In contemporary Australian society there are a range of laws existing to both protect the rights of individuals and to achieve social cohesion. These laws are made by bodies such as parliament and the courts and are upheld by a number of institutions and processes within the legal system. Members of a democratic society interact with laws and the legal system through many aspects of their lives and can also influence law makers.
The study of VCE Legal Studies enables students to become active and informed citizens by providing valuable insight into their relationship with the law and the legal system. Students develop knowledge and skills to enhance their confidence and ability to access and participate in the legal system. They will learn to appreciate the underlying principles of the rule of law, how legal systems and processes aim to achieve social cohesion, as well as how they themselves can affect positive change to laws and the legal system. VCE Legal Studies equips students with an ability to research and analyse legal information and apply legal reasoning and decision-making skills. It also fosters critical thinking to solve legal problems. Further study in the legal field can lead to a broad range of career opportunities such as a solicitor, barrister, policy adviser, prosecutor, paralegal, legal assistant, as well as other careers in the courtroom, education and law enforcement.
Structure
The study is made up of four units.
Unit 1: The presumption of innocence
Unit 2: Wrongs and rights
Unit 3: Rights and justice
Unit 4: The people, the law and reform
Each unit deals with specific content contained in areas of study and is designed to enable students to achieve a set of outcomes for that unit. Each outcome is described in terms of key knowledge and key skills.
There are no prerequisites for entry to Units 1, 2 and 3. Students must undertake Unit 3 and Unit 4 as a sequence. Units 1 to 4 are designed to a standard equivalent to the final two years of secondary education. All VCE studies are benchmarked against comparable national and international curriculum.
Assessment and reporting
Satisfactory completion
The award of satisfactory completion for a unit is based on the teacher’s decision that the student has demonstrated achievement of the set of outcomes specified for the unit. Demonstration of achievement of outcomes and satisfactory completion of a unit are determined by evidence gained through the assessment of a range of learning activities and tasks.
Teachers must develop courses that provide appropriate opportunities for students to demonstrate satisfactory achievement of outcomes.
The decision about satisfactory completion of a unit is distinct from the assessment of levels of achievement. Schools will report a student’s result for each unit to VCAA as S (Satisfactory) or N (Not Satisfactory).
Levels of achievement
Units 1 and 2
Procedures for the assessment of levels of achievement in Units 1 and 2 are a matter for school decision. Assessment of levels of achievement for these units will not be reported to VCAA. Schools may choose to report levels of achievement using grades, descriptive statements or other indicators.
Units 3 and 4
VCAA specifies the assessment procedures for students undertaking scored assessment in Units 3 and 4. Designated assessment tasks are provided in the details for each unit in VCE study designs.
The student’s level of achievement in Units 3 and 4 VCE Legal Studies will be determined by School-Assessed Coursework (SACs) as specified in the study design, and external assessment.
VCAA will report the student’s level of achievement on each assessment component as a grade from A+ to E or UG (ungraded). To receive a study score the student must achieve two or more graded assessments and receive S for both Units 3 and 4. The study score is reported on a scale of 0–50; it is a measure of how well the student performed in relation to all others who took the study. Percentage contributions to the study score in VCE Legal Studies are as follows:
Unit 3 School-Assessed Coursework: 25 per cent
Unit 4 School-Assessed Coursework: 25 per cent
End-of-year examination: 50 per cent.
Laws, including criminal law, aim to achieve social cohesion and protect the rights of individuals. Criminal law is aimed at maintaining social order. When a criminal law is broken, a crime is committed which is punishable and can result in criminal charges and sanctions.
In this unit, students develop an understanding of legal foundations, such as the different types and sources of law, the characteristics of an effective law, and an overview of parliament and the courts. Students are introduced to and apply the principles of justice. They investigate key concepts of criminal law and apply these to actual and/or hypothetical scenarios to determine whether an accused may be found guilty of a crime. In doing this, students develop an appreciation of the manner in which legal principles and information are used in making reasoned judgments and conclusions about the culpability of an accused. Students also develop an appreciation of how a criminal case is determined, and the types and purposes of sanctions. Students apply their understanding of how criminal cases are resolved and the effectiveness of sanctions through consideration of recent criminal cases from the past four years.
Civil law aims to protect the rights of individuals. When rights are infringed, a dispute may arise requiring resolution, and remedies may be awarded. In this unit, students investigate key concepts of civil law and apply these to actual and/or hypothetical scenarios to determine whether a party is liable in a civil dispute. Students explore different areas of civil law, and the methods and institutions that may be used to resolve a civil dispute and provide remedies. They apply knowledge through an investigation of civil cases from the past four years. Students also develop an understanding of how human rights are protected in Australia and possible reforms to the protection of rights, and investigate a contemporary human rights issue in Australia, with a specific focus on one case study.
The Victorian justice system, which includes the criminal and civil justice systems, aims to protect the rights of individuals and uphold the principles of justice: fairness, equality and access. In this unit, students examine the methods and institutions in the criminal and civil justice system, and consider their appropriateness in determining criminal cases and resolving civil disputes. Students consider the Magistrates’ Court, County Court and Supreme Court within the Victorian court hierarchy, as well as other means and institutions used to determine and resolve cases.
Students explore topics such as the rights available to an accused and to victims in the criminal justice system, the roles of the judge, jury, legal practitioners and the parties, and the ability of sanctions and remedies to achieve their purposes. Students investigate the extent to which the principles of justice are upheld in the justice system. Throughout this unit, students apply legal reasoning and information to actual and/or hypothetical scenarios.
The study of Australia’s laws and legal system includes an understanding of institutions that make and reform our laws. In this unit, students explore how the Australian Constitution establishes the law-making powers of the Commonwealth and state parliaments, and how it protects the Australian people through structures that act as a check on parliament in law-making. Students develop an understanding of the significance of the High Court in protecting and interpreting the Australian Constitution. They investigate parliament and the courts, and the relationship between the two in law-making, and consider the roles of the individual, the media and law reform bodies in influencing changes to the law, and past and future constitutional reform. Throughout this unit, students apply legal reasoning and information to actual and/or hypothetical scenarios.