Public holidays in weeks 3 and 7 will require adjustments to the lecture and seminar program.

In week 3 there will not be a lecture on the Monday. A replacement recorded lecture will be placed on MyUni. Rather than having a substantive lecture and a workshop on line, the recording will be of the substantive law for weeks 3 and 4 and the live lecture time in week 4 will be dedicated to the week 3 and 4 workshops. This arrangement will maximise class time for student questions and participation.

In week 3 there will not be a seminar on Monday. Students enrolled in the Wednesday seminar should attend an alternative seminar for that week only. You do not need to make alternative arrangements in advance. Just attend a class that suits you and introduce yourself to the seminar leader as a courtesy.

In week 7 there will not be a seminar on Wednesday. Students enrolled in the Wednesday seminar should attend an alternative seminar for that week only. You do not need to make alternative arrangements in advance. Just attend a class that suits you and introduce yourself to the seminar leader as a courtesy.

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Analyse the principles of criminal responsibility, undertake self-directed legal research using primary and secondary materials, and analyse and evaluate legal information relating to criminal law and legal theory.
2. Apply principles of criminal law to complex legal problems, and critique the operation of criminal law from both a policy and theoretical/principled perspective.
3. Prepare persuasive written and oral arguments for a legal and lay audience on issues relating to the drafting of new criminal laws and the application of existing criminal laws to common scenarios that arise in criminal practice.
4. Demonstrate awareness of principles of ethical professional judgement in the management and conduct of a criminal law matter, relevant to both prosecution and defence, in an academic environment.
5. Analyse the impact of criminal law from a policy perspective, with a focus on the impact of the law on those people who are vulnerable or outside mainstream culture.
6. Reflect on individual capacity to complete self-directed tasks and to work effectively in teams. Extend their skills by utilising feedback and reflection to drive personal improvement.

The Legal Practitioners' Education and Admissions Council (LPEAC) sets rules for the academic requirements for admission to legal practice in South Australia. Students must demonstrate a satisfactory level of understanding and application of 11 core areas of legal knowledge. This course teaches the following topics within these core areas:

CRIMINAL LAW AND PROCEDURE
1. The definition of crime.
2. Elements of crime.
3. Aims of the criminal law.
4. Homicide and defences.
5. Non-fatal offences against the person and defences.
6. Offences against property.
7. General doctrines.
8. Attempts, strict responsibility.
9. Elements of criminal procedure - classification of offences.

Students will require a copy of:

David Caruso et al, South Australian Criminal Law and Procedure (Lexis Nexis, 2nd ed, 2016)
Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 (SA)

The following text will assist students who seek an alternative view or an extended knowledge of the material covered in the course:

• Simon Bronitt and Bernadette McSherry, Principles of Criminal Law (Thomsons, 4rd ed, 2017)

The following article will assist students to understand the benefits of situational learning through case files:

• Anne Hewitt and Kellie Toole ‘The Practical Knowledge Conundrum: What Practical Knowledge Should Be Included in a Law School Curriculum and How Can it Be Taught? (2013) 25(5) New Zealand Universities Law Review 980

The following websites provide useful information on the South Australian criminal law for the general population and the legal profession:

Legal Services Commission, Law Handbook Online, http://www.lawhandbook.sa.gov.au/
Foolkit: A Lawyer's Toolkit, http://www.foolkit.com.au/sa/lawyers
Court's Administation Authority, http://www.courts.sa.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx

Online Communication

The MyUni Discussion Board will be activated by the start of teaching and will be available until immediately before the primary exam. All questions relating to substantive course content and assessment should be posted on the Discussion Board, rather than emailed to staff. Guidelines on communication, including the use of the Discussion Board, will be posted on MyUni.

Students are expected to check MyUni regularly to keep up to date with announcements during the semester.

Online Learning 

All lectures will be recorded and available on MyUni shortly after the lecture has been delivered (or instead of the recorded lecture in the case of week 3 to accomodate the public holiday). Powerpoint lecture slides will be posted on MyUni before or after the lecture, as appropriate.

Additional recordings may be placed on MyUni thoughout the semester if issues arise that cannot be covered in the scheduled lecture or seminar times.

An online quiz on element analysis is the first compulsory assessment task. Information on the quiz will be provided in advance of the quiz being released.

The problem-based assignment must be submitted online through the Turnitin text-matching software program designed to assist with the detection of plagiarism and other forms of cheating. The problem-based assignment will be marked online and feedback will be available through MyUni.

In general, the first hour of the lecture will be spent in a relatively traditional lecture format explaining the key concepts for the weekly topic. It will involve questioning of students and invite ongoing input from the class. If you are hesitant about asking a question in a big group, there will be a question box available in the break between the lectures so that you can anonymously write a question on a piece of paper for the lecturer to answer in the second half of the lecture session.

The form of the second hour of the lecture will depend on the topic and the lecturer. It may be a traditional lecture format or a workshop that involves a combination of elements such as lecture, film clips, quizzes, class exercises, and process mapping/flowcharts covering the type of scenarios you will encounter in seminars and summative assessment. Some of the time may be spent on skill development such as finding cases and legislation online. It will serve as a bridge between the content presented in the first hour of the lecture and the application of the content to practical exercises in the seminars.

Seminars will run from week 2 to week 13. They will involve application of the law to practical legal problems. They will revolve around two separate scenarios that will be presented as case files that will run across the whole semester and progressively raise issues in the way that they would unfold in a real-world criminal case.

Neither lectures nor seminars are compulsory and lectures will be recorded. Students are encouraged to attend as much contact time as possible to maximise their own learning and to support the learning of other students.

Powerpoint lecture slides will be placed on MyUni either before or after the lecture, as appropriate.

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
In taking this course students are expected to attend 24 hours of lectures and 12 hours of seminars. To get the most from this course and be able to produce written work and oral contributions of a high quality, it is essential that students spend 6-7 hours per week doing the readings, taking notes, thinking about the issues, and preparing questions, answers and discussion points for seminars.

Week	Topic	Lecture A	Lecture B/Workshop	Seminar
1	The Criminal Justice System	Intro and general administration; classification of offences; role of police, prosecutors, judges and victims; federal/state jurisdiction; common law/criminal code.	The court system; sources of law, lawyers and legal responsibilities and ethical issues; crime statistics	No seminar
2	Criminal Law and Responsibility	Difference between civil and criminal law; principles of criminal responsibility.	Aims of the criminal law; social context of crime; research skills – locating criminal cases and legislation	Criminal justice and responsibility
3	Element Analysis/ Homicide –focus on murder *public holiday - recorded only*	Voluntariness and automatism; offences of full fault (mens rea), strict liability and absolute liability.	Physical and fault elements of murder; concept of charge selection. *substantive law on homicide not workshop on element analysis – which will be live in week 4*	Legal rights No Monday seminar – attend alternate class
4	Element Analysis/ Homicide – focus on murder	Workshop on element analysis	Workshop on murder	Element analysis – case file analysis
5	Homicide – focus on manslaughter	Physical and fault elements of manslaughter; concept of alternative verdicts	Workshop on manslaughter	Murder – case file analysis
6	Revision	Revision in preparation for assignment	Revision in preparation for assignment	Manslaughter – case file analysis
7	Offences against the person (non-sexual, non-fatal)	Physical and fault elements of offences of assault, causing harm, causing serious harm; inherent statutory defences; alternative verdicts.	Workshop on assault, causing harm, causing serious harm	Revision inc feedback on element analysis quiz No Wednesday seminar – attend alternate class
8	Defences – focus on self defence	Statutory and common law of defences - focus on self-defence	Workshop on self defence	Assault, cause serious harm and cause harm – case file analysis
9	Dishonesty offences – focus on theft and robbery	Statutory dishonesty offences - focus on theft and robbery	Workshop on theft and robbery; self care and sensitivity in preparation for lecture and seminar on sexual offences	Self defence – case file analysis
10	Sexual Offences – focus on rape	Physical and fault elements for sexual offences – focus on rape	Workshop on rape	Theft and Robbery – case file analysis
11	Attempts	Statutory and common law of attempts	Workshop on attempts	Rape – case file analysis
12	Revision and exam preparation	Revision	Exam preparation	Attempts – case file analysis
13	No lecture	No lecture	No lecture	Revision and exam preparation

There are no additional requirements for completion of this course other than described elsewhere in this document.

None of the assessment tasks are threshold tests i.e. students are able to pass the course overall even if they fail one or more assessment tasks as long as their overall grade is 50% or greater.

There is no small group discovery experience as part of this course.

Assessment Task	Task Type	Due	Weighting	Redeemable	Learning Outcome
Element analysis quiz (45 minutes over 32 hours - compulsory)	Individual	45 minutes any time beteen 9am Friday 30 March to 5pm Sat 31 March	5%	No	1, 2
Problem question - (2,000 words - compulsory)	Individual	27 April 2018 at 5pm	30%	Yes	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Exam (2.5 hours open book - compulsory )	Individual	In semester 1 examination period	65-95%	No	1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Specific instructions on each item of assessment will be made available to students on MyUni.

Problem question 30% or 0%, Compulsory, Redeemable

Each student will be required to answer a problem based question covering the criminal justice system, principles of criminal responsibility and homicide offences. It will be redeemable by performance in the final exam provided that it represents a bona fide effort as determined by the course coordinator. 

A pass in the problem question is not a prerequisite for passing Criminal Law. 

Online Element Analysis Quiz 5%, Compulsory, NOT Redeemable

Each student will be required to complete a multiple-choice online MyUni quiz assessing their knowledge of the principles and application of element analysis. Students will have 45 minutes to complete the quiz during a 32-hour period.

A pass in the quiz is not a prerequisite for passing Criminal Law. 

Examination [60%-90%]

Students will be provided with submission instructions as part of the assessment instructions for each item of assessment which will be made available on MyUni.

Late Submission of Assignments: 5% of the total mark possible will be deducted for every 24 hours or part thereof that it is late, including each day on a weekend. For example, an essay that is submitted after the due date and time but within the first 24 hour period, and that has been graded at 63%, will have 5% deducted, for a final grade of 58%. An essay that is more than 24 hours late will lose 10%, etc. Hard copy submissions made after 5.00pm on a Friday will be assumed to have been submitted on the next business day and will be penalised accordingly.

Word Length: Assignments which exceed the allocated length (word length or page limit) will be subject to a penalty of 5% of total marks possible per 100 words or part thereof (ie with a word limit of 3,000, an essay graded 63% will have 5% deducted if it is 3001 words long, for a final grade of 58%, 10% if it is 3101 words long, etc). Words are calculated including all footnotes and headings within the text but excluding cover page information. Quotations and all referencing information are included in the word count.

Courses for which a result of conceded pass has been obtained may not be presented towards the degree requirements for the Bachelor of Laws or the Honours Degree of Bachelor of Laws programs, or any postgraduate law program, nor to satisfy prerequisite requirements within any law course.

Finality of Assessment Grades

Students are advised that Course Coordinators will not enter into negotiations of any kind with any student regarding changes to their grades. It is irrelevant, in any given circumstance, that only a minimal number of additional marks are required to inflate a student’s grade for any individual assessment item or course as a whole. Pursuant to the University’s Assessment for Coursework Programs Policyand the Adelaide Law School Assessment Policies and Procedures, grades may only be varied through the appropriate channels for academic review (such as an official re-mark).

Moderation

In accordance with the University’s Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy, course coordinators ‘ensure that appropriate marking guidelines and cross-marking moderation processes across markers are in place’ in each course. Procedures adopted by Adelaide Law School to ensure consistency of marking in courses with multiple markers include:

• assurance of the qualifications of markers, and their knowledge of the content covered in each course;
• detailed marking guidelines and assessment rubrics to assist in the marking of items of assessment;
• sharing of example marked assessments at various grade bands across markers;
• reviewing of selected marked assessments from each marker by the course coordinator;
• comparison of the marks and their distribution across markers;
• automatic double-marking of all interim assessment receiving a fail grade, and of final assessments where a student’s overall result is a fail grade;
• the availability of re-marking of assessments in accordance with Adelaide Law School’s Assessment Policies and Procedures.

Approval of Results by Board of Examiners

Students are reminded that all assessment results are subject to approval (and possible moderation/change) by the Law School’s Board of Examiners. Assessment results at the University are not scaled. Under the Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy, students are assessed ‘by reference to their performance against pre-determined criteria and standards … and not by ranking against the performance of the student cohort in the course’. However, under that same policy, the Board of Examiners (as the relevant Assessment Review Committee for courses at Adelaide Law School) is required to ‘ensure comparability of standards and consistency’ in assessment. On occasions, the Board of Examiners will form the view that some moderation is required to ensure the comparability of standards and consistency across courses and years, and accordingly provide fairness to all law students. All assessment results are therefore subject to approval (and possible change) until confirmed by the Board of Examiners and posted on Access Adelaide at the end of each semester.

The University Writing Centre provides academic learning and language development services and resources for local, international, undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students enrolled at the University of Adelaide.

The centre offers practical advice and strategies for students to master reading, writing, note-taking, time management, oral presentation skills, referencing techniques and exam preparation for success at university through seminars, workshops and individual consultations.

Lex Salus Program

Lex Salus (law and wellbeing) is an initiative of the Adelaide Law School aimed at destigmatising mental health issues; promoting physical, mental and emotional wellness; building a strong community of staff and students; and celebrating diversity within the school. It also seeks to promote wellness within the legal profession, through the involvement of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia, the Honourable Chris Kourakis, as the official Patron of the program.

Students can participate in the Lex Salus program by attending barbecue lunches, pancake breakfasts, knitting and crochet circles, seminars, guest speakers, conferences and other activities. Our Facebook page, website and regular all-student emails promote upcoming events, and have tips and information on wellness.

Our Lex Salus YouTube channel also includes videos on topics like managing stress, and interviews with LGBTQ lawyers and their supporters which celebrate diversity and individuality. Students who commit to 10 hours of volunteering with Lex Salus in one year can have their service recognised on their academic transcript and through a thank you morning tea with the Chief Justice and law school staff.

Student Life Counselling Support

The University’s Student Life Counselling Support service provides free and confidential service to all enrolled students. We encourage you to contact the Student Life Counselling Support service on 8313 5663 to make an appointment to deal with any issues that may be affecting your study and life.

Academic Honesty

Academic dishonesty is a serious act of academic misconduct. All students must be familiar with the University’s Academic Honesty Policy.

Academic dishonesty is a serious matter and is treated as such by the Law School and the University. Academic dishonesty (which goes beyond plagiarism) can be a ground for a refusal by the Supreme Court of South Australia to admit a person to practice as a legal practitioner in South Australia.

Academic honesty is an essential aspect of ethical and honest behaviour, which is central to the practice of the law and an understanding of what it is to be a lawyer.