LAW4158 Indigenous peoples and the law
Faculty of Law
LAW4158 Indigenous peoples and the law is a level 4, 6-credit-point, undergraduate unit from the Faculty of Law. It isn't offered in 2025. It has no prerequisites.
- Credit points
- 6
- Offered in 2025
- Not offered
- Assessment
- Exam 40%
- and 2 other tasks
- Workload
- 144 hours
- per semester
This is the 2025 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Requisites
Before LAW4158
Prohibitions
You can't enrol if you have passed any of these.
After LAW4158
No unit lists LAW4158 as a prerequisite in the 2025 handbook.
Enrolment rules
You must have completed at least 60 credit points of law study.
Equivalent units
The same content under another code. Only one of them counts.
Overview
The legislative control, 'protection' and disempowerment experienced by indigenous Australians and the historical, comparative and contemporary contexts of their experiences in and with the Australian legal system. Laws and policies concerning identity, dispossession, protection and assimilation are examined. Over-representation of indigenous people within the criminal justice system, Deaths in Custody and stolen generations. Land rights, the Mabo and Wik cases, and the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth). Human rights and the role of international law, self determination, reconciliation and law reform.
Offerings in 2025
The 2025 handbook lists no offerings for LAW4158.
Assessment
- Research paperWritten50%
- Take home examExamination40%
- Class ParticipationDemonstration10%
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
Define, interpret and reflect upon the common law, constitutional and statutory framework that has applied to indigenous peoples of Australia, and particularly of Victoria;
- 2
Identify, analyse and elucidate the relevant principles, laws and precedents and apply them to resolve issues relating to indigenous clients;
- 3
Critically assess policies and principles relating to Indigenous people in order to promote a fair justice system recognising past and present injustices;
- 4
Demonstrate an advanced understanding of the intellectual and practical skills needed to interpret legal conclusions and professional decisions, as well as to identify, research, evaluate and synthesise relevant factual, legal and policy issues;
- 5
Demonstrate an advanced understanding of the legal research and writing, and legal argument skills by undertaking systematic research into legal policy, rules, procedures and comparative perspectives relating to indigenous peoples and interests; and
- 6
Demonstrate developed skills of oral presentation of legal policy, rules and argument in an interactive learning context
Workload and teaching
- Seminars36 hours
- Teaching approachActive learning
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. The unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.
Learning resources
Required resources
See the Moodle unit page for prescribed and recommended resources. Prescribed texts are usually available for purchase through the University Bookstore and are sometimes available for short-term loan or as eBooks through the library.
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for LAW4158?
LAW4158 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.
When is LAW4158 offered?
LAW4158 has no offerings listed in the 2025 handbook.
How much work is LAW4158?
The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does LAW4158 have an exam?
Yes. The exam is worth 40% of the final mark, alongside 2 other tasks.