Expert Witness and Dispute Resolution

General Information

Project participants need to understand the legal context within which they make decisions and perform actions, as frequently disputes can arise that require resolution and/or expert opinion. Project quality and environmental management provide a convenient instance where disputes and the need for expert testimony can arise, and are examined here in the context of project closure, including lessons learnt, standards, continuous improvement and client satisfaction. A general appreciation of international legal principles informed by case law forms an important backdrop to the subject. Practitioners must understand the limitations of their involvement in legal proceedings and be familiar with the conduct of procedures that commonly take place, including alternative dispute resolution such as arbitration and mediation. A moot court environment is used to demonstrate the experience of appearing in a formal hearing, and students are asked to also prepare or critique an expert report related to an example of ‘defective’ work or service that is the subject of a contractual dispute.

  • Academic unit: Faculty of Society & Design
    Subject code: SDCM71-323
    Subject title: Expert Witness and Dispute Resolution
    Subject level: Postgraduate
    Semester/Year: May 2020
    Credit points: 10.000
  • Timetable: https://bond.edu.au/timetable
    Delivery mode: Standard
    Workload items:
    • Seminar: x12 (Total hours: 36) - Weekly seminar
    • Personal Study Hours: x12 (Total hours: 84) - Recommended study hours
    Attendance and learning activities: Attendance at all seminars is necessary to get the best from this subject with the seminars building on the work of earlier seminars and pre-reading. It may be difficult to recover if you miss a day. Attendance at the seminars may be monitored and non-attendance may impact the final mark in this subject.
  • Prescribed resources:

    Books

    • Freckelton, I.R. and Selby, H. (2013). Expert evidence: law, practice, procedure and advocacy. n/a, Pyrmont NSW Lawbook Co.
    After enrolment, students can check the Books and Tools area in iLearn for the full Resource List.
    iLearn@Bond & Email: iLearn@Bond is the online learning environment at Bond University and is used to provide access to subject materials, lecture recordings and detailed subject information regarding the subject curriculum, assessment and timing. Both iLearn and the Student Email facility are used to provide important subject notifications. Additionally, official correspondence from the University will be forwarded to students’ Bond email account and must be monitored by the student.

    To access these services, log on to the Student Portal from the Bond University website as www.bond.edu.au
Academic unit: Faculty of Society & Design
Subject code: SDCM71-323
Subject title: Expert Witness and Dispute Resolution
Subject level: Postgraduate
Semester/Year: May 2020
Credit points: 10.000

Enrolment requirements

Requisites:

Nil
Assumed knowledge:

Assumed knowledge is the minimum level of knowledge of a subject area that students are assumed to have acquired through previous study. It is the responsibility of students to ensure they meet the assumed knowledge expectations of the subject. Students who do not possess this prior knowledge are strongly recommended against enrolling and do so at their own risk. No concessions will be made for students’ lack of prior knowledge.

Restrictions:

Nil

Assurance of learning

Assurance of Learning means that universities take responsibility for creating, monitoring and updating curriculum, teaching and assessment so that students graduate with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need for employability and/or further study.

At Bond University, we carefully develop subject and program outcomes to ensure that student learning in each subject contributes to the whole student experience. Students are encouraged to carefully read and consider subject and program outcomes as combined elements.

Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs)

Program Learning Outcomes provide a broad and measurable set of standards that incorporate a range of knowledge and skills that will be achieved on completion of the program. If you are undertaking this subject as part of a degree program, you should refer to the relevant degree program outcomes and graduate attributes as they relate to this subject.

Find your program

Subject Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

On successful completion of this subject the learner will be able to:

  1. Show competency in project quality and environmental management.
  2. Explore continuous process improvement strategies for avoiding disputes.
  3. Specify quality and/or environmental standards in a contractual setting.
  4. Prepare or critique an expert report based on a dispute over standards.
  5. Demonstrate an understanding of legal recourse to conflict on projects.

Generative Artificial Intelligence in Assessment

The University acknowledges that Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen-AI) tools are an important facet of contemporary life. Their use in assessment is considered in line with students’ development of the skills and knowledge which demonstrate learning outcomes and underpin study and career success. Instructions on the use of Gen-AI are given for each assessment task; it is your responsibility to adhere to these instructions.

  • Type Task % Timing* Outcomes assessed
    Paper-based Examination (Closed) Formal examination (delivered online) 40.00% Final Examination Period 1,5
    *Class Participation Role play/activities 10.00% Progressive 1,2
    Written Report§ Expert Report 50.00% Class stream dependent 1,3,4
    • § Indicates group/teamwork-based assessment
    • * Assessment timing is indicative of the week that the assessment is due or begins (where conducted over multiple weeks), and is based on the standard University academic calendar
    • C = Students must reach a level of competency to successfully complete this assessment.

  • Assessment criteria

    High Distinction 85-100 Outstanding or exemplary performance in the following areas: interpretative ability; intellectual initiative in response to questions; mastery of the skills required by the subject, general levels of knowledge and analytic ability or clear thinking.
    Distinction 75-84 Usually awarded to students whose performance goes well beyond the minimum requirements set for tasks required in assessment, and who perform well in most of the above areas.
    Credit 65-74 Usually awarded to students whose performance is considered to go beyond the minimum requirements for work set for assessment. Assessable work is typically characterised by a strong performance in some of the capacities listed above.
    Pass 50-64 Usually awarded to students whose performance meets the requirements set for work provided for assessment.
    Fail 0-49 Usually awarded to students whose performance is not considered to meet the minimum requirements set for particular tasks. The fail grade may be a result of insufficient preparation, of inattention to assignment guidelines or lack of academic ability. A frequent cause of failure is lack of attention to subject or assignment guidelines.

    Quality assurance

    For the purposes of quality assurance, Bond University conducts an evaluation process to measure and document student assessment as evidence of the extent to which program and subject learning outcomes are achieved. Some examples of student work will be retained for potential research and quality auditing purposes only. Any student work used will be treated confidentially and no student grades will be affected.

Type Task % Timing* Outcomes assessed
Paper-based Examination (Closed) Formal examination (delivered online) 40.00% Final Examination Period 1,5
*Class Participation Role play/activities 10.00% Progressive 1,2
Written Report§ Expert Report 50.00% Class stream dependent 1,3,4
  • § Indicates group/teamwork-based assessment
  • * Assessment timing is indicative of the week that the assessment is due or begins (where conducted over multiple weeks), and is based on the standard University academic calendar
  • C = Students must reach a level of competency to successfully complete this assessment.

Study Information

Submission procedures

Students must check the iLearn@Bond subject site for detailed assessment information and submission procedures.

Policy on late submission and extensions

A late penalty will be applied to all overdue assessment tasks unless an extension is granted by the subject coordinator. The standard penalty will be 10% of marks awarded to that assessment per day late with no assessment to be accepted seven days after the due date. Where a student is granted an extension, the penalty of 10% per day late starts from the new due date.

Academic Integrity

University’s Academic Integrity Policy defines plagiarism as the act of misrepresenting as one’s own original work: another’s ideas, interpretations, words, or creative works; and/or one’s own previous ideas, interpretations, words, or creative work without acknowledging that it was used previously (i.e., self-plagiarism). The University considers the act of plagiarising to be a breach of the Student Conduct Code and, therefore, subject to the Discipline Regulations which provide for a range of penalties including the reduction of marks or grades, fines and suspension from the University.

Bond University utilises Originality Reporting software to inform academic integrity.

Feedback on assessment

Feedback on assessment will be provided to students within two weeks of the assessment submission due date, as per the Assessment Policy.

Accessibility and Inclusion Support

If you have a disability, illness, injury or health condition that impacts your capacity to complete studies, exams or assessment tasks, it is important you let us know your special requirements, early in the semester. Students will need to make an application for support and submit it with recent, comprehensive documentation at an appointment with a Disability Officer. Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Office at the earliest possible time, to meet staff and learn about the services available to meet your specific needs. Please note that late notification or failure to disclose your disability can be to your disadvantage as the University cannot guarantee support under such circumstances.

Additional subject information

The focus of this subject is on project quality management, project environmental management and project closure. It primarily addresses Program Learning Outcome #6: understand the legal ramifications of project conflict and apply techniques to avoid, minimise or resolve disputes, including giving evidence at formal proceedings.

Subject curriculum

Approved on: Apr 29, 2020. Edition: 4
Last updated: Oct 10, 2022
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