77930 Insurance Law
Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a
particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source
of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.
Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Requisite(s): ( 70211 Contracts OR (70106c Principles of Public International Law AND 70107c Principles of Company Law AND (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04236 Juris Doctor OR 142 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04250 Juris Doctor Master of Business Administration OR 94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04363 Juris Doctor Master of Intellectual Property OR 94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04364 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Trade Mark Law and Practice)) OR (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04320 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Professional Legal Practice AND 70106 Principles of Public International Law))
The lower case 'c' after the subject code indicates that the subject is a corequisite. See definitions for details.
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses. See access conditions.
Anti-requisite(s): 76022 Insurance Law AND 78196 Insurance Law
Description
Insurance is a vital part of a well-functioning economy, by enabling businesses and individuals to have protection against a range of risks. Insurance is a significant practice area for many law firms, and the insurance industry offers many interesting career paths for law graduates, including underwriting, claims management and insurance broking.
In this advanced subject, students develop an in-depth knowledge of the law and regulation of all facets of insurance in Australia – including property, liability, marine, motor vehicle, superannuation, life and income protection, workers compensation and reinsurance. The classes are interactive and include guest presentations by legal and insurance industry practitioners.
Through in-class activities, case analysis notes, legal advices and research essays, students develop practical skills in researching and applying the relevant rules of insurance law to advise hypothetical clients of their rights and options. By formulating their own research essays on a topical insurance law issue, students critically evaluate the effectiveness of Australia's current insurance laws and critique workable options for law and policy reform.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Evaluate the development of the key legislation and general law principles governing various types of insurance contracts within Australia. |
|---|---|
| 2. | Critically evaluate the adequacy of Australia’s current framework of insurance law, and critique workable options for law and policy reform. |
| 3. | Apply their independent research to complex issues in Australian insurance law to resolve practical legal problems. |
| 4. | Clearly articulate logical structured argument supported by research evidence. |
Teaching and learning strategies
Strategy 1 (Independent learning):
Student learning outside the classroom is a key learning strategy in this subject. Students do a large part of their learning in this subject by completing all of the pre-class activities including watching relevant audio-visual materials posted on Canvas, reading, analysing and reflecting upon the assigned readings (as set out in the program below) and undertaking online quizzes.
Strategy 2 (Interactive seminars):
The seminars in this subject involve interactive class discussion between students and their peers and teachers about pre-assigned problems, exercises, audio-visual material and readings. Students learn through engaging in practice-based exercises in seminars that involve a range of common tasks that insurance lawyers are typically involved in, including client advice simulations, drafting exercises and class discussions. Several seminars incorporate guest lectures from legal and insurance industry practitioners. During the seminars students undertake a variety of practical exercises including class discussions of short problem scenarios, and activities in small groups involving the review of insurance policy wordings that are used in practice.
Strategy 3 (Research):
As a Masters-level subject requiring the demonstration of advanced legal research skills, for Assessment Task 3, students are required to formulate and submit a research essay on a topical insurance law issue of their choice, to be approved by the subject coordinator. As part of their preparation for Assessment Task 3 (Research essay), students are required to submit a research essay proposal via Turnitin by Week 5. The research essay proposal includes the proposed question for the research essay, an outline of the points to be covered and the literature and information sources that will be analysed. Students receive feedback on the research essay proposal via Turnitin from the subject coordinator by Week 7.
Strategy 4 (Feedback):
Students are provided with ongoing feedback on their understanding of the weekly topics through in-class discussions of solutions to short problem questions towards the end of each class. Before the session's Census date, a “Test your knowledge” multiple choice quiz will be available for student completion on Canvas to provide students with formative feedback on their understanding of the rules of Australian insurance law. Students receive individualised feedback from the marker on their submissions for Assessment Tasks 1 and 2, and feedback on their literature reviews for Assessment Task 3 (Research essay).
Content (topics)
- Overview of Australian insurance law
- Legislative and regulatory framework
- General insurance: Utmost Good Faith, Disclosure and Misrepresentation
- Insurance intermediaries
- Life Insurance
- Total and Permanent Disablement Insurance
- Insurance claims and causation
- Fraudulent claims
- Aggregation of insurance claims
- Section 54 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984
- Third party interests in insurance contracts
- Subrogation and Double Insurance
- Marine insurance
- Statutory insurance
- Reinsurance
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Case analysis note
| Intent: | The ability to analyse a legal case to distill the relevant facts and legal principles, and to clearly communicate these principles to clients, are fundamental skills for lawyers. Students will also contribute their observations of the key principles of their assigned case during in-class discussions. |
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| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1, 2 and 4 This task contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes: .1, .1 and .1 |
| Weight: | 20% |
| Length: | 1,000 words |
| Criteria: |
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Assessment task 2: Legal advice assignment
| Intent: | Insurance claims frequently give rise to disputes between insurers and insured clients, which require the specialized knowledge and skills of lawyers. The ability to identify and apply the relevant laws to advise clients about their legal rights and options is an important aspect of legal practice. |
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| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1, 2 and 4 This task contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes: .1, .1 and .1 |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | 2000 words |
| Criteria: |
|
Assessment task 3: Research Essay
| Intent: | Insurance Law is continuously developing, with new technologies, legislative and regulatory developments and new cases impacting upon the field. Lawyers are frequently called upon to research the impact of such developments, and to critique the effectiveness of insurance law and policy. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1, 2, 3 and 4 This task contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes: .1, .1 and .1 |
| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | 3000 words |
| Criteria: |
|
Required texts
G. Pynt, Australian Insurance Law: A First Reference (LexisNexis Butterworths 4th ed, 2017) ("Pynt")
Recommended texts
A. Tarr, J. Tarr and M. Clarke, Insurance: The Laws of Australia (Lawbook Co, 2010 (Also available online)
P. Mann, Mann's Annotated Insurance Contracts Act (Law Book Co, 7th ed, 2016)
References
Australia
ALRC, Report No 16: Insurance Agents and Brokers, AGPS, 1980
ALRC, Report No 20: Insurance Contracts, AGPS, 1982
ALRC, Report No 91: Review of the Marine Insurance Act 1909, AGPS, 2001
CCH, Australian and New Zealand Insurance Reporter (looseleaf), and *CCH, Australian and New Zealand Life Insurance Reporter (looseleaf): both available electronically via the UTS Library Catalogue
D. St. L. Kelly and M. Ball, Principles of Insurance Law, available electronically on LexisNexis via the UTS Library Catalogue
D.K. Derrington and R.S. Ashton, The Law of Liability Insurance, (LexisNexis Butterworths, 3rd ed, 2013)
N. Foster, Workplace Health and Safety Law in Australia (LexisNexis Butterworths, 2nd ed 2016) ("Foster")
J. Mo, International Commercial Law (LexisNexis Butterworths, 5th ed, 2015) ("Mo")
K. Sutton, Insurance Law in Australia (Law Book Co, 4th ed., 2015)
J. Teale, Insurance and Risk Management (CCH Australia, 2013)
Insurance Law Journal - Available electronically on LexisNexis via the UTS Library Catalogue
Australian Insurance Law Bulletin - Available electronically on LexisNexis via the UTS Library Catalogue
England
J. Birds, Modern Insurance Law (Sweet & Maxwell, 11th ed, 2019)
M.A. Clarke, The Law of Insurance Contracts (LLP, 6th ed, 2009)
P.M. Eggers et al, Good Faith and Insurance Contracts (LLP, 4th ed, 2018www)
J. Lowry, P. Rawlings and R. Merkin, Insurance Law: Doctrines and Principles (Hart Publishing, 3rd ed, 2011)
R. Merkin (ed), Colinvaux’s Law of Insurance (Sweet & Maxwell, 12th ed, 2019)
STATUTES
Marine Insurance Act 1909 (Cth)
Insurance Act 1973 (Cth)
Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth)
Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)
Life Insurance Act 1995 (Cth)
Insurance Act 1902 (NSW)
Civil Liability (Third Party Claims Against Insurers) Act 2017 (NSW)
Other resources
- UTS:Law Guide to Written Communication: uploaded to the Canvas subject site and available at http://www.uts.edu.au/current-students/current-students-information-faculty-law/overview#-strong-uts-law-guide-to-written-communication-strong-
- UTS Policy and Procedure for the Assessment of Coursework Subjects: http://www.gsu.uts.edu.au/policies/assessment-coursework.html