LAW4311 Succession law
Faculty of Law
LAW4311 Succession law is a level 4, 6-credit-point, undergraduate unit from the Faculty of Law, offered in 2025 in Semester 2 at Clayton. It needs LAW4170, LAW3402 and LAW3111.
- Credit points
- 6
- Offered in 2025
- Semester 2
- Clayton
- Assessment
- Exam 60%
- and 1 other task
- Workload
- 144 hours
- per semester
This is the 2025 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Requisites
Before LAW4311
Prohibitions
You can't enrol if you have passed any of these.
Prerequisites
Pass these before you enrol.
After LAW4311
No unit lists LAW4311 as a prerequisite in the 2025 handbook.
Enrolment rules
You must have completed at least 60 credit points of law study inclusive of the listed pre-requisites.
Overview
This unit deals with the administration and distribution of property of deceased persons. It covers rules of intestacy, testamentary capacity and intention; the formal element for making, altering and revoking a will; the professional duties of lawyers in the drafting and execution of wills and the management of deceased estates; persons eligible to be appointed executors; types of grants of representation; methods of proving a will; the vesting of assets in an executor or administrator; the classification of gifts by will and the doctrines affecting such gifts; the powers and duties of executors and administrators; and the distribution of net assets to beneficiaries or next of kin. It is designed to impart the fundamental areas of legal knowledge and principles and the contexts within which legal issues arise.
Offerings in 2025
| Teaching period | Campus | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| Second semester | Clayton | On campus |
Assessment
- AssignmentWritten40%
- Take home examExamination60%
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
Explain how the property of a deceased person will be distributed if the person has not made a valid will disposing of all of their property.
- 2
Document the requirements for a valid will, and assess a variety of circumstances to determine whether a particular will is valid.
- 3
State how wills are altered, revoked, revived and republished.
- 4
Describe circumstances where formalities can be circumvented.
- 5
Classify and determine the validity of various testamentary dispositions.
- 6
Identify the people who are eligible to make a family provision claim and describe how the courts will deals with such a claim.
- 7
Outline the various different types of grants of representation, and explain how an estate is administered.
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.
Contacts
- Chief Examiners
- Dr Susan Barkehall Thomas
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for LAW4311?
You need LAW4170, LAW3402 and LAW3111 before you enrol. Enrolment rules also apply.
When is LAW4311 offered?
In 2025, LAW4311 runs in Semester 2 at Clayton.
How much work is LAW4311?
The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does LAW4311 have an exam?
Yes. The exam is worth 60% of the final mark, alongside 1 other task.