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Unit of study_
LAWS6077: Legal Research 1
2025 unit information
The primary goal of this unit is to develop skills in undertaking a significant piece of legal research at levels of sophistication suitable for examination. At the conclusion of the unit it is anticipated that members of the class will be able to conceptualise the issues to be researched; will be able to locate relevant legal and other materials (using both hard copy and electronic bibliographic aids); will be able to place and sustain an argument (a 'thesis'); and will be able to assess both the quality of that work and to judge the merits of other approaches to planning such research. It is expected that students will become familiar with using comparative materials (both within the federation and international), and will gain a working familiarity with relevant research techniques of other disciplines in the social sciences. The unit aims to encourage debate about the respective merits of different approaches, ethical issues, and the hallmarks of 'quality' research.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Sydney Law School
| Study level | Postgraduate |
|---|---|
| Academic unit | Law |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Critically evaluate and refine their HDR thesis strategy, incorporating methodological approaches, theoretical frameworks, a preliminary exploration of the literature, and ethical considerations for ethics approval.
- LO2. Conduct peer reviews, providing constructive critique and feedback, to gain diverse perspectives on HDR research approaches.
- LO3. Employ and integrate fundamental legal research principles to conduct scholarly research in an HDR context, synthesizing HDR techniques, objectives, and legal research methodologies.
- LO4. Search and select relevant primary and secondary legal and scholarly materials using online databases, professional publications, and grey literature.
- LO5. Evaluate and choose appropriate methodologies and data collection techniques for legal and interdisciplinary research, tailored to their thesis objectives.
- LO6. Articulate and defend research arguments, addressing challenges, ethical considerations, and assessment criteria in legal and scholarly research.
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 1 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Find your current year census dates
Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
Important enrolment information
Departmental permission requirements
If you see the ‘Departmental Permission’ tag below a session, it means you need faculty or school approval to enrol. This may be because it’s an advanced unit, clinical placement, offshore unit, internship or there are limited places available.
You will be prompted to apply for departmental permission when you select this unit in Sydney Student.
Read our information on departmental permission.
Additional advice
This unit is not available to coursework students. Sydney Law School HDR students must complete this core unit within their first year of candidature. For further information, please visit the Law Student Portal https://canvas.sydney.edu.au/courses/4533/pages/higher-degree-by-research-your-candidature and unit of study outline https://www.sydney.edu.au/units
