Course coordinator
Dr Rebecca Ananian-Welsh
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2024 (22/07/2024 - 18/11/2024)
- Study level
- Undergraduate
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Law School
Legal context of some issues confronting contemporary society. Possible changes available to enable law to deal more adequately with novel problems. Topics vary from year to year.
In Semester 2, 2024 the topic for LAWS5182 will be Terrorism and National Security Law.
Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Rebecca Ananian-Welsh
Terrorism has long been a part of the global political landscape. In the 21st century, particularly since the terrorist attacks on the US on September 11, 2001, the prevention and prosecution of terrorism has been a key priority for governments around the world. This prompted the emergence of ‘counter-terrorism law’ as a field in its own right. More recently, national security threats have evolved to reflect developments in technology and international relations, with espionage, foreign interference, foreign fighters, serious offenders approaching release from prison, and right wing extremism emerging as new priority areas. This course introduces the field of national security law and policy with an initial focus on Australia’s response to global terrorism. It examines the operation, necessity and effectiveness of a wide range of national security laws, as well as their impacts on fundamental rights and liberties, basic constitutional principles, and democratic values.
National security law and policy cut across multiple fields of law, including criminal law and process, human rights, civil measures (especially those classed as 'preventive justice'), policing and intelligence powers, citizenship revocation, and migration controls. It equips students with the intellectual and research tools to critique anti-terrorism approaches and provisions, identify trends, debate policy directions, and advance arguments for and against reform. Core themes of central importance in the national security arena emerge for discussion and debate. For instance:
- What is ‘terrorism’ compared to other forms of political and non-political violence?
- How far can, and should, governments go in protecting national security?
- How might basic values like liberty, fairness, democracy, and the rule of law be threatened and preserved in the national security context?
- What roles do the institutions of state play in the 'national intelligence community' and as checks on potential government overreach?
- How might the effectiveness and necessity of national security measures be tested and ensured?
- How have, and how should, governments respond to emerging threats in a rapidly-evolving and increasingly-globalised security context?
- What can a career in national security law or policy look like? What challenges and opportunities face researchers in this area and how can we respond to these?
Course content focuses on Australia, where more anti-terrorism laws exist than in any other nation. Attention will also be given to developments in contexts such as the United Nations, Canada and the United Kingdom, with opportunities for further comparative research.
Course requirements
Prerequisites
You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:
All Level 1 & 2 LAWS courses
Incompatible
You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:
LAWS7182 or 7382
Restrictions
Restricted to enrolments in LLB(Hons)(#64), LLB(Hons)(#48), LLB, LLB (Graduate Entry), LLB(Hons) duals and LLB dual programs.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Dr Rebecca Ananian-Welsh
Tutor
Dr Rebecca Ananian-Welsh
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
In 2024 this course will consist of:
- 1 one-hour in person lecture. Lectures will be recorded, but this is never guaranteed and you should try to attend the lecture.
- 1 two-hour live in person seminar. These will not be recorded and there is no option to attend online.
Aims and outcomes
Teaching Mission Statement
The mission of the TC Beirne School of Law is to educate students in and about the law. We seek to assist you to think critically about the law and to investigate its structures, principles, policies, and values. This is achieved by engaging with you as fellow investigators in a range of critical and intellectual conversations about the law and its place in society. Our role is thus to guide you in your own intellectual journey in the law and to equip you with the necessary skills that will enable you to continue that journey long after you have left the School.
Course Aims:
Speculative Legalism: Law in Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror (aka LAWS5182 Special Topic A, Law and Literature) addresses a range of popular fictions – in print and on screen – because, by means of plot, characterisation, setting and theme, these texts interrogate in unique and innovative ways the abiding questions of legal theory. To name but a few: what is the connection between law and morality? Law and power? Law and rights? Law and justice? By examining how the speculative fictions of science fiction, horror and fantasy pose and repose such questions, this course invites students to critique and reimagine notions of, for example, the legal subject, legal things, legal processes, legal origins and ends. Enabling this critical legal act of reimagination will be popular culture’s textual, televisual and cinematic tropes of dying deities and death-dealing aliens, vampire slayers and zombie hordes, white wizards and dark lords, ghostbusters and ‘battle royale’ gamers, living dolls and telekinetic psychics. In short, the gods and monsters, freaks and geeks of Speculative Legalism invites us to speculate, otherwise, on the very nature of law itself.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Students will be able to ‘read’, critically, a speculative text—be it science fiction, horror or fantasy—as a kind of legal fiction.
LO2.
Students will become adept in the techniques of close textual analysis, e.g., character, plot, theme.
LO3.
Students will be able to contextualise close, critical readings of speculative fictions in terms of the law’s principal socio-legal (e.g., lawyers, courts) and jurisprudential (e.g., justice, rights) topics.
LO4.
Though such critical readings of speculative texts, students will be able to reimagine fairer, juster legality, combusting tired shibboleths of the law and constructing bold and bright alternatives.
LO5.
Students will become truly interdisciplinary critical legal scholars through their exposure to, appreciation of, and critical engagement with two fields: cultural studies and law.
LO6.
By examining how texts from each field read each other, otherwise, students will have achieved a powerful and rigorous cultural understanding of law, as well as a legal understanding of culture.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tutorial/ Problem Set |
Weekly Hand-Ins
|
10% |
29/07/2024 - 21/10/2024 |
| Essay/ Critique |
Mid-Semester Assignment
|
30% |
3/09/2024 2:00 pm |
| Essay/ Critique |
Research Essay
|
60% |
25/10/2024 2:00 pm |
Assessment details
Weekly Hand-Ins
- In-person
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Tutorial/ Problem Set
- Weight
- 10%
- Due date
29/07/2024 - 21/10/2024
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06
Task description
You will need to hand in 5 papers (with a total of 11 opportunities to do so) in class at the start of your Seminar. Each is worth 2%, adding to a total of 10%. More details will be provided in the Learning Guide.
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). Students are advised that the use of AI technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
Late submission
No late submission accepted.
Mid-Semester Assignment
- Online
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
3/09/2024 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06
Task description
Assignment details will be released on Blackboard following Lecture 5.
This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance.
A failure to reference generative AI use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI tools.
Submission guidelines
Assignment must be submitted via the assessment submission link on Blackboard.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 7 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension to Assessment Due Date
An extension for an assessment item due within the teaching period in which the course is offered will generally be limited to one week in the first instance. In exceptional circumstances, approved extensions may be granted for more than one week but will not exceed four weeks in total. Where a student is incapacitated for a period exceeding four weeks of the teaching period, they should be advised to apply for removal of course.
A student may apply for an extension to assessment due date if they are unable to meet an assessment deadline due to extenuating circumstances. Please refer to the Applying for an extension page on my.UQ for further details on acceptable reasons for an extension and for instructions on how to apply. Additional information on extensions can be found within the Assessment Procedure .
Spoken or written notification of difficulties with assessment deadlines to a course coordinator or the School does not constitute an authorised extension.
Applications to be submitted before the due date: Applications for extension (whether they be medical or exceptional circumstances) shall be made by the due date and time for the assessment. Requests for extensions received after the assessment item submission due date and time, must include evidence of the reason for the late request, and will require the decision maker listed in the Student Grievance Resolution Procedure to accept the request for consideration.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Penalties for Late Submission
The following penalties apply to late submission of an assessment item, assuming that an extension has not been approved, and that late submission is academically possible (e.g., it does not delay feedback to a cohort, or interfere with course delivery).
First 7 periods of 24 hours (or part thereof) - 10% per 24 hours of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item. For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks.
More than 7 periods of 24 hours - 100%.
Research Essay
- Online
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 60%
- Due date
25/10/2024 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06
Task description
Students will have the opportunity to select their essay topic from a list provided during the mid-semester break. Further details will be in the Learning Guide and on Blackboard.
This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance.
A failure to reference generative AI use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI tools.
Submission guidelines
Assignment must be submitted via the assessment submission link on Blackboard.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 7 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension to Assessment Due Date
An extension for an assessment item due within the teaching period in which the course is offered will generally be limited to one week in the first instance. In exceptional circumstances, approved extensions may be granted for more than one week but will not exceed four weeks in total. Where a student is incapacitated for a period exceeding four weeks of the teaching period, they should be advised to apply for removal of course.
A student may apply for an extension to assessment due date if they are unable to meet an assessment deadline due to extenuating circumstances. Please refer to the Applying for an extension page on my.UQ for further details on acceptable reasons for an extension and for instructions on how to apply. Additional information on extensions can be found within the Assessment Procedure .
Spoken or written notification of difficulties with assessment deadlines to a course coordinator or the School does not constitute an authorised extension.
Applications to be submitted before the due date: Applications for extension (whether they be medical or exceptional circumstances) shall be made by the due date and time for the assessment. Requests for extensions received after the assessment item submission due date and time, must include evidence of the reason for the late request, and will require the decision maker listed in the Student Grievance Resolution Procedure to accept the request for consideration.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Penalties for Late Submission
The following penalties apply to late submission of an assessment item, assuming that an extension has not been approved, and that late submission is academically possible (e.g., it does not delay feedback to a cohort, or interfere with course delivery).
First 7 periods of 24 hours (or part thereof) - 10% per 24 hours of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item. For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks.
More than 7 periods of 24 hours - 100%.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 0 - 19 |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 20 - 47 |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 48 - 49 |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - 64 |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - 74 |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - 84 |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - 100 |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Required and recommended readings for each week will be listed in the Learning Guide, with additional information and resources on Blackboard.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Multiple weeks From Week 1 To Week 13 |
Lecture |
Lectures The programme of Lectures is set out in the Learning Guide, available on Blackboard. Lecture topics are: 1. The Story and Themes of Australian National Security Law 2. National Security Governance 3. What is Terrorism? 4. Legal Definitions of Terrorism 5. Crimes of Terror 6. Criminal Process and Secret Evidence 7. Preventive Justice: Pre-Trial Options 8. Preventive Justice: Post-Sentence Detention 9. Security, Citizenship and the Constitution 10. Espionage and Foreign Interference 11. Research and Writing in National Security 12. Secrecy, Transparency and Press Freedom 13. Careers in National Security Law and Policy Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06 |
Multiple weeks From Week 2 To Week 13 |
Seminar |
Seminars The programme of Seminars is set out in the Learning Guide, available on Blackboard. This also includes information on readings and seminar preparation. There are no Seminars in Week 1 or Week 11. Seminar topics are: 1. The National Intelligence Community 2. Terrorism and Terrorists 3. Defining Terrorism 4. Terror Trials 5. Criminal Process: From Investigation to Post-Sentence Release 6. Preventive Justice: Necessity, Effectiveness and Impacts 7. Preventive Justice: Post-Sentence Detention 8. Migration Controls for Security 9. Espionage and Foreign Interference 10. Secrecy, Transparency and Press Freedom 11. Where to for National Security Law, Policy, Practice and Opportunities? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.
School guidelines
Your school has additional guidelines you'll need to follow for this course: