Research and Postgraduate study within
the Faculty of Law
Contents
Overview
The broad research objectives of the Law School are:
- To foster and maintain a research culture informed
by national and international standards, and
- To provide high quality research training programs
that suitably prepare candidates for careers as researchers.
The Law School has a very active research program, and
is one of the highest ranked faculties in the country
in terms of research publications per staff. Research
performance measured in high output is central to the
achievement of the Law School’s mission. This is reflected
in the number of scholarly books and refereed journal
articles produced by Law School staff.
The research activity of the Law School is fostered by
the presence of two specific centres of legal scholarship:
the Centre for Law and Genetics, and the Tasmania Law
Reform Institute.
- Centre for Law and Genetics – A number of members
of faculty are involved in this centre, the main aim
of which is to investigate bio-ethical matters and
the legal implications arising from use of new technologies.
The Centre is at the forefront of research into issues
such as the legal standards in the commercialisation
of human genetic technology.
- Tasmania Law Reform Institute – The Institute was
established in July 2001 with a mission to undertake
law reform work and research on topics proposed by
the State Government, the community, the University
and the Institute itself. Recent activity has included
projects looking at a Charter of Rights for Tasmania, Drug Counts, Contempt of Court, sentencing trends and options,
the role of victims and the community in the sentencing
process, corporate manslaughter, vendor disclosure,
intoxication as a defence to criminal charges, police
powers of arrest, bail and an evidence project on
trial judges’ directions to juries in relation to
delayed complaint in sexual offences cases.
In addition to these centres, the Law School has particular
expertise in the general areas of Medical Law and Ethics,
Property Law, International Law, Corporations Law, and
Equity & Trusts. Individual researchers and scholars
within the Law School have produced leading texts on
the law of evidence and procedure, succession law, juvenile
justice, family law, sentencing, equity & trusts,
charity law, legal ethics, agency and costs.
The Law School also hosts two major publications: the
University of Tasmania Law Review (that invites
contributions on any topic of legal interest) and the
Journal of Law, Information and Science.
Research and Postgraduate Committee and Associate Dean (Research)
The research activities of the Law School and the progress
of research degree students are monitored and supported
by the Research & Post Graduate Studies Committee.
Part of the Committee’s role is to ensure that the research
activities of staff and students are undertaken in the
best environment possible. The Committee is chaired
by the Associate Dean (Research), who is presently Dr
Dianne Nicol.
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Main Research and Postgraduate Supervision Areas and Law 679 Supervised Research Paper Supervision Areas
Please click on names to link to individual staff profiles for details of specific areas of research
expertise and capacity for postgraduate supervision and supervision for LAW679 Supervised Research Paper within each of these broad research topics
Comparative Administrative Law:
Rick Snell
Biotechnology and the Law:
Professor Don Chalmers
Dr Dianne Nicol
Competition Law:
Lynden Griggs
Corporations Law:
Lynden Griggs
Constitutional Law:
Dr Greg Carne
Michael Stokes
Consumer Law:
Lynden Griggs
Contract Law:
Dr Lisa Butler
Criminal Law:
Professor Kate Warner
Criminology and Criminal Justice:
Terese Henning
Professor Kate Warner
Dr Mark Stranger
Equity and Trusts:
Dr Lisa Butler
Professor Gino dal Pont
Ethical Legal and Social Implications of Human Genetics:
Professor Don Chalmers
Dr Dianne Nicol
Professor Margaret Otlowski
Dr Mark Stranger
Evidence and Procedure:
Terese Henning
Family Law:
Professor Margaret Otlowski
Freedom of Information Law:
Rick Snell
Guardianship Law:
John Blackwood (LAW679 Supervised Research Paper only)
Human Rights Law (selected areas):
Dr Greg Carne
Industrial Relations Law:
Dr Peter Patmore
Intellectual Property Law:
Dr Dianne Nicol
International Law (selected areas):
Dr Gail Lugten
International Trade Law:
Peter Lawrence
Land Law:
Lynden Griggs
Law and Ethics of Health Care/Medical Law:
Professor Don Chalmers
Professor Margaret Otlowski
Law of the Sea:
Dr Gail Lugten
Legal Philosophy:
Dr Julia Davis
Michael Stokes
Media Law:
Dr Dianne Nicol
Rick Snell
National Security Law (including Terrorism and the Law):
Dr Greg Carne
Professional Responsibility:
Professor Gino dal Pont
Sentencing Law:
Professor Kate Warner
Succession Law:
Ken Mackie(Law 679 Supervised Research Paper only)
Superannuation Law:
Dr Lisa Butler
Tasmanian Environmental and Planning Law:
Michael Stokes
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Postgraduate Research Courses Available
The Faculty offers the following postgraduate research
courses (by thesis):
Master of Laws (LLM)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
At present it does not offer postgraduate coursework
degrees.
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Applying for Admission into the Law School’s Postgraduate
Program
The Faculty’s Research & Postgraduate Committee
has responsibility for research training at the Law
School and oversees the recruitment of postgraduate
students to the Law School.
Admission to the postgraduate program is based upon
undergraduate academic performance, specific topic area
chosen, and availability of suitable supervision and
resources within the Law Faculty during the period of
candidature.
Prospective postgraduate students are requested to submit
a preliminary expression of interest so that their suitability
can be assessed, in particular whether their research
interests match the research strengths and supervision
resources of the Faculty. Expressions of interests can
be submitted electronically to the Chair of the Research
& Postgraduate Committee, Dr
Dianne Nicol. (Dianne.Nicol@utas.edu.au).
Any such expression of interest should include:
- a copy of their academic record to date;
- a two-page preliminary topic proposal; and
- for international students, for whom English is
not their first language, evidence of English-language
proficiency.
If the student and proposed topic is suitable, and appropriate
supervision arrangements can be made, the applicant will
be requested to complete a formal Law Faculty application
for candidature, which the Research & Postgraduate
Committee will assess. If the Committee recommends that
the applicant be accepted for candidature, the applicant
will then be referred to the formal University application
processes.
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Costs of postgraduate study
Domestic students
All domestic students accepted into the Law Faculty’s
postgraduate program are normally eligible for a place
under the Research Training Scheme (RTS). RTS places
are exempt from HECS charges or other forms of tuition
fees.
International students
The University charges tuition fees to international
postgraduate students. These fees are presently in the
range of $AUS14,000 per annum. Prospective international
candidates should consult the University’s International
Services website:
http://www.international.utas.edu.au/static/research.php
This website not only specifies the tuition fees, it
also:
- provides an indication of living costs;
- explains the University’s refund policy;
- contains the relevant University application forms.
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Funding of postgraduate study
Scholarships
A range of University scholarships for postgraduate
study are available for Australian citizens, permanent residents and New Zealand citizens.
Including Australian Postgraduate Awards
and Tasmania Graduate Research Scholarships. These scholarships
are administered through the University, and information
about them (and other scholarships) can be accessed
at http://www.research.utas.edu.au/gr.
For international postgraduate student applicants the
University offers a limited number of International
Postgraduate Research Scholarships. Again, information
about these scholarships can be accessed at http://www.research.utas.edu.au/.
There are various other scholarships potentially available,
details of which can be found at the following website
http://www.research.utas.edu.au/gr.
JASON (Joint Academic Scholarships Online Network), a search engine that contains information about
postgraduate scholarships for domestic and international
students, can also be accessed from this site.
The Faculty of Law may also offer its own scholarship
funding (a Faculty of Law scholarship), which may be
available to both Australian citizens, permanent residents and New Zealand citizens and International students.
The terms and conditions of, and entitlements under,
these scholarships are equivalent to those that govern
Australian Postgraduate Awards and Tasmania Graduate
Research Scholarships. The availability of Faculty of
Law scholarships is dependent on Faculty resources,
and its award is determined on a competitive basis.
Its award is determined by the Research & Postgraduate
Committee, which takes into account:
- the applicant’s previous academic performance (an
honours degree or equivalent is ordinarily a prerequisite
for consideration in this regard);
- the relevance of the chosen topic of study to the
Faculty’s research interests, including the ability of the faculty to offer appropriate supervision
- the applicant’s professional or work experience;
and
- the financial resources available to the applicant.
As a matter of practice, applicants for a Faculty of
Law scholarship should first seek other scholarship
funding (such as an APA award, a Tasmania Graduate Research
Scholarship, an International Postgraduate Research
Scholarship and other suitable scholarships before applying for a Faculty of Law scholarship. Details of these scholarships can be accessed at
http://www.research.utas.edu.au/gr. Including JASON (Joint Academic Scholarships Online Network) search engine.
The application for postgraduate candidature form [www.law.utas.edu.au/faculty_scholarships.html]
makes provision for an applicant to apply for a Faculty
of Law scholarship.
The Faculty also administers two endowed scholarships,
namely Sir Henry Baker Memorial Fellowship and the McDougall
Postgraduate Scholarship, the latter of which is open
to both domestic and international students. The terms
and conditions of these scholarships can be found at:
www.law.utas.edu.au/faculty_scholarships.html
Financial and other support for postgraduate students
Because of limited Faculty resources, applicants who
are unsuccessful in securing scholarship funding outside
the Faculty cannot be assured of Law Faculty scholarship
funding. Applicants should appreciate that scholarship
funding from the Faculty itself is more the exception
than the rule.
Living or travel allowance
The Faculty may, in certain circumstances, nonetheless,
give a postgraduate student who has not secured a Faculty
of Law scholarship some limited financial or in-kind
support. This may involve an allowance directed to assisting
in travel, accommodation or other incidental expenses.
Its availability and amount is determined by the same
factors that determine the availability of Faculty of
Law scholarships.
Postgraduate allowance
In any event, all law postgraduates receive an allocation
of approximately $2000 over two years for items directly
related to a student's candidature. For instance texts,
faxes, research travel, travel to conference may be
claimed under the postgraduate allowance. Any application
for use of money from this allocation by a postgraduate
student must be approved by their supervisor before
approval by the Head of School.
Free access to and use of facilities
It should be noted that all law postgraduate students
are given free access to computer facilities (and support),
printing facilities, telephones, email and inter-library
loans, for the purposes of their candidature.
Involvement in teaching program
Postgraduate students are encouraged to be involved
in the teaching program of the Faculty, usually as tutors:
see below. This can assist postgraduate students in
meeting the costs of postgraduate study.
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Postgraduate involvement in the Law School’s Teaching
Program and the Research Activity of Staff
The Faculty often recruits postgraduate students as
tutors to assist with the undergraduate teaching program.
Students interested in participating should make an
appointment with, or write to, the Head of School (Prof.
Don Chalmers, Room 2.03).
Postgraduate students are also sometimes recruited as
research assistants on staff research projects or other
research activities within the Law School. Students
wishing to register their interest for such research
assistance should contact Gayle
McElwee.
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Publication of Material
Postgraduate students are encouraged to publish their
material under the guidance of their supervisors. Currently
DEETYA distributes a proportion of funding to the University
based on research publications (and the University distributes
these funds to departments based on the same criteria).
Funds are distributed based on the production of:
- Scholarly Books;
- Chapters in Scholarly Books;
- Refereed Journal Articles; and
- Published Refereed Conference Proceedings.
Although these funds will not flow directly to the postgraduate
they will offset some of the costs of the Faculty of Law's
Postgraduate Program and the publications will contribute
to the Law School's overall research performance.
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University Services
Board of Graduate Research
The Board of Graduate Research is responsible for
the programs of study and research leading to a research
higher degree. The functions of the Board are to advise
the Academic Senate on matters relating to graduate
research, and to manage graduate research candidature.
For example, the Board approves admission to candidature,
appoints supervisors, monitors the progress of all candidates,
appoints examiners, and determines whether or not candidates
should be awarded degrees. For more information see:
www.research.utas.edu.au/gr/about_us/bgr.htm
Graduate Research Unit
The University’s Graduate Research Unit coordinates
and manages the administration of graduate research
candidature and scholarships, including general enquiries,
applications, admission, enrolment, ongoing candidature
and examinations. Candidates should contact
the Unit for help and advice on any matters relating
to their candidature or scholarship. Each year members
of the Unit coordinate the annual review of progress
of candidates and the bi-annual survey. For more information
see:
www.research.utas.edu.au/gr/about_us/gru.htm
International Students' Office
The International Students' Office is the channel
for admission arrangements for international students
and provides various services to students during their
candidature. For more information see:
www.international.utas.edu.au/index.php
Postgraduate Course and Unit Handbook
The Postgraduate Course and Unit Handbook published
annually by the University provides useful information
about the University and contains contact details for
people who can assist on most matters.
University Policies and Codes of Conduct in relation
to Supervision and Research
The Code of Conduct in Supervision, setting out the
University's policy for supervisory expectations can
be found here.
The University's Code of Conduct in Research can be
found here.
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Ethics Requirements with regard to Research involving
Humans
Pursuant to the National Health and Medical Council
National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving
Humans, the University requires strict guidelines
be followed for research involving humans (including
surveys). Ethical guidelines and forms can be accessed
at http://www.research.utas.edu.au/human_ethics/index.htm
.
Amanda McAully of the Office for Research (extension
2763) is the Executive Officer of the Human Research
Ethics Committee (Network) Tasmania. She can be contacted
for guidance on the procedures for applying for ethical
approval in proposed research.
Professor
Gino Dal Pont is the Chair of the Social Sciences
Human Research Ethics Committee and can also be consulted
for advice.
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Further information
Further information about postgraduate study at the
University of Tasmania can be accessed at http://www.utas.edu.au/graduateschool
including details about postgraduate services.
Prospective students can also access the Bronwyn.Peters@utas.edu.au
or phone + 61 3 6226 7495 ; fax + 61 3 6226 7497.
Please contact Dr
Dianne Nicol, chair of the Research and Postgraduate
Committee should you require any further information:
Ph: + 61 3 6226 7553
Fax: +61 3 6226 7623
email: Dianne.Nicol@utas.edu.au.
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Law 679:Supervised Research Paper. Information and Guidelines
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