Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

School: SOPHI

Department/Program: Philosophy

Unit of Study: PHIL2645 Philosophy of Law

Session: Semester 1, 2014

Unit of Study Outl ine

Unit Coordinators

Unit coordinators are listed on undergraduate and postgraduate coursework semester timetables, and can be consulted for help with any difficulties you may have.

Unit coordinators (as well as the Faculty) should also be informed of any illness or other misadventure that leads students to miss classes and tutorials or be late with assignments.

Unit Coordinator: Yarran Hominh Location: TBA Email address: yarran.hominh@sydney.edu.au Consultation Hours: By appointment

Unit Tutor: Ben Cross Location: TBA Email address: bcro8137@uni.sydney.edu.au Consultation Hours: By appointment

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Unit Tutor: Jeevan Hariharan Location: TBA Email address: jeevan.hariharan@sydney.edu.au Consultation Hours: By appointment This Unit of Study Outline MUST be read in conjunction with the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Student Administration Manual (sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/student_admin_manual.shtml) and all applicable University policies. In determining applications and appeals, it will be assumed that every student has taken the time to familiarise themselves with these key policies and procedures.

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PHIL2645 Philosophy of Law

UNIT DESCRIPTION

This unit focuses on the relationship between the self and law: what does law mean for us, as subjects of that law? We shall examine how this relationship is conceptualized through fundamental issues in the philosophy of law, including the nature of law, the problem of legal obligation, the relationship between law and morality, and the rule of law and legal rights, as well as specific contemporary issues in the philosophy of law, including the legitimacy of criminal punishment, legal pluralism and the asylum seeker question.

We will consciously take a critical standpoint on the law. In taking this standpoint, the unit will be structured both historically and conceptually. In the first half of the course, we shall trace one standard historical narrative of the development of the concept of law from Plato and Aristotle until contemporary times. The second half of the course will consider various challenges to this standard narrative in an attempt to assess the current ways in which the law structures our lives and our personal and political relationships. In particular, we will focus on how law acts on various oppressed or marginalised groups.

The course will not take a doctrinal approach to law. However, the broader philosophical issues will be addressed through particular (largely contemporary) Australian and international case studies. Prior knowledge of law or legal systems is not required.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The expected outcomes of this unit of study are that:

Students will gain an appreciation of the questions and problems posed by the fact we live in a society governed by law;

Students will understand the relationships between law, morality, philosophy, history and politics;

Students will be able to explain, broadly, the development of our modern concept of law;

Students will be able to relate the questions considered in this course to their own lives as citizens and as individuals; and through these

Students will gain an understanding of themselves as essentially involved in the creation and use of law, and will develop their own identities in relation to these processes.

LEARNING STRUCTURE

One two-hour lecture per week, plus one one-hour tutorial per week. Students are expected to attend lectures and tutorials weekly. Doing the readings and active participation in tutorials is crucial to proper engagement with the course and achievement of the course objectives. Fisher Special Reserve, general library and online resources including online discussion boards will be available to students. Independent study is an expected part of student preparation.

Students will be given tutorial activity sheets during the lecture of that week, and are expected to have read the material for the tutorial.

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UNIT SCHEDULE Semester One Week Week

beginning Lecture Tutorial

1 03 March Introduction What is philosophy of law? What is the relationship between philosophy (the self) and law (society)? This lecture will address the above question, which will be the central theme of the course. Readings: Selections from Sophocles, Antigone and Milirrpum & Ors v Nabalco Pty Ltd [1971] 17 FLR 141 (The Gove Land Rights Case) Additional reading: HLA Hart, Ch 1 of The Concept of Law (1961), Three Persistent Questions (in Special Reserve)

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2 10 March History of the Concept of Law I, Plato to Bentham The lectures for weeks 2 and 3 will set out key concepts for the course through a (brief) historical overview of the development of law from the Greeks onwards. In this lecture, we will look at the historical development of the two main theories of law: legal positivism and natural law. These theories will be elucidated through the works of Plato and Aristotle, Aquinas, social contract theory in the English Civil War, and the American Revolution. Readings: Selections from Plato, Republic and Aristotle, Politics; Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologicae (1265-74), Q90 Of the Essence of Law Additional readings: Declaration of Independence; Aquinas, Summa Theologicae (1265), QQ90-92; Blackstone, Introduction, Commentaries on the Law of England (1770); Friedrich, Chs III-VI, VIII-XII, The Philosophy of Law in Historical Perspective (1958); Mary

Gove Land Rights Case (1971) The Gove Land Rights Case held that Aboriginal nations in the Northern Territory although they had law did not have native title in their tribal lands. The case was later overturned by the famous Mabo case in 1992. We will examine this case in light of the concepts from the first two weeks lectures.

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Wollstonecraft, Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792); The Declaration of Sentiments (1848)

3 17 March History of the Concept of Law II, Austin to the present This weeks lecture will focus on the central debate in legal philosophy of the 20th century, between HLA Hart and LL Fuller in the Harvard Law Review. This debate set the tone for legal philosophy as it is practiced today. We will also consider how the historical concepts dealt with in week 2 have been explicated in modern legal philosophy. Readings: HLA Hart, Legal Positivism and the Separation of Law and Morals (1958), Pts I-II, IV-V; LL Fuller, Positivism and Fidelity to Law (1958), Pts I-V. Additional readings: HLA Hart, Ch 5 of The Concept of Law, Law as the Union of Primary and Secondary Rules (1961); LL Fuller, Ch 2 of The Morality of Law (1965); Lacey, Philosophy, Political Morality, and History: Explaining the Enduring Resonance of the Hart-Fuller Debate (2008) 83 NYU Law Review 1059; Dworkin, The Model of Rules, in Taking Rights Seriously (1977); Soper, Some Natural Confusions about Natural Law (1992) 90(8) Michigan Law Review 2393; Bix, Natural Law Theory, in Patterson (ed), A Companion to Philosophy of Law and Legal Theory; Finnis, Natural Law and Natural Rights (1980)

The case of the Grudge Informer, and the Nuremberg Trials (1945) The Nuremberg trials inaugurated a new era of international human rights law. However, it was also clearly an example of victors justice. How does Harts analysis of the Grudge Informer case apply to the Nuremberg trials? Could the Nazis claim they were acting in the name of a higher moral law?

4 24 March Legal Obligation We consider whether or not we have an obligation to obey the law, and what this question tells us about our relationship to the law. We begin with the arguments Socrates makes in the Crito for obeying the law, even in the face of death. Readings: Plato, Crito Additional readings: RP Wolff, In Defense of Anarchism (1970); Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience (1849); Martin Luther King, I Have A

Nelson Mandelas Speech from the Dock (1964) We analyse the rhetoric in Mandelas famous Speech from the Dock, where he outlined his justification for the acts of sabotage he committed in apartheid South Africa.

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Dream (1963); Simmons, Moral Principles and Political Obligation (1979)

Was Mandela justified in disobeying the law?

5 31 March Rule of Law and the Separation of Powers What is the rule of law, and how does it help answer the question of why we should obey the law? We look at this question, and the challenges posed to the rule of law by the need for interpretation of the law. Who interprets the law, and how should they interpret the law? Reading: Alan Norrie, A Brief History of the ancient juridical city of Fictionopolis (2001); Ann Scales, Ch 1 of Legal Feminism, Rule of Law (2006) Additional readings: Hart, Positivism and the Separation of Law and Morality; Fuller, Positivism and Fidelity to Law; Schauer, Formalism (1988) 97(4) Yale Law Journal 509; Holmes, The Path of the Law (1897) 10 Harvard Law Review 457.

Al-Kateb (2004) In the (in)famous case of the stateless Palestinian asylum seeker, Ahmed Ali Al-Kateb, the High Court of Australia held 4-3 that the Migration Act allowed for indefinite detention of stateless asylum seekers without charge. We look in particular at the debate between Justices McHugh and Kirby as to the role of the judge.

6 07 April Optional essay plan due

Legal interpretivism The most famous (and controversial) modern theory of legal interpretation is that of Ronald Dworkin. Dworkin argues law itself is an interpretive concept; law by its very nature is thoroughly a matter of interpretation. Importantly, Dworkin claims that this interpretation requires a community; that is, the problem of interpretation leads us again to the nature of the relationship between the self and the law. Readings: Ronald Dworkin, Hard Cases (1977) Additional readings: Dworkin, Ch 6 of Laws Empire (1986), Integrity; Dworkin, Objectivity and Truth (1996) 25(2) Philosophy and Public Affairs 87; Altman, Legal Realism, Critical Legal Studies, and Dworkin (1986) 15(3) Philosophy and Public Affairs 205.

Monis v The Queen (2013) In this case, the High Court had to consider whether vitriolic hate mail sent to the families of Australian soldiers, who had died in Iraq and Afghanistan, was protected by the freedom of political communication in the Australian Constitution.

7 14 April* Critical comment

Legal Realism/Critical Legal Studies Unlike Dworkin, who emphasises how law approaches a higher morality; how

Citizens United (2008)/Unions NSW funding case

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due it works itself pure, the legal realists of the 1920s and the critical legal scholars of the 1980s saw the ways in which law did not serve moral goals, but rather acted as a tool of oppression and marginalisation. These theorists raise the critical question of whether our law really is a good thing, and if not, what we can do to change it. Reading: Allan Hutchinson and Patrick Monahan, Law, Politics, and Critical Legal Studies (1984), Pts I, III, V Additional readings: Altman, Critical Legal Studies (1990); Roberto Unger, The Critical Legal Studies Movement (1983), sections I, II, VI-VII; Leiter, Rethinking Legal Realism: Toward a Naturalised Jurisprudence (1997) 76(2) Texas Law Review 267; Fuller, American Legal Realism (1934) 82(5) University of Pennsylvania Law Review 429; Miles and Sunstein, The New Legal Realism (2008) 75 University of Chicago Law Review 831.

(2013) In these two cases, the US Supreme Court and the Australian High Court found separately that non-human persons (ie corporations and corporate associations) were protected by the free speech provisions of the respective constitutions. This meant corporations were able freely to donate money to political campaigns.

BREAK 21-25 April SESSION BREAK / EASTER 8 28 April Legal Pluralism

So far in the course, we have looked at law as a single object: a legal order characterised by the rule of law. Each society has its own law. This concept of law, as we saw, has been embedded in the historical development of law. In this lecture, we begin to question this presupposition. Is it true that law is a unity? Can law be plural? Can more than one legal order exist within a given social grouping? Must law be dominant over other forms of social ordering? What room is there for alternate forms of law within the modern nation-state? Reading: Margaret Davies, The Ethos of Pluralism (2005) Additional readings: Tamanaha, Understanding Legal Pluralism: Past to Present, Local to Global (2008) 30 Sydney Law Review 375; Merry, Legal Pluralism (1988) 22 Law and Society

The Archbishop of Canterbury and Sharia law (2008) The ex-Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, gave a controversial speech in 2008 on the acceptance of elements of Islamic Sharia law in the UK. The British conservative papers branded him as a terrorist apologist. What should be the relationship between a Western democratic legal system and religious law?

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Review 869; An Naim, Islamic Foundations of Human Rights in Witte and van der Vyer (eds), Religious Human Rights in Global Perspective (1996); Mir-Hosseini, Muslim Womens Quest for Equality (2006) 32(4) Critical Inquiry 629; Hirschl, Constitutional Courts v Religious Fundamentalism (2004) 82 Texas Law Review 1819; Tully, Strange Multiplicity: Constitutionalism in an age of diversity (1995).

9 05 May Essay due

Legal Feminism Akin in many ways to critical legal studies and legal pluralism, feminist critiques of law focus on the way in which law can be oppressive, in the feminist case, oppressive (in the first instance) to women. We will examine these issues through Catharine MacKinnons seminal critique of key legal concepts: autonomy; consent; rule of law. How does law act to circumscribe and define what it means to be a woman? What might a distinctively feminist jurisprudence look like? Reading: Catharine MacKinnon, Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: Toward a Feminist Jurisprudence (1988) Additional readings: MacKinnon, Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: An Agenda for Theory (1982) 7(3) Signs 515; Nedelsky, Reconceiving Autonomy (1989) 1 Yale Journal of Law and Feminism; Naffine, In Praise of Legal Feminism (2002) 22 Legal Studies 71; Sunstein, Feminism and Legal Theory: Review of Feminism Unmodified (1988) 101(4) Harvard Law Review 826

DPP v Morgan (1975) This famous English case decided that honest belief in consent to sexual intercourse was a defense against rape charges, even where that belief was wholly unreasonable. WARNING: this weeks tutorial and lecture will deal with sensitive material. We will endeavour to do so in a caring and open way. Please let teaching staff know (preferably prior to the week) if you feel you may have issues with this material.

10 12 May Responsibility in Law Following MacKinnons critique of consent and autonomy, we examine the legal treatment of responsibility, and the concept of the person that underlies these doctrines. Under what circumstances would we hold someone, at law, responsible for his or her actions? What sort of

Bugmys case and Mundas case (2013) In these two cases, the High Court found that a disadvantaged background continued to be relevant to ongoing

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mitigating circumstances can be taken into account? What relationship is there between legal responsibility and moral responsibility? Reading: JL Austin, A Plea for Excuses (1956) Additional reading: Lacey, In Search of the Responsible Subject (2001) 64(3) The Modern Law Review 350; Greenawalt, Distinguishing Justifications from Excuses (1986) 49(3) Law and Contemporary Problems 89; Duff, Towards A Theory of Criminal Law? (2010) 84 Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society (Supp) 1-28; H.L.A. Hart, Punishment and Responsibility (1968)

offending, and that disadvantage did not disappear over time. What sorts of considerations should be taken into account in assigning Bugmy and Munda responsibility?

11 19 May Legal Punishment Having outlined how the law conceptualises responsibility, we move to examine the ways in which the institution of legal punishment structures our relationship to each other, and to the law. We will consider questions such as: is punishment necessary to law? What (if anything) justifies punishing wrongdoers? What role does punishment play in terms of defining who forms part of a society and who does not? What rights do those who are punished have? Readings: Selections from Friedrich Nietzsche, Book II of Genealogy of Morals (1887) and Jacques Derrida, Force of Law (1990) Additional readings: Cover, The Violence of the Word (1985) 95(8) Yale Law Journal 1601; Hampton, The Moral Education Theory of Punishment (1984) 13(3) Philosophy and Public Affairs 208; Norrie, Crime, Reason and History: A critical introduction to criminal law (2001)

R v Brown (1994) In this case, the UK House of Lords convicted a group of men for engaging in consensual sadomasochistic sex wholly in the privacy of their own homes. How can we understand this judgment in terms of standard conceptions of privacy and autonomy? What other considerations may be said to underlie this decision?

12 26 May Citizenship and Immigration The previous few weeks have dealt implicitly with the theme of inclusion and exclusion: who is included in a society, who is left out, and what role does law play in this dialectic of

Australian refugee cases We look at the history of refugees in Australia, and some of the recent

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inclusion and exclusion? In this lecture we bring this aspect of the law to the fore, through looking at legal citizenship. What does it mean to be a citizen? What requirements are there for citizenship? Who decides who is to be a citizen and who is not? What happens to those who are prevented from becoming citizens? Can citizenship be made universal? Reading: Iris Marion Young, Polity and Group Difference (1989) Additional readings: Bosniak, Universal Citizenship and the Problem of Alienage (2000) 21 Immigration and Nationality Review 373; Kymlicka and Norman, The Return of the Citizen (1994) 104 Ethics 352; Tully, The Crisis of Global Citizenship (2009) Radical Politics Today; Shachar, On Citizenship and Multicultural Vulnerability (2000) 28(1) Political Theory 64

High Court cases in the area. Does the way we treat refugees, as others, reflect on the relationships we have with each other, as citizens?

13 02 June Rights Most of the discussions in this course can be framed in terms of rights: the right to life; to free speech; to health; to property. But what are rights, and to what extent must or should they be framed in legal terms? We look at formal and substantive theories of rights, and examine whether or not rights require legalisation, in particular, through a Bill of Rights. Reading: Waldron, A Rights-Based Critique of Constitutional Rights (1993) Additional readings: Michael Kirby, A Bill of Rights for Australia But do we need it? (1995) 21 Commonwealth Law Bulletin 276; Waldron, Rights in Conflict (1989) 99(3) Ethics 503; Patapan, Competing Visions of Liberalism: Theoretical underpinnings of the Bill of Rights debate in Australia (1997) 21 Melbourne University Law Review 497

Bill of Rights? In this final tutorial, we examine the debate over a Bill of Rights in Australia. Should we have a Bill of Rights, and if so, what form should it take? What rights should be included? To whom should they apply? Who should decide when rights come into conflict?

STUVAC 09 June STUVAC Take home due EXAMS 16 June EXAM PERIOD commences

* NB: Public holidays on Friday 18 April, Friday 25 April, Monday 09 June.

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READING REQUIREMENTS

All required readings will be available from the Copy Centre. Additional readings that are books will be available in Fisher Special Reserve; journal articles will be accessible online through the Librarys eReadings system and other online materials will be on Blackboard.

ONLINE COMPONENTS

Lecture notes, tutorial activities, all assessment materials, and any other relevant materials will be made available through the units Blackboard. There will also be a unit discussion board, participation on which will count towards your course participation mark.

This unit requires regular use of the Universitys Learning Management System (LMS), also known as Blackboard Learn. You will need reliable access to a computer and the Internet to use the LMS.

The easiest way to access is through MyUni (click on the MyUni link on the university home page, http://sydney.edu.au or link directly to the service at https://myuni.sydney.edu.au/. There is a BlackBoard LMS icon in the QuickLaunch window on the left hand side of the screen.

If you have any difficulties logging in or using the system, visit the Student Help area of the LMS site, http://sydney.edu.au/elarning/student/help/.

Mobile Learn

You can also access your LMS sites via the Sydney Uni App for iPhone and Android. The full set of features available on the mobile app for the University LMS can be found in detail in this PDF document: Features in the mobile App for the University LMS (PDF)

To download the University of Sydney mobile app directly to your phone or mobile device you need to be able to access the marketplace associated with your device's operating system.

iTunes store on your iPhone/ iPod touch or iPad

Play Store or the Android Marketplace (depending on the phone's OS)

BlackBerry App World on your BlackBerry smartphone device

Palm App Catalog on your HP webOS device

Once you are at the marketplace or app store:

1. Search for University of Sydney

2. Install the app

3. Open the app and click on the icon 'Bb Learn' to access the LMS

4. Login to the LMS with your UniKey and password.

Important: due to the limitations of mobile devices you cannot submit assignments using the assignment tool. You should not complete graded tests (quizzes) using your mobile device due to the possibility of internet drop out.

The Universitys Privacy Management Plan governs how the University will deal with personal information related to the content and use of its web sites. See http://sydney.edu.au/privacy.shtml for further details.

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ASSESSMENT TASKS AND DUE DATES Participation & 5x weekly reflections 20% Throughout semester Optional essay introduction/plan & criticism (5%) Due 8/15 April 2014 2000 word essay 40% Due 6 May 2014 2000 word final take home exam 40% Due 13 June 2014

Weekly reading summaries and tutorial participation (half a page, 20%) Students must hand in short critical reflections on 5 weeks readings. These reflections are to be around half a page to a page; no more. They are not intended to be comprehensive summaries of the details of the readings; rather, they are meant to focus on one idea or issue dealt with in the reading. The reflections are to be handed in during tutorials, and are intended to form the basis for participation in those tutorials.

These reflections will be worth 2% each. Students have latitude to decide upon which weeks readings they reflect.

Tutorial participation will be marked on attendance, evidence of reading, class contribution and courtesy towards and listening to others. Mere attendance without contribution will not be sufficient to pass this component of the course.

The 20% mark will normally comprise 10% reading summaries and 10% tutorial participation. Students are expected to participate fully in tutorials; however, discretion may be given to students who may have qualms about speaking up in class. In these cases, the reading summaries may form a larger percentage of the final mark.

Essay (2000wd, 40%) The essay will be on material from the first eight weeks. There will be a choice of essay questions, each of which will cover at least 2 weeks material. Students will have the option of writing their own question, which must again refer to at least 2 weeks material. The purpose of these essays is to make a sustained critical argument as an answer to the question, drawing on the material.

Essays are not intended to be simple summaries of the material; rather, they should put forward a particular point of view and defend that point of view.

Optional essay introduction/plan and criticism (500wd/250wd, 5%) Students will have the option of writing a ~500 word introduction/essay plan for the longer essay. This plan will be submitted both to the markers and to a fellow student (who also submitted an essay plan) for comment (~250wd). The critical comment is to be handed back within one week. The purpose of this is twofold: first, for the student submitting the essay plan to have some early feedback on their ideas; second, for the student commenting on the essay plan to both sharpen their own ideas and to critically evaluate the work of another. This peer marking process, while critical, should be undertaken in a generous and helpful spirit, and not primarily for the purpose of nitpicking.

Students who hand in an essay plan will receive both the markers comments and the comments from their peer marker. Students are advised that more feedback generally leads to higher essay marks. The 5% for the essay plan and criticism will form part of the 40% for the essay.

Take-Home Exam (2000wd, 40%) The take-home exam will take the form of a critical response to two questions relating to the final part of the course. The exam will comprise three questions, of which students must choose two. Each question will require reference to multiple weeks readings, mainly from weeks 8-13. Answers should show a detailed understanding and critical evaluation of the

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course material and the ability to draw connections between the different parts of the course.

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA This unit uses standards referenced assessment for award of assessment marks. Students assessment will be evaluated solely on the basis of students achievement against criteria and standards specified to align with learning outcomes. For reference to criteria and standards, please consult the grade descriptors for the Department of Philosophy at http://sydney.edu.au/arts/philosophy/undergrad/grade_descriptors.shtml.

CHANGES TO GRADE CODES IN 2014 As the University moves to adopt a new online student management system in 2014, there will be some changes to the grade codes that are used to report on your results. This will not affect the standards you are expected to meet in order to achieve a Pass, Credit, Distinction or High Distinction grade, but your academic transcript may look a little different from mid-year onwards.

The University will keep students updated on the timing of these changes throughout the year. You can also check in with the Ask Sydney website for help with understanding the common grade codes that appear on your academic transcript.

SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK

Compliance Statements All students are required to submit an authorised statement of compliance with all work submitted to the University for assessment, presentation or publication. A statement of compliance certifies that no part of the Work constitutes a breach of Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy.

The format of the compliance statement will differ depending on the method required for submitting your work (see Assessment Submission below). Depending on the submission method, the statement must be in the form of:

a. a University assignment cover sheet; b. a University electronic form; or c. a University written statement.

Assessment Submission Written work must be submitted both online via the Blackboard site for this Unit of Study, and in hard copy at the SOPHI Office (Lobby H, level 3, Quadrangle) by 4pm on the due date. The hard copy is the primary submission, and late penalties will apply to that version. The online copy is a backup in case your hard copy is lost or misplaced. Online tasks must be completed by 11.59pm on the due date.

You must complete, sign and attach a cover sheet/compliance statement to any written work handed in for assessment.

Essays and assignments not submitted on or before the due date are subject to penalty. Refer to http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/late_work.shtml for the Policy on Late Work.

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY AND PLAGIARISM

Academic honesty is a core value of the University. The University requires students to act honestly, ethically and with integrity in their dealings with the University, its members, members of the public and others. The University is opposed to and will not tolerate

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academic dishonesty or plagiarism, and will treat all allegations of academic dishonesty or plagiarism seriously.

The Universitys Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy 2012 and associated Procedures are available for reference on the University Policy Register at http://sydney.edu.au/policies (enter Academic Dishonesty in the search field). The Policy applies to the academic conduct of all students enrolled in a coursework award course at the University.

Under the terms and definitions of the Policy,

academic dishonesty means seeking to obtain or obtaining academic advantage (including in the assessment or publication of work) by dishonest or unfair means or knowingly assisting another student to do so.

plagiarism means presenting another persons work as ones own work by presenting, copying or reproducing it without appropriate acknowledgement of the source.

The presentation of another person's work as one's own without appropriate acknowledgement is regarded as plagiarism, regardless of the authors intentions. Plagiarism can be classified as negligent (negligent plagiarism) or dishonest (dishonest plagiarism).

An examiner who suspects academic dishonesty or plagiarism by a student must report the suspicion to a nominated academic in the relevant faculty. If the nominated academic concludes that the student has engaged in dishonest plagiarism or some other sufficiently serious form of academic dishonesty, the matter may be referred to the Registrar for further disciplinary action under the terms of the Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy 2012 and Chapter 8 of the University of Sydney By-Law 1999 (as amended).

SPECIAL CONSIDERATION

The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences assesses student requests for assistance relating to completion of assessment in accordance with the regulations set out in the University Assessment Policy 2011 and Assessment Procedures 2011. Students are expected to become familiar with the Universitys policies and Faculty procedures relating to Special Consideration and Special Arrangements.

Students can apply for:

Special Consideration - for serious illness or misadventure

Special Arrangements - for essential community commitments

Simple Extension an extension of up to 5 working days for non-examination based assessment tasks on the grounds of illness or misadventure.

Further information on special consideration policy and procedures is available on the Faculty website at http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/special_consideration.shtml.

OTHER POLICIES AND PROCEDURES RELEVANT TO THIS UNIT OF STUDY

The Facultys Student Administration Manual is available for reference at the Current Students section of the Faculty Website (http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/). Most day-to-day issues you encounter in the course of completing this Unit of Study can be addressed with the information provided in the Manual. It contains detailed instructions on processes, links to forms and guidance on where to get further assistance.

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STAYING ON TOP OF YOUR STUDY

For full information visit http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/staying_on_top.shtml

The Learning Centre assists students to develop the generic skills, which are necessary for learning and communicating knowledge and ideas at university. Programs available at The Learning Centre include workshops in Academic Reading and Writing, Oral communications Skills, Postgraduate Research Skills, Honours, masters Coursework Program, Studying at University, and Workshops for English Language and Learning. Further information about The Learning Centre can be found at http://sydney.edu.au/stuserv/learning_centre/.

The Write Site provides online support to help you develop your academic and professional writing skills. All University of Sydney staff and students who have a Unikey can access the WriteSite at http://writesite.elearn.usyd.edu.au/.

The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences has units at both an Undergraduate and Postgraduate level that focus on writing across the curriculum or, more specifically, writing in the disciplines, making them relevant for all university students. To find out more visit http://sydney.edu.au/arts/teaching_learning/writing_hub/index.shtml and http://sydney.edu.au/arts/teaching_learning/pg_writing_support/index.shtml.

In addition to units of study on writing, The FASS Writing Hub offers drop-in sessions to assist students with their writing in a one-to-one setting. No appointment is necessary, and this service is free of charge to all FASS students and/or all students enrolled in WRIT units. For more information on what topics are covered in a drop-in session and for the current schedule, please visit

http://sydney.edu.au/arts/teaching_learning/writing_hub/drop_in_sessions.shtml.

Pastoral and academic support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students is provided by the STAR Team in Student Support services, a dedicated team of professional Aboriginal people able to respond to the needs of students across disciplines. The STAR team can assist with tutorial support, mentoring support, cultural and pastoral care along with a range of other services. More information about support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students can be found at http://sydney.edu.au/current_students/student_services/indigenous_support.shtml.

The Library offers students free, online tutorials in library skills at http://sydney.edu.au/library/skills. There's one designed especially for students studying in the Humanities and Social Sciences at http://sydney.edu.au/library/subjects/subject.html. And don't forget to find out who your Faculty Liaison Librarians are.

OTHER SUPPORT SERVICES

Disability Services is located on Level 5, Jane Foss Russell Building G20; contact 8627 8422 or email mailto:disability.services@sydney.edu.au. For further information, visit their website at http://sydney.edu.au/stuserv/disability/.

Counselling and Psychological Services (CAPS) are located on Level 5, Jane Foss Russell Building G20; contact 8627 8433 or email mailto:caps.admin@sydney.edu.au. For further information, visit their website at http://sydney.edu.au/current_students/counselling/.