Online participation (20%): Questions or hypotheticals based on the unit content will be posted on the Discussion Board by the lecturer.  A topic will also be opened on the Discussion Board for each day of lectures for students to discuss online with each other (and the lecturer) that day’s material.  Students are required to make substantive posts at least eight times: four relating to the finance portion of the class and four relating to the M&A portion of the class. The questions or hypotheticals posted more than a week before classes begin will generally remain available for comment for at least one week from posting.  However, topics posted after that may be open as little as three days following posting.  All topics on the Discussion Board will be closed for comment no later than 5:00 p.m. on 15 September 2024 (Sydney, Australia time). Online participation will be assessed in terms of the level it contributes to the discussion and the quality of the analysis of the posting by the student. Some or all questions or hypotheticals may not have "right" answers but will be assessed on the thoughtfulness of the response (and any follow up), the use of knowledge gained in the class and the ability to identify issues for which there may be no perfect answers.

Class participation (10%): Students will be assessed on the quality and consistency of their contributions through questions they ask during the class. Students should volunteer during discussions and ask questions and follow-ups to help the class understand the subjects being discussed. Students will be required to email the lecturer at the end of each week of lectures briefly summarising their in-class participation during that week.

Written assignment (70%): Students will review detailed hypothetical problem scenarios to identify and analyse issues, discuss legal concepts and in some cases suggest advice to hypothetical clients. The assignment will be released on 17 September 2024 at 6pm and due on 15 October 2024 at 6pm (Sydney, Australia time). The word limit is 5000 words (include footnotes).

Students should note that the lecturer does not have authority to grant extensions for the written assignment and applications should be made via Special Consideration in a timely manner if a student needs an extension.

Special consideration: Successful grants of Special Consideration may involve alternative tasks, as appropriate.

Word limit penalty: A piece of assessment which exceeds the prescribed word limit will be read and marked only up to the specified word limit. The total word limit for essay and other written assessments will include all footnotes and references.   

Use of editors or proof-readers: The use of assistance in preparing and editing assessment tasks in this unit of study is strictly prohibited. Assistance includes human and automated writing tools (not including spell checking). The use of Studiosity does not breach this rule but must be acknowledged.

Assessment requirement to pass a unit of study: A student must make a genuine attempt at all assessment tasks set out in this Unit of Study in order to obtain a Pass mark and grade (or above); otherwise an Absent Fail grade will be recorded as the student’s result for this Unit of Study.