Learning Law

Anthony Marinac is a Lecturer in the law school at James Cook University, and is a partner in a boutique law firm, Pacific Maritime Lawyers. He has previously been Counsel Assisting in Queensland's Office of the State Coroner, a legal officer in the Royal Australian Air Force, and was Director of Research in the Department of the Senate, Parliament House, Canberra. Caroline Hart is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Law and Justice at the University of Southern Queensland. She has taught the core foundational law course, Australian Legal System, for over ten years. Prior to joining the University of Southern Queensland, Caroline provided legal, legislation and policy advice to state governments for over fifteen years, including working on a number of commissions of inquiry. Caroline has provided consultancy training services to state government, and consultancy legal services to private law firms. Caroline has a Ph.D. in Sustainable Regional/Rural Legal Practice, and a Master of Law in government use of information technology. She is a member of the Queensland Law Society, the Downs and Southern Western District Law Society, the Australian Centre for Sustainable Business and Development Centre, the Institute of Resilient Regions, and is a director on the National Rural Law and Justice Alliance. Rhianna Chisholm is an Associate Lecturer at Curtin Law School at Curtin University, Perth. Rhianna has held this position since 2014 and has focused on developing expertise in teaching introductory law units to first year law students. Rhianna has a Bachelor of Laws from Murdoch University and a Master of Laws from the University of Western Australia. She is currently completing her Ph.D. at the University of Western Australia on the effectiveness of court-based diversion in Western Australia. Her research interests include mental health law and capacity, human rights, international law and criminal justice. Jennifer Nielsen is a long-term member of the School of Law and Justice's academic team. She has held several leadership roles in the School including Head of School from 2009-2011, School Director of Research and Research Training 2011-2013, and LLB Course Coordinator from 2005-2007. As well as being an active researcher, she has taught across the School's undergraduate curriculum, teaches into the LLB Honours program , and is a principal Supervisor to a number of PhD candidates. Asmi Wood is the Interim Director of the National Centre for Indigenous Studies (NCIS) at The Australian National University (ANU), Canberra and Professor at the ANU College of Law. He was made a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2017, was the recipient of the OLT Australian Award for University Teaching: Neville Bonner Award for Indigenous Education in 2015, and also the ANU Vice-Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence in 2010. Adrian Evans is Professor of Law and Associate Dean, Academic Resourcing at Monash Law School, as well as a recipient of the Monash Vice-Chancellor's Award for Distinguished Teaching. He has extensive teaching experience, legal practice and research histories in clinical case supervision, moral development and legal ethics. Adrian has published in relation to ethics for lawyers and law firms, the notion of 'quality' in clinical experience, client attitudes to lawyers, the values of legal practitioners, monitoring and controlling lawyer corruption, and the ethical environment, in which lawyers' fidelity compensation is addressed locally and internationally. Adrian is currently exploring the emerging links between legal ethics, AI's value systems and climate defence. Sarah McKibbin is a Lecturer in the School of Law and Justice at the University of Southern Queensland. Sarah teaches a first year foundational course, Legal Writing and Research, and two later year electives, Private International Law and International Family Law. She is currently completing her PhD at the University of Southern Queensland on the history and future of public policy in private international law. Before joining the University of Southern Queensland. Sarah practised as a solicitor at a law firm in regional Queensland.

Part I. Law, Lawyers and Justice: 1. Welcome to the Law; 2. History and justice; 3. First Peoples and the Law; Part II. Legal Institutions: 4. Parliamentary Institutions; 5. The Courts; Part III. Learning the Laws: 6. Categories of Law; 7. Statute Law; 8. The Common Law; 9. Understanding Statutes; Part IV. Research and Persuasion: 10. Frameworks for Legal Thinking; 11. Equality, Difference and Law 12. Analysing and Persuading; 13. Finding the Law; 14. Grappling with Facts; Part V. Profession and Community: 15. The Ethical Lawyer; 16. Lawyers and Clients; 17. Becoming a Lawyer.