – Graded
NYC Not Yet Competent
DNS Did Not Submit for assessment
Further information regarding the application of the grading criteria will be provided by your teacher.
Course Overview: Access Course Overview