MLP391 - Civil Procedure and Dispute Resolution
Unit details
| Year | 2026 unit information |
|---|---|
| Enrolment modes | Trimester 2: Burwood (Melbourne), Waterfront (Geelong), Online, Community Based Delivery (CBD)* |
| Credit point(s) | 1 |
| Previously coded as | MLL391 |
| EFTSL value | 0.125 |
| Unit chair | Trimester 2: Tania Penovic Trimester 3: Claudio Bozzi |
| Cohort rule | For Bachelor of Laws (including combined Law awards) students only |
| Prerequisite | Students must have passed MLP213 and MLP219 plus 5 additional MLL/MLP/MLT coded law units |
| Corequisite | Nil |
| Incompatible with | MLL391 |
| Educator-facilitated (scheduled) learning activities - on-campus unit enrolment | Pre-recorded lectures up to a maximum of 2 hours per week, and 1 x 2 hour on-campus seminar (recordings provided) per week. |
| Educator-facilitated (scheduled) learning activities - online unit enrolment | Pre-recorded lectures up to a maximum of 2 hours per week, and 1 x 2 hour online seminar (recordings provided) per week. |
| Typical study commitment | Students will on average spend 150 hours over the teaching period undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit. |
Note*Community Based Delivery (CBD) is for National Indigenous Knowledges, Education, Research and Innovation NIKERI Institute students only. | |
Content
The unit investigates the legal process of civil dispute resolution in our society. This unit examines procedural law, which is the law of 'how' one enforces substantive legal rights and duties, or the method through which rights (no matter what they are) get realised in our courts. Although the unit focuses on the Supreme Court of Victoria (General Civil Procedure) Rules, it broadens jurisdictional knowledge by comparing procedural rules with those of the other State and Territory, and, where relevant, foreign jurisdictions, and is supplemented by cases and scholarly analysis, means of resolving disputes other than traditional litigation are considered. The syllabus roughly follows litigation process and includes the role of the court in an adversarial system; court structure and jurisdiction; initiation of proceedings; pleadings; joinder of claims and parties, including group and representative actions; discovery; dispositions without trial, including summary procedures and compromise; judgement; costs; and forms of alternative dispute resolution such as arbitration and mediation.
Learning outcomes
Each unit in your course is a building block towards Deakin's Graduate Learning Outcomes - not all units develop and assess every Graduate Learning Outcome (GLO).
| ULO | These are the Unit Learning Outcomes (ULOs) for this unit. At the completion of this unit, successful students can: | Alignment to Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes (GLOs) |
|---|---|---|
| ULO1 | Analyse problem-based scenarios and apply the rules of civil procedure relating to the initiation, conduct, settlement and enforcement of a proceeding. | GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities GLO5: Problem solving |
| ULO2 | Evaluate a problem-based scenario to identify and apply the rules of pleadings to draw court documents for a client. | GLO2: Communication GLO5: Problem solving |
| ULO3 | Constructively engage with teammates towards mutually beneficial outcomes and reflect on this in writing. | GLO7: Teamwork |
Assessment
| Assessment Description | Student output | Grading and weighting (% total mark for unit) | Indicative due week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment 1: Portfolio Part A: (Group of 3) Problem Based Written Assignment Part B: (Individual) Written Reflection (Peer) | Part A: 2000 words
Part B: 1000 words | Part A: 30%
Part B: 10% | Week 9 |
| Examination: Specified resources | 2 hours | 60% | End-of-unit assessment period |
The assessment due weeks provided may change. The Unit Chair will clarify the exact assessment requirements, including the due date, at the start of the teaching period.
Learning resource
The texts and reading list for MLP391 can be found via the University Library.
Note: Select the relevant trimester reading list. Please note that a future teaching period's reading list may not be available until a month prior to the start of that teaching period so you may wish to use the relevant trimester's prior year reading list as a guide only.
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
To fully engage with Deakin's learning experiences, students must be able to access and use internet-connected devices as outlined in computing requirements at Deakin.
To support student success at Deakin, we have a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) learning environment that acknowledges that students and educators bring with them the digital tools they regularly use to complete academic tasks. These tools stay with you beyond the classroom, helping you to keep learning, explore ideas more deeply, and connect with knowledge in ways that matter to you.
Students requiring a loan device should visit our Loan Laptop webpage or students requiring longer-term assistance should visit our Student Financial Assistance webpage.
Unit fee information
Fees and charges vary depending on the type of fee place you hold, your course, your commencement year, the units you choose to study and their study discipline, and your study load.
Tuition fees increase at the beginning of each calendar year and all fees quoted are in Australian dollars ($AUD). Tuition fees do not include textbooks, computer equipment or software, other equipment or costs such as mandatory checks, travel and stationery.
For further information regarding tuition fees, other fees and charges, invoice due dates, withdrawal dates, payment methods visit our Current Students website.