LAW5443 Language, communication and legal process
Faculty of Law
LAW5443 Language, communication and legal process is a level 5, 6-credit-point, postgraduate 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 50%
- and 3 other tasks
This is the 2025 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Requisites
Before LAW5443
No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.
After LAW5443
No unit lists LAW5443 as a prerequisite in the 2025 handbook.
Enrolment rules
For Legal Studies students (L4004, L5004, L6013) you must have completed LAW5000 or LAW5081
and
For Juris Doctor students (L6005), you must have completed 72 credit points of study.
Overview
Legal process depends on language, oral and written. This unit focuses on the role and the effectiveness of language in the legal process.
Topics studied include:
- the history and complexity of legal language;
- language in statutes, contracts and other instruments and its interpretation;
the plain language movement;
- the importance of language in investigation and preparation (police cautions and interviews, lawyer interviews, preparation of witness statements and affidavits);
- language in courtroom and other proceedings (examination of witnesses;
- communication with juries, oral and written submissions);
- language in mediation;
- communication with people without English or with low competency in English (interpreters, unrepresented litigants, cross-cultural communication, Aboriginal people, children); and
- linguists as experts (authorship identification, voice recognition, phonetics, language identity, suicide notes and ransom notes etc, trade marks).
Offerings in 2025
The 2025 handbook lists no offerings for LAW5443.
Assessment
- Class ParticipationDemonstration10%
- Presentation30%
- Topic ReflectionWritten10%
- Take home examExamination50%
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
Apply knowledge and understanding of the way in which legal language has developed, and of current developments, and use that knowledge and understanding creatively and with initiative in a variety of legal processes and work settings;
- 2
Investigate, analyse and synthesise complex information, problems, concepts and theories in relation to approaches to statutory construction and in relation to other forms of legal communication, such as interviews, transcripts, evidence, affidavits and arguments;
- 3
Evaluate critically the effectiveness of different forms of legal communication and language in varied adversarial and non-adversarial settings, including courts, tribunals and mediations, and with interpreters, non-standard English speakers and expert witnesses;
- 4
Recognise and evaluate critically issues of communication in judges' direction to juries, questioning of witnesses and oral and written arguments;
- 5
Conduct research and present original work in relation to legal language and communication based on knowledge of appropriate research principles; and
- 6
Use cognitive, technical and creative skills to generate and evaluate at a high level of competence, complex ideas and concepts relevant to legal language and methods.
- 7
Critically reflect on and clearly articulate the rationale of topic construction within personal and professional contexts.
Workload and teaching
- Workshops24 hours
- Teaching approachActive learning
24 contact hours per teaching period (either intensive, semi-intensive or semester long, depending on the Faculty resources, timetabling and requirements). Students will be expected to do reading set for class, and to undertake additional research and reading applicable to a 6 credit point unit.
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.
Where it fits
LAW5443 is part of 1 area of study in the 2025 handbook.
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for LAW5443?
LAW5443 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.
When is LAW5443 offered?
LAW5443 has no offerings listed in the 2025 handbook.
Does LAW5443 have an exam?
Yes. The exam is worth 50% of the final mark, alongside 3 other tasks.
Which majors and minors include LAW5443?
LAW5443 is part of Dispute resolution.