52202 ADVANCED CORPORATE LAW

Year	No.	Offer	Mode	Description			Cred. Pts
01	52202 	S1  	X 	ADVANCED CORPORATE LAW    	1.00

Contents


STAFFING:

Examiner: J. MAYANJA
Moderator: M. BYRNE
Instructional design: C. COTTMAN

PRE-REQUISITE(S)

Undergraduate Corporate Law Unit


RATIONALE:

As company law becomes more complex, both professional advisers and business people may benefit updating their knowledge of the legislation and its application to management and business practice. Recent corporate collapses and resulting inquiries have also increased the profile of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and its role in corporate regulation.


SYNOPSIS:

The unit seeks to cover areas of corporate law which often receive little coverage in an undergraduate degree such as Public Companies, Takeovers and Corporate Finance. It also deals with management issues, for example director's liabilities, corporate offences and the role of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.


OBJECTIVES:

On successful completion of this unit students will be able
to:

  1. articulate the nature and extent of the corporate entity
    principle and to explain how this principle presently applies
    to the issue of corporate groups;
  2. apply legal principles to corporate governance in order to
    assess the responsibilities and potential liabilities of
    directors and other corporate officers;
  3. articulate the extent and application of the Corporations Law
    as it regulates the giving of financial benefits by public
    companies to related parties;
  4. explain the nature of the floating charge and how statute and
    case law has regulated its registration, crystallisation and
    priority;
  5. explain the procedures involved in the takeover of public
    companies and to relate the mechanisms for overseeing the
    interests of shareholders in the change of control;
  6. describe the rationale for, effect of and process involved in
    the establishment of voluntary administrations and deeds of
    company arrangement in an insolvent or near insolvent company;
  7. articulate the role and powers of the Australian Securities
    and Investment Commission in its regulation of the Australian
    corporate and securities market.

TOPICS:

 Description                                                    Weighting(%)
  1. Corporate Personality and Corporate Groups 15.00

  2. Aspects of Corporate Governance 28.00

  3. Public Companies - Financial Benefits to Related Parties 7.00

  4. Floating Charges 10.00

  5. Takeovers 20.00

  6. Voluntary Administration & Deeds of Company Arrangement 8.00

  7. Australian Securities and Investment Commission - role and powers 12.00


TEXT and MATERIALS required to be PURCHASED or accessed:

2001 Australian Corporations Legislation (including the Corporations
Law and Australian Securities Commission Act), latest edition,
Butterworths.

Ford, H.A.J., Austin, R.P. & Ramsay, I.M. 2000, Ford's Principles of
Corporation Law
, 10th edn, Butterworths, Sydney.

Redmond, P. 2000, Companies and Securities Law: Commentary and
Materials
, 3rd edn, Law Book Company, Sydney.


REFERENCE MATERIALS:

Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the unit and enrich their learning experience.

Austin, R.P. & Vann, R. 1986, The Law of Public Company Finance, Law
Book Company, North Ryde, NSW.

Baxt, R. & Fletcher, K. 1999, Afterman and Baxt's Cases and Materials
on Corporations and Associations
, 8th edn, Butterworths, Sydney.

Butterworths, Australian Corporation Law: Principles and Practice,
(Loose-leaf - 3 vols.)

Cassidy, J. 1999, Concise Corporations Law, 2nd edn, Federation
Press, Sydney.

CCH, Australian Corporations and Securities Law Reporter (Loose-
leaf - 3 vols.)

Keay, A. 1998, Insolvency: Personal and Corporate Law and Practice,
3rd edn, John Libbey, Sydney.

Lipton, P. & Herzberg, A. 2000, Understanding Company Law, 9th edn,
Law Book Company, Sydney.

Sykes, E. & Walker, S. 1993, The Law of Securities, 5th edn, Law
Book Company, Sydney.

Tomasic, R. et al, 1996, Corporations Law, 3rd edn, Butterworths,
Sydney.

Tomasic, R. & Bottomley, S. 1999, Corporations Law in Australia, 2nd
edn, Federation Press, Leichhardt, NSW.


STUDENT WORKLOAD REQUIREMENTS:

	ACTIVITY				HOURS
Directed Study                                	50
Private Study                                 	75
Assessments                                   	40

ASSESSMENT DETAILS:

No  *F/S Marks     Due        Description                              Wtg(%)    LBL WWW
1   S    5.00      30/03/01  PROPOSAL FOR ESSAY                        5.00      Y   N
2   S    35.00     18/05/01  ESSAY                                     35.00     Y   N
3   S    60.00     END S1    3 HOUR EXAMINATION                        60.00     N   N

*F=Formative, S=Summative

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:

1    TO  GAIN A PASSING GRADE IN THE UNIT A STUDENT MUST: a) obtain  a
     passing mark in aggregate for the unit's assessment items, AND b)
     obtain  a passing mark in the formal exam, AND c) submit  genuine
     attempts for the following MANDATORY items of assessment: ESSAY
2    Students  must  retain a copy of all pieces of  assessment  which
     must be produced if/when required by the lecturer.
3    LATE ASSIGNMENTS
3.1  All  assessments submitted after the due date (and  not  approved
     for  extension)  in  accordance with university  policy  will  be
     penalised 20% per working day.
3.2  If  students  submit assignments after the due date and  wish  to
     claim extenuating circumstances then they shall provide validated
     documentary   evidence  with  the  assignment,   explaining   the
     circumstances.
3.3  The  unit  examiner shall consider the statement  accompanying  a
     late assignment and decide on the outcome.
4    Assignments  not submitted in the appropriate assignment  folders
     will be deemed as not being received.
5    DISHONEST ACTIONS
5.1  Any student who is alleged to having performed a dishonest action
     relating  to  any assessment in the unit will have  a  course  of
     action   taken  against  him/her  as  outlined  in  the  Academic
     Regulations.
5.2  Pieces  of  assessment should be the work of individual students.
     Joint  pieces  of  assessment are not  permitted  unless  written
     approval has been obtained from the unit leader.
5.3  Dishonest action in relation to assessment includes: - copying or
     attempting to copy the work of others; - use of or attempting  to
     use information prohibited from use in that form of assessment; -
     submitting  the  work  of  another as  your  own;  -  consciously
     committing  acts  of  plagiarism, ie taking and  using  another's
     thoughts  or writings as one's own with intent to deceive,  which
     occurs   when.  paragraphs,  sentences,  a  single  sentence   or
     significant  parts of a sentence which are copied  directly,  are
     not  enclosed  in quotation marks and appropriately footnoted  or
     referenced in the text. direct quotations are not used, but  text
     is  paraphrased or summarised, and the source of the material  is
     not acknowledged by footnoting or other reference in the text.
6    DEFERRED EXAMINATIONS
6.1  Deferred examinations will be granted at the Dean's discretion in
     the  case of medical or compassionate circumstances having regard
     to  item  1. If a deferred examination has been granted  students
     shall  normally sit the deferred examination in the  semester  in
     which  the  unit  is  next offered, but no later  than  the  next
     semester  3  examination period. If, for  whatever  reason,  this
     deferred examination is not taken then the student will be graded
     `F'.
6.2  Medical  evidence  on  the  appropriate  University  of  Southern
     Queensland  medical certificate or doctor's certificate  must  be
     received  by  the Faculty Administrator no later than  twenty-one
     (21)  days after examination date. A medical certificate must  be
     dated  with the same date as the period of illness for which  the
     absence from examination is being sought and clearly indicate the
     student's  name  and, if possible, student number. (Retrospective
     medical  certificates will not be accepted for either  assignment
     work or examinations.)
6.3  A   student's  medical  condition  must  be  stated  clearly  (IN
     ENGLISH).   (Certificates  stating  a  student  has  a   'Medical
     Condition'  may  not  be  sufficient  grounds  for  deferment  of
     examination).  Medical evidence must cover the  student  for  the
     day(s) of the missed examination(s).
6.4  Requests must be in writing to the Faculty Administrator  clearly
     stating  the  student  name  and  number,  unit  number  of   the
     examination  missed due to illness and current address.  Deferral
     of  an  examination CANNOT be granted on an existing deferral  in
     that unit.
6.5  Requests  on  grounds  other than medical MUST  BE  supported  by
     documentation.
6.6  Students   who   have  a  medical  condition  or   have   genuine
     compassionate  or  work  related  problems  on  the  day  of  the
     examination  are advised to obtain documentary evidence  and  NOT
     attempt  the  examination. If a student makes an attempt  at  the
     examination,  the  assessment item will be  marked  and  a  grade
     awarded.  In  these  cases, a student cannot, after  receiving  a
     'Fail'   grade,  request  a  deferred  examination   or   special
     consideration.
6.7  Students who have been granted deferred examinations will not  be
     granted a waiver of prerequisites, without the permission of  the
     Heads of Department, in subsequent semesters (if they do not have
     a passing grade).
7    Unit  weightings of topics should not be interpreted as  applying
     to  the  number  of  marks allocated to questions  testing  those
     topics in an examination paper. The examination may test material
     already tested in assignments.
8    Mechanised erasers are not permitted in exam venues.
9    The  examination  is  open  book which means  that  students  are
     permitted  to  bring into the exam room and use  any  written  or
     printed material.
10   Students  should also refer to the Faculty of Commerce 'Guide  to
     Policies  and Procedures' section of the University Handbook  for
     further information on the above matters.
11   Students need a Undergraduate Corporate Law Unit

This information is accurate as at 15/01/02