ePublications@bond

E-learning and Students' Motivation

Marina Nehme — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:41 PDT

E-learning’ can be defined as a method of learning that is supported by the use of information technology (‘IT’). It is believed that e-learning has the power to transform the way we teach and that it may improve learning. However, when designing an online environment, lecturers do not always take into consideration certain crucial elements of teaching — including the motivation of their students. Similarly, the research has largely ignored the role of motivation in the online learning environment due to the assumption that e-learners are self-motivated and active learners. This article looks at certain elements that can be used to foster the motivation of students in the online environment.

Imaginings of Legal Education in New Zealand Fiction

Grant Morris et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:34 PDT

Through analysing references to legal education in New Zealand fiction this article highlights and critiques some of the most important issues facing legal educators. The various challenges that students experience in their journeys through legal education are reflected in fictional texts. More often than not, these reflections, or imaginings, are impressively accurate, especially when analysed in the context of contemporary legal education scholarship. The interplay between pedagogical research and fictional representations facilitates fascinating discussions as to why students choose to learn law, how legal teaching affects them and what are the relative experiences of elite and non-elite students. The findings in this article are based on a comprehensive study of New Zealand legal fiction and provide an alternative informational source for those who are interested in analysing, and those who are striving to improve, how we teach law in New Zealand.

The Rocky Rhetoric and Hard Reality: The Academic's Dilemma Surrounding Assessment

Pauline Collins et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:31 PDT

This paper reports on qualitative research into academics perceptions of assessment in an Australian law school. Some of the key concerns of academics teaching a professional degree course in the current higher education environment, in particular as it impacts on their assessment practices and student learning, are highlighted and discussed. Academics’ perceptions of the importance of teaching and assessing graduate skills are also discussed in the context of the literature. This paper highlights that in the context of the current higher education environment there is a real risk that the gap between the rhetoric and reality will continue to widen, having consequences for the student, the academic, and higher education outcomes generally.

Mooting and Technology: To What Extent Does Using Technology Improve the Mooting Experience for Students?

Jennifer Yule et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:27 PDT

It is generally acknowledged that mooting is an effective way to enhance the teaching of practical skills in legal education as well as to provide an authentic learning experience with links to the real world. However, there are a number of impediments to students participating in mooting; in particular being located off-campus, inexperience and lack of time. It has been suggested that technology may be a means of overcoming these impediments. However the use of technology in mooting has not been tested. This paper will report on a trial of the use of Second Life and Elluminate and videoconferencing as platforms for the conduct of moots. The trials identified limitations in the use of technology for mooting in particularly in relation to the development of advocacy skills. The paper will conclude that these limitations can be overcome by careful consideration of the appropriate technology to be used depending on the context and the objectives to be achieved by the moot. It will also suggest that in order to provide an authentic use of online communication technology in a court setting, the best available technology should be used for the conduct of moot competitions.

Teaching Causation in Criminal Law: Learning to Think Like Policy Analysts

Brenda Midson — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:24 PDT

One of the most persistent ideals in the context of legal education is that of teaching students to “think like lawyers”. One such skill is undoubtedly the ability to extract legal principles from cases and statutes and apply these to the facts of a legal problem. It has become apparent, through teaching the concept of causation in criminal law, that while extracting and applying the law from cases is easy enough when the principles are clear, students often struggle when relying on cases in which Judges employ unexpressed policy-based reasoning. Law students must learn to extrapolate outcomes from legal principles and given facts. When policy grounds for decision-making are not clearly articulated, students struggle to find the “law” to apply. These difficulties can be exacerbated by a reading of the case law, which illustrates that cases with almost identical factual matrices can result in different outcomes. With particular reference to homicide cases in which medical treatment contributes to the death, this paper proposes that in complex cases, the question of causation cannot be answered simply by application of the legal principles, without reference to a range of policy considerations. To students, these are “invisible factors” in judicial decision-making which account for the variation of outcomes that occur in application of the causation principles. Because they are not explicitly referred to in case law it is almost impossible for students to employ them in problem-solving. The challenge for legal education is in effectively teaching legal reasoning so that students are better able to identify and apply unarticulated policy reasons.

The Teaching of Construction Law and the Practice of Construction Law: Never the Twain Shall Meet?

Paula Gerber — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:21 PDT

The overwhelming majority of major law firms in the United States and Australia promote construction law as one of their areas of expertise. However, the overwhelming majority of law schools in these two jurisdictions do not offer construction law as a subject in their JD or LLB programs. This article briefly analyses what exactly is encompassed by the term ‘construction law’, before examining the extent to which it forms part of law school offerings in the United States and Australia. This is followed by a critical analysis of the purpose of teaching construction law and, in particular, the knowledge and skills that students should have at the end of their study of construction law. The article concludes with a suggested model construction law syllabus for law students, designed to produce graduates who have the foundation on which to build an expertise in construction law.

Entry Into Valhalla: Contextualising The Learning of Legal Ethics Through the Use of Second Life Machinima

Des Butler — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:18 PDT

An ability to recognise and resolve ethical dilemmas was identified by the Australian Law Reform Commission as one of the ten fundamental lawyering skills. While the ‘Priestley 11’ list of areas of law required to qualify for legal practice includes ethics and professional responsibility, the commitment to ethics learning in Australian law schools has been far from uniform. The obligation imposed by the Priestley 11 is frequently discharged by a traditional teaching and learning approach involving lectures and/or tutorials and focusing on the content of the formal rules of professional responsibility. However, the effectiveness of such an approach may be open to question. Instead, a practical rather than a theoretical approach to the teaching of legal ethics is required. Effective final year student learning of ethics may be achieved by an approach which engages students, enabling them to appreciate the relevance of what they are learning to the real world and facilitating their transition from study to their working lives. Entry into Valhalla comprises a suite of modules featuring ‘machinima’ (computer generated imagery) created using the Second Life virtual environment to contextualise otherwise abstract concepts. It provides an engaging learning environment which enables students to obtain an appreciation of ethical responsibility in a real world context and facilitates understanding and problem-solving ability.

Enhancing Law Student Learning - The Nurturing Teacher

Nikki Bromberger — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:15 PDT

This article considers whether the techniques and philosophy of a ‘Nurturing’ teacher can be justified in the law school context. In doing this, the article explores two interrelated issues. The first is the effect of students’ emotions on their ability to learn effectively. The second is the role of the teacher in being aware of and harnessing these emotions in order to create the optimal classroom environment for effective learning. The article argues that the techniques and philosophies of a Nurturing teacher appropriately take account of the emotional aspect of student learning, and are therefore appropriate to law school teaching.

If You Teach It, Will They Come? Law Students, Class Attendance and Student Engagement

Lillian Corbin et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:11 PDT

Why are there empty seats in my lecture theatre? Are we driving our students away? Do work or family commitments prevent them from attending? Or, on a more positive note, have we designed our courses in such a way that we have provided all the tools necessary for them to learn independently? The latter is a very comforting thought, although we suspect that only a small percentage of students are self-learners — those who are able to achieve good results by engaging fully with the material, if this is carefully and adequately provided. This paper reports on a study that examined student attendance across a law degree — what motivated student attendance; why students did not take the opportunities provided to them to facilitate their learning; and what methods they used to learn. Our study involved courses (subjects) which required students to physically attend classes — it did not consider courses which were off-campus or primarily electronically delivered. We do not suggest that attendance alone results in student learning. However, we argue that there is evidence to show that it is an important ingredient of student engagement, particularly when the learning opportunities are predicated on physical student presence in classes.

Early Optimism? First-Year Law Students' Work Expectations and Aspirations

Melissa Castan et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:08 PDT

Despite a burgeoning of law schools in Australia in the last 15 years, there has been very little exploration of the expectations and aspirations of students commencing a law degree in Australia. By contrast, a number of studies on features of professional life for practising lawyers are emerging. In particular, recent studies have shown high levels of stress, anxiety and depression among practising lawyers. In addition, there is evidence of high levels of attrition of women from private legal practice in the first few years following admission and a significant under-representation of women in the senior levels of the profession. Universities and their law schools have not traditionally focused on preparing students for the realities of the legal workplace, concentrating instead on technical legal knowledge and practical legal skills. We recently set out to ask commencing (that is, newly enrolled) students in their first few weeks of study what they thought legal practice would be like, and what sort of career and lifestyle they would have. In this paper, we set out the context for the 2009 study into first-year students’ career expectations and analyse some of the key findings.

Foreward

Michelle Sanson — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:36:05 PDT

The first three articles focus on student attitudes and learning behaviours.Each of the following four articles focuses on a particular area of law. The final three articles concern topics of general interest to legal educators.

Indigenous Property Matters: Embedding Indigenous Content and Perspectives in Real Property

Nicole Graham — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:21:12 PDT

Indigenous land laws, Indigenous perspectives on Anglo-Australian property law and native title are often taught as optional or even irrelevant to real property in Australian law schools. Conventional pedagogical choices in many property law courses maintain this perspective through a restrictive curriculum schedule; through the limited provision of information about these matters in course readings; by neglecting the significance of language to property law generally and specifically to the historical development of property in Australian within the context of colonisation. In so doing, many property law courses diminish the radicalism and opportunity that Indigenous land laws offer the Anglo-Australian system of rights-based property which abstracts ownership from responsibility to land and water resources. This article suggests a pedagogical approach that is more inclusive of Indigenous laws and Indigenous perspectives on the Anglo-Australian law of real property.

Finding an Indigenous Perspective in Administrative Law

Alexander Reilly — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:21:08 PDT

The article proposes a method of teaching Administrative Law that engages with the historical and political impact of administrative decisions on Indigenous peoples and their cultures while still addressing the traditional doctrinal concerns of an Administrative Law course. The article begins by explaining what it understands by the concept of an ‘Indigenous perspective’, and identifying how such perspectives can be incorporated into a law degree. It then outlines the potential role of Administrative Law as a vehicle for incorporating an Indigenous perspective, explaining the pedagogical benefits of expanding Administrative Law courses in this way

Indigenous Legal Issues, Indigenous Perspectives and Indigenous Law in the New Zealand LLB Curriculum

Carwyn Jones — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:21:05 PDT

The incorporation of Indigenous content within the Bachelor of Laws curriculum is one measure that may contribute to the development of bicultural legal education in New Zealand. Incorporating Indigenous content into law courses can help to make the study of law more relevant to Indigenous communities and provide a critical framework from which changes to the legal system can be advanced. This paper identifies three distinct types of Indigenous content that may be usefully incorporated into the Bachelor of Laws curriculum: Indigenous legal issues; Indigenous perspectives; and Indigenous law. The inclusion of each type of Indigenous content has distinct benefits but also requires distinct forms of delivery. This paper considers these benefits and forms of delivery in relation to courses on Māori customary law and constitutional and administrative law, concluding that, in order to be effective, the incorporation of Indigenous content must be based on clearly identified objectives, with the type of content deliberately selected to meet those objectives, and delivered in a way which is suited to that content.

International and Comparative Indigenous Rights Via Video Conferencing

Margaret Stephenson et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:21:00 PDT

This article introduces and reviews the experience of video-conference teaching in a comparative Indigenous law course taught by a team of legal colleagues. This teaching team delivers an internationally comparative Indigenous rights course to law students in Canada, the United States, Aotearoa/New Zealand and Australia simultaneously via fully interactive live video-conferencing technology. The international universities currently involved include: University of Ottawa, University of Saskatchewan, University of Oklahoma, University of Auckland, Monash University and the University of Queensland. Situated in six sites in different parts of the globe and in various time zones, this team teaches together to discover just how much their countries have in common in relation to Indigenous issues. Not only does the course explore similarities and differences in the experiences of the four jurisdictions but it also challenges both students and teachers to understand why those differences have occurred. The article focuses on two significant aspects of this course: first, the dynamics and logistics of teaching and delivering a course through video-conferencing to a number of global sites; and secondly, an analysis of the benefits and advantages of an internationally comparative Indigenous law course. It aims to enable other law teachers to consider the suitability of video-conferencing for international and comparative areas of legal study and for others to learn from the experiences of this team in relation to the benefits and difficulties involved in this teaching mode.

Mentoring First-Year Distance Education Students in Taxation Studies

Fiona Martin et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:31 PDT

Research indicates that the dropout rate for first year students in universities is traditionally higher than for later years, with external or distance students posing the highest risk of withdrawal from studies of any group. This has been the case with the Bachelor of Taxation in the Australian School of Taxation, Faculty of Law at the University of New South Wales. The Bachelor of Taxation (BTax) program is offered nationally in an off-campus delivery mode and focuses on teaching taxation and commercial law as well as economics and accounting. The majority of its students are in full-time employment, are studying part-time and are generally in the late 20s to early 40s age group. Student peer mentoring has been successfully employed in Australia and elsewhere, as a strategy to support first year university students in their studies. In view of this, the Australian School of Taxation (Atax) introduced a peer mentoring program in 2002 aimed at improving the adjustment of first year students to studying at university. The development of this program was part of the ‘First Year Experience Project’ established by the University of New South Wales to improve the quality of the educational experiences and outcomes for first year students. Mentors were selected from continuing Atax students and also included some recent graduates from the program. An existing mentoring program was adapted to suit the demands of distance learning. This article considers the development and analyses the effectiveness of the BTax student peer mentoring program with particular reference to two cohorts of first year students (in 2002 and 2006). It concludes that the majority of the first year students involved in the student peer mentoring program considered that it helped them to adjust to university study. The mentors reinforced the students’ perceptions, agreeing that the program improved the mentees’ learning approaches and adjustment to university. Furthermore, the mentors identified that the program increased their own self-confidence, as well as benefitting their social and communication skills.

he Relevance of the Social Sciences for Legal Education

Tim Bernard — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:28 PDT

Two developments in legal studies over past generations are the development of a critical discourse and literature addressed to shortcomings of legal education, and the development of a rich, rewarding body of work in interdisciplinary legal studies, often referred to as law and society scholarship or socio-legal studies. To date, these two developments have been largely independent of one another, although scholarship in law and society or socio-legal studies has much potential to complement or reform legal education in many of the respects where it has been found to be problematic or lacking. A brief survey of many of the concerns which have been voiced about legal education, with significant attention to ‘internal’ critiques offered by legal scholars and educators themselves, is offered with the constructive goal of suggesting the relevance of social scientific scholarship and instruction for legal education, broadly conceived to include pre-law education, continuing legal education, dual degrees and paralegal studies. Important issues include the inevitably interdisciplinary nature of legal studies, issues of civics and public service, critical and reflective approaches to law, professionalism and ethics, specialization and multi-disciplinary practice, and skills training and legal practice more generally. Given the great potential for social science to contribute to legal education in many ways that are responsive to the internal critiques of legal education, it is well worth addressing difficult questions about how legal education could incorporate relevant social scientific scholarship and instruction.

Assessing Reflection Skills in Law Using Criterion

Kelley Burton et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:25 PDT

Reflective practice is an important skill for law students to develop because it will assist them to become independent, lifelong learners and also to cope with the stressors of professional practice. Despite this, law academics may be deterred from embedding and summatively assessing reflective practice because of its perceived subjectivity. This article tackles the challenges of assessing reflective practice by gaining a greater insight into the construct of reflection and its benefits in a legal context. It will propose a criterion-referenced assessment rubric for reflective practice that is grounded in the literature and which assesses reflective practice in a manner similar to critical thinking.

Have we 'Pushed the Boat Out Too Far' in Providing Online Practical Legal Training? A Guide to Best Practices for Future Programs

Gaye T. Lansdell — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:22 PDT

This article investigates the efficacy and appropriateness of online programs which are currently used as a principal means of completing pre-admission training requirements for admission to practice as a lawyer in many Australian States and Territories. The author queries whether institutions and accrediting bodies gone too far in accepting online practical legal training courses as an alternative for the more traditional face-toface course structure? After considering the relationship between training and the standards of the profession the author focuses on the literature pertaining to online delivery generally and in the area of legal education. The paper queries whether connections can be drawn between technological advances and changes in the learning and training of lawyers and whether such changes are for the benefit of the profession generally. By reference to the observations of students and teaching staff in both the oncampus and online courses of the Postgraduate Diploma of Legal Practice, Skills and Ethics (PDLP) at Monash University, the author considers whether the important communication skills (critical for legal work) can be obtained through flexible delivery modes and the perceived limitations of such programs. Finally, recognising that online courses are now part of the legal education landscape the author proposes best practices and design methodology for producing future online programs in this area.

The Modifi cation of Assessment Task Dimensions in Support of Student Progression in Legal Skills Development

Clair Hughes — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:19 PDT

This article identifies key task variables that can be manipulated in ways appropriate to the assessment of student learning at different stages in their progression from ‘novice’ to ‘expert’legal practitioner. The ideas presented elaborate on the outcomes of a symposium discussion of the systematic assessment of law students’ abilities to undertake a variety of professional roles. The symposium was organised by the Council of Australian Law Deans (CALD) as part of a project funded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC). After a general introduction to the structure and design of individual assessment tasks, the key dimensions of such tasks are identified and possible modifications illustrated with reference to specific examples.

The Travails of Postgraduate Research in Law

Rita Shackel et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:16 PDT

The face of postgraduate legal research in Australia has changed considerably in recent years. Certainly the number of students undertaking postgraduate research degrees at Australian law schools has burgeoned. Research degree programs in law include Masters by research, PhDs and SJDs. The rise in the numbers of postgraduate research degree students, together with an expanding array of research projects and methodologies, has generated new challenges for the postgraduate scholar, their supervisors and faculties seeking to support such students. These challenges arise in three areas: the intellectual challenges of postgraduate research in law; the personal aspects of the postgraduate research experience; and the supervision process and relationship. This article examines each of these areas, and argues that law faculties, postgraduate research supervisors and students need to reflect on the nature of contemporary postgraduate legal research, the purpose of and rationale for undertaking a postgraduate research degree in law and the unique and multifaceted challenges that must be met in developing, supervising and successfully completing a postgraduate degree project. With the current or prospective postgraduate research student in mind, this article points to some modest suggestions for enhancing law students’ research degree experience.

Engaging with the World: Students of Comparative Law Write for Wikipedia

Norman Witzleb — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:13 PDT

Improving students’ computer literacy, instilling a critical approach to Internet resources and preparing them for collaborative work are important educational aims today. This article examines how a writing exercise in the style of a Wikipedia article can be used to develop these skills. Students in an elective unit in Comparative Law were asked to create, and review, a Wikipedia entry on an issue, concept or scholar in this field. This article describes the rationale for adopting this writing task, how it was integrated into the teaching and assessment structure of the unit, and how students responded to the exercise. In addition to critically evaluating the potential of this novel teaching tool, the article aims to provide some practical guidance on when Wikipedia assignments might be usefully employed.

Beyond Mooting: Designing an Advocacy, Ethics and Values Matrix for the Law School Curriculum

Bobette Wolski — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:10 PDT

This article focuses on what is likely the most common form of simulation used in law schools, the moot. It discusses concerns about the use of moots in some law schools in three jurisdictions (Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom). The concerns are divided into three categories: those intrinsic to “the traditional moot”, those that arise because of the way in which moots are incorporated into the law curriculum, and those that are a product of the nature of moots and the way in which we integrate them. The article suggests a sustainable affordable way in which to address these concerns. The solution proposed consists of two initiatives. First, it is suggested that the traditional moot be replaced with a variety of simulations that make more effective use of experiential learning than does the traditional moot. Second, it is suggested that simulations such as the ones described in the article be integrated into the curriculum by way of a “skills, ethics and values matrix”. The article draws on literature from a number of jurisdictions and on the results of a longitudinal study of the efforts of one law school in Australia, Bond University School of Law, to improve teaching and learning in advocacy, ethics and values in the law curriculum.

Law Students' Attitudes to Education: Pointers to Depression In the Legal Academy and the Profession?

Massimilliano Tani et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:06 PDT

A survey of 2,528 students across all faculties at the University of New South Wales was carried out in 2005 to collect information about their experiences and expectations of university life and study. Analysis of the data showed some unexpected and significant differences between law students’ attitudes to their university education when compared with students in a number of other faculties. The fact that law students reported different responses to questions about their choice of course, expectations of results and perceptions of employers’ preferences in graduates suggested that we should further analyse the data to ascertain the extent and kind of differences between law students’ and other students’ responses. Law students’ experiences and attitudes, as they emerged from the further analysis, showed a comparatively low level of personal autonomy and a strong element of competitiveness compared with medical students and with students from other faculties. The psychological literature suggests that lack of autonomy and lack of social connectedness are important factors in depression. The results of this study thus indicate a number of factors which might assist in helping us understand why law students are more likely to develop depression than students in other disciplines. The paper outlines strategies to foster student resilience and also directions for further research needed to confirm or disprove the associations between depression and attitudes to university education suggested by the present study.

Forward

Michelle Sanson — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 23:01:03 PDT

This issue contains nine articles within the General Issue, Volume 19(1) and four articles within the Special Topic Issue — Incorporating Indigenous Perspectives in the Law Curriculum, Volume 19(2). In our General Issue, Massimiliano Tani and Prue Vines examine a matter of critical importance — the link between law student attitudes to education and the alarming rate of depression in law school and the legal profession. Mooting is an excellent mechanism for teaching advocacy skills. However mooting has the potential to dilute the importance of ethics by teaching students to take whichever position is likely to win. Bobette Wolski examines the potential for mooting as a vehicle for teaching ethics and values. Normann Witzleb reveals a teaching innovation in Web 2.0, which involves moving beyond using the internet for receipt of information to having interactive development of content by users. Here, students create law-related entries for the online encyclopaedia, Wikipedia. There are now increasing numbers of postgraduate law students, and Rita Shackel and Arlie Loughnan reflect on the higher degree research student’s experience. Clair Hughes provides a useful matrix setting out various task dimensions that can be modified to suit the assessment of students at different levels of legal skills development. Gaye Lansdell cautions against the use of wholly online practical legal training programs, suggesting that at least some face to face contact time is necessary for learning outcomes to be achieved. Kelley Burton and Judith McNamara, while acknowledging the value of reflection as a way to deepen student learning, tackle the difficult challenge of assessing the process. Tim Berard identifies the many contributions that social science can offer legal education. Fiona Martin, Kate Collier and Shirley Carlon apply highly successful student mentoring techniques to distance students studying taxation.

Bringing the Court and Mediation Room Into the Classroom

Jacqueline Horan et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:51:11 PDT

This article discusses a new approach to teaching civil dispute resolution at university. Students in the first-year law subject Dispute Resolution witnessed a civil dispute in the classroom by watching a simulated dispute on DVD. The DVD covered the major aspects of dispute resolution, including negotiation, mediation and court hearings. The following is a discussion of the pedagogical goals behind this approach, in particular the importance of incorporating a variety of instructional methods in the teaching of law and the value of contextual learning. It also provides some preliminary findings on the effectiveness of this method of teaching, based on initial feedback from both teachers and students of Dispute Resolution.

New Challenges in Legal Education: Developing an Appropriate Response to the Issue of Student Workload

Anne Macduff et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:51:08 PDT

The purpose of this paper is to make an informed contribution to the discussion about appropriate responses to the critical issue of student workload in legal education. This paper will argue that the most appropriate response is to modify aspects of curriculum design. This option can reduce student perceptions of heavy workload without compromising educational outcomes. The paper considers the findings of a project to rigorously explore the issue of student workload and to develop an appropriate response for a postgraduate online practical legal education program. The authors submit that many of the recommendations from the project are potentially transferable to other teaching contexts.

Teaching About the Nexus Between Law and Society: From Pedagogy to Andragogy

Patricia Easteal — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:51:06 PDT

This practice article describes a learner-centred approach to legal education that has proven effective in engaging law students with a critical and contextual analysis of the legal system. The model is based on an action-learning cycle in which implementation is continuously improved following feedback and reflection. The aims of the approach are to provide students with an understanding of the interplay between the law and the broader society in which it is practised, and the confidence and skills to engage in independent, critical and creative thought. Three elements have emerged as essential to achieving these aims: a supportive social environment, a format that integrates small group discussions with formal presentations around specific topics, and an assessment scheme based on ‘learning chronicles’.

Blended Learning in Intellectual Property: The Best of Both Worlds

Jennifer Ireland — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:51:03 PDT

This paper reflects on a trial of blended learning conducted in the elective Unit Intellectual Property at the University of Western Sydney over Summer 2008. The trial was conducted in order to establish whether a ‘replacement’ model of blended learning was suitable for law students and to assess the benefits and challenges this model presents. The overall results of the trial demonstrate that, with sufficient time invested in the design and production of quality learning materials, blended learning can potentially deliver significant benefits in this discipline, both to students and also to academics. In particular, the blended mode of delivery offers opportunities to make learning in law units more active, without entirely sacrificing the detailed explanations of content, typical of traditional lectures, that law students often place great value upon. By combining the best aspects of face-to-face and online teaching, this model can offer students the best of both worlds.

Lawyer Dissatisfaction, Emotional Intelligence and Clinical Legal Education

Colin James — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:51:00 PDT

This article reports on research at the University of Newcastle, Australia, in 2006, which sought to identify the major causes of stress and dissatisfaction among lawyers and to correlate that information with measures of lawyers’ mental wellbeing (neuroticism), emotional intelligence, and the type of legal education and practical legal training (PLT) they had received. Part II reviews the relevant literature, Part III outlines the methodology, Part IV the findings, and Part V the recommendations.

Performance in Law School: What Matters in the Beginning?

Wendy Larcombe et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:58 PDT

This paper offers insight into some of the factors beyond previous academic achievement that may influence the performance of undergraduate Law students in Australia. A survey of interests, attitudes and expectations was conducted with commencing LLB students at the Melbourne Law School in 2007. The paper reports on the survey responses of students who went on to achieve very high marks in their first semester, students who achieved very low marks and students who did not complete first semester. Significant differences between the performance subgroups were identified regarding initial levels of interest in studying law, expectations of workload and academic support, and confidence in ‘readiness’ to undertake a range of academic tasks. These findings have implications for Law School selection committees, first year teachers, and staff involved in orientation and academic support programs. Better information for prospective students about the nature and demands of a Law course is also indicated.

Jurisprudence Meets Epistemology: Facilitating Legal Understanding and Meaningful Learning in Legal Education with Concept Maps

Heather Ann Forrest — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:55 PDT

Jurisprudential scholar J M Balkin proposes that understanding law for the purpose of learning and being able to apply it requires a conscious and active engagement on the part of the individual attempting to understand law and, by corollary, a consideration of the individual’s subjective contribution to law. Ignorance of the individual and his or her contribution to what law is, Balkin argues, prevents legal understanding. In the exploration of why or how law comes to be regarded as coherent — a process Balkin describes as ‘understanding legal understanding’ — Balkin posits that it is not sufficient merely to acknowledge the individual. Rather, the individual’s contribution to determinations of legal coherence must be considered in order to understand law. A similar focus on the role of the individual in understanding lies at the heart of David Ausubel’s epistemological theory of meaningful learning and its practical application in the concept mapping method developed by Joseph Novak. This paper links Balkin’s jurisprudential theory of legal understanding and Ausubel’s theory of meaningful learning and proposes the concept mapping method as a way to facilitate legal understanding.

Part of the Problem or Part of the Solution? Legal Positivism and Legal Education

John T. Morss — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:53 PDT

This paper pursues some related, interdisciplinary themes relevant to the future of law and the teaching of law. In part, it responds to recent contributions by Margaret Thornton and by Tamara Walsh. The major argument is that while positivism in the social sciences (such as psychology) is of historical interest only, positivism in legal studies remains distinct and valid. Even if it seems paradoxical, in emphasising the conventional (that is, socially constructed) nature of legal regulations and obligations, legal positivism is entirely consistent with the post-positivist trends in social science. It is capable of carrying forward the impulse of critical legal studies and helping to shape the critical pedagogy that may currently be lacking within legal education.

Research Assessment and Legal Scholarship

Christopher Arup — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:50 PDT

On election, in 2008, the new Australian Government put a stop to the Research Quality Framework (RQF) which was gearing up for its first assessment round. Nonetheless, the Government has since announced that its place will be taken by a new research quality and evaluation system, the Excellence in Research for Australia initiative (ERA).1 ERA will depart from the RQF in certain respects and some useful comparisons can be made. But the essential issue remains the nature of assessment and in particular the combination of publication metrics and peer review. The aim of this article is to suggest how research assessment might have an effect on the intellectual approaches taken to legal scholarship in Australia. Part I notes the objectives of research assessment and situates them within the modern managerial approach to research. Part II sets out the RQF and ERA definition of research quality and considers how that definition might sit with the many different approaches to legal scholarship. Part III continues this theme, discussing in detail the selection of assessment measures and especially the design of metric measures such as research outlet rankings. Part IV finishes with some predictions regarding the advantages that might ensue to individuals and institutions from assessment.

21st Century Climate for Change: Curriculum Design for Quality Learning Engagement in Law

Sally Kift — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:47 PDT

While the practice of law and the context of higher education have changed radically over recent decades, curriculum renewal in legal education still struggles to keep pace. Common law legal educators face significant conceptual challenges in meeting the persistent demands for curriculum innovation and quality assurance. Further, at a time when higher education has renewed its focus on learning and teaching professionalism and the quality of the student experience, the current fraught reality for all — academics and students alike — is the need to be more effective and efficient in our daily practices and educational engagements. This article provides a brief environmental scan of legal education internationally, and then moves to consider the challenges inherent in educating our graduates for the demands of 21st century citizenship and legal practice in globalised work environments. Some ideas are offered as to how we might go about curriculum design to support new learners in the discipline and to meet the imperatives of teaching, learning and assessing for the new learning objectives being embraced.

Foreward

Samantha Hardy — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:45 PDT

This issue of the Legal Education Review has involved the efforts of many people, mainly academics, who have volunteered their time and expertise with little thought of reward or recognition. Special thanks need to go to the Faculty of Law at UTS and Professors David Barker, Michael Adams and Rosalind Mason for support provided through the ALTA office. Thanks are due to the members of the 2008 Editorial Committee for their work in putting this issue together — Dr Terry Hutchinson, Dr Allan Chay, Professor Lee Godden, Dr Nick James, Jacqueline MacKinnon, and Dr Michelle Sanson. Special thanks to Terry Hutchinson, the previous Editor-in-Chief, for providing me with support and guidance throughout this first issue in my role as the new Editor-in-Chief. Many thanks also to Michelle Sanson who spent an enormous amount of time working above and beyond the call of duty in her role as production editor. Many thanks are also due to Sonya Willis, our very efficient and unfailingly cheerful administrator, and to WritWrite for their thorough proofing of the contributions. Our referees spend many hours of their own time reading and providing insightful feedback on the papers. Their efforts are always respected and genuinely appreciated. All the general and practice articles in this issue of the Review have passed through a double-blind refereeing process. All associated with the Legal Education Review were saddened by the tragic death in 2008 of Lyndal Taylor (formerly of the University of Technology, Sydney). We will always remember and be grateful for the outstanding contribution she made in her dedication to the Legal Education Review for many years as Editor-in-Chief and, subsequently, the Editorial Advisory Board.

Deep Learning and ‘Topical Issues’ in Teaching Administrative Law

Michael Head — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:31 PDT

[Extract] It is perhaps a conceit of law teachers to think that their area of law poses special challenges for educative purposes. In this paper, I suggest that administrative law does present some particular problems for students, although I am sure that the issues are not completely unique to this legal fi eld. In any case, my experiences over some years have led me to explore some educational theory and practice that may be of broader interest to law teachers, and not only those involved with administrative law

A Critique of the Assessment of Professional Skills

Anne Hewitt — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:29 PDT

[Extract] Well designed assessment can be an important part of the learning process. However, as suggested above, not all forms of assessment will fulfil this function. In order to improve education and student learning in ‘dramatic ways’, assessment must be appropriately designed and implemented. This is often a complicated task, especially in non-traditional academic disciplines, such as the teaching of professional skills, which demand experiential testing. This is further complicated by the inevitable tension between logistical convenience and sound educational practice. This article will outline five key criteria in the design of credible assessment tasks for skills subjects in an academic environment. Two models for assessment of professional skills in an academic environment (at the University of Adelaide and Bond University) will then be evaluated in relation to these criteria.

Putting Justice Back Into Legal Education

Tamara Walsh — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:26 PDT

The influence of legal education on the attitudes, values and career aspirations of law students is well-documented. Since lawyers are amongst the most powerful players in our society, it is incumbent upon legal academics to ensure that we are graduating students committed to using their degrees to enhance social justice and equality, and who are dedicated to upholding the rule of law. As Max Radin opined, ‘the lawyer’s task is ultimately concerned with justice and ... any legal teaching that ignores justice has missed most of its point’. Clearly, ‘[e]verything we do as law teachers suggests something about justice’. It is of concern, therefore, that accounts of legal education are increasingly reporting it to be adversarial, competitive, ‘mystified’, and seemingly objective and value-neutral. Commentators note that students are taught to view the law as ‘something separate and apart from the rest of the goings-on in society’. They are trained in the art of ‘studied detachment’, forced to ‘leave their sense of compassion at the door’ and have their ‘curiosity and genuine intellectual interest’ inhibited. They eventually emerge from this ‘intellectual myopia’ or ‘moral abyss’ with a ‘deadened’ sense of social consciousness, and in its place is one which is ‘properly professional’ and ‘largely apolitical’.Legal education, it is said, has become ‘universally the same shade of grey’. Empirical research supports these observations. Numerous studies have found that law students’ commitment to social justice principles and public interest practice diminishes over the course of their studies. This paper examines the possible causes of and solutions to this. It reports on the results of an empirical study undertaken at the University of Queensland, which investigated the extent to which law students demonstrated a commitment to social justice principles and public interest practice. It concludes that the discussion of socio-political issues and the development of ‘alternative’ legal skills is generally supported by law students, and makes some suggestions on how this might be achieved in legal education in practice.

Reflections on Legal Education and Philosophy: The Critical Role of Theory in Practice

John Zerilli — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:23 PDT

An application-focused, commercial-utility-driven approach to legal education can seriously undermine the law’s potential and produce students insensitive to the significance of questions they are called upon to ask in legal practice. A mature curriculum will not eschew a survey of the great debates of philosophy in the history of ideas nor insulate students from considering the influence of other subjects bearing an impact upon the law. The law’s necessarily inter-disciplinary nature requires its practitioners to possess at least an appreciation of extra-legal learning from areas such as philosophy, logic, history and economics.

Why Teach ADR to Law Students? Part 2: An Empirical Survey

Tom Fisher et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:21 PDT

[Extract] In Part One of this article, we posed the question ‘Why teach ADR to Law Students?’ The question was generated by a review of the literature on the teaching of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in a number of Western countries, particularly the United States and Australia. The literature revealed that many law schools in these countries have demonstrated a commitment to teaching ADR theory and practice to their students in keeping with the upsurge in clinical education and the belief that ‘black letter’ law units expose students to a narrow perspective of legal practice. The commonly held view is that legal education should teach law students ‘what lawyers need to be able to do’ not just ‘what lawyers need to know’.[...] Part One of this article raised important questions for both the academy and the profession. It addressed the question ‘Why teach ADR in law school?’ In other words, to what extent is it giving students who are bombarded with the adversarial, positional direction of the traditional ‘black letter’ subjects’ insights into the collaborative, problem-solving approach, essential for 21st century lawyering? It also noted that attitudinal change, if any, that may ensue as a result of teaching ADR subjects to law students, remains an important question for research in both the fields of legal education and legal professional practice. Part Two of the article examines this latter topic. In the presentation of this part of our work, we seek to suggest some answers to these questions by reporting on an empirical pilot study of teaching ADR as a mandatory unit to first-year law students at La Trobe University in 2005.5 This article provides a brief profile of the students undertaking the unit along a variety of measures and then focuses on a detailed exploration of their views towards ways in which the legal profession manages disputes.

Is Plagiarism Indicative of Prospective Legal Practice?

Lillian Corbin et al. — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:18 PDT

[Extract] Plagiarism has become increasingly pervasive in Australian law schools. Universities have implemented policies and procedures at both the institutional and faculty level to combat the menace to academic integrity. Plagiarism is elusive, however, in terms of both conceptualisation and detection. The greatest difficulty in identifying instances of plagiarism is the lack of clarity as to its definition. At its most basic, plagiarism is defined as the theft of literary property without attribution. While the authors contend that offenders ought to be held strictly liable, some commentators, discussed below, insist that an element of intention must be present to make a finding of plagiarism, or they identify negligence as an excuse for plagiarism.

Thriving in the Legal Academy

Paula Baron — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:16 PDT

This paper explores the notion of thriving in the academic workplace in general, and the legal academy in particular. It was prompted by the Career Progression session at the 2007 ALTA conference, entitled ‘Ideas and Strategies to Survive and Thrive in the New Environment’. Although ideas for surviving the new environment are relatively easy to formulate, the potential for (even the possibility of) thriving is more difficult to articulate. Ways of achieving a better quality of life can be hard to imagine in the current university environment. There is a substantial body of research that finds that academic life in general is highly stressful, with significant implications for health and well-being.[...] This paper seeks to raise awareness of the challenges to, and the potential for, well-being amongst teachers of law. The paper makes three key claims. The first is that there is a significant difference between thriving and surviving and we have tended to focus, in law schools, on the latter. This focus has been the result, in particular, of the structural changes to both the profession and to universities that have occurred over the past fifteen years. The second claim is that, in an environment in which serious reconsideration is being given to the health and well-being of our students and members of the legal profession, it would be beneficial to consider also how we might further the health and well-being of our academies; and lastly, a focus on the concept of thriving might allow us to do that. The paper concludes with some practical suggestions for furthering the well-being of law faculties and the academics who work within them.

The Law School, the Market and the New Knowledge Economy

Margaret Thornton — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:13 PDT

[Extract] This paper considers how changes in higher education are impacting on the discipline of law, causing the critical scholarly space to contract in favour of that which is market-based and applied. The charging of high fees has transformed the delicate relationship between student and teacher into one of ‘customer’ and ‘service provider’. Changes in pedagogy, modes of delivery and assessment have all contributed to a narrowing of the curriculum over the last two decades in a way that supports the market. I will briefly illustrate the way the transformation has occurred and consider its effect on legal education. This study is based on interviews with academics in Australian public university law schools. Interviews were conducted with up to six academics from each school. Participants included both senior and junior, and male and female academics, as well as the dean or head of the school. They were asked to comment on their perception of change within the legal academy since the Dawkins reforms in 1988 with respect to curriculum, pedagogy and research, as well as the student body and their own lives as academics. Participants are referred to generically by position, and law schools by classification, in order to maintain confidentiality. The typology of schools includes four classifications according to age. They are the Sandstones (the original State university law schools); the Redbricks (that emerged post-World War II); the 3rd Generations (that emerged in the period of economic growth 1970s to 1990s); and the News (that generally emerged from the Dawkins reforms in 1988).

Foreword

Terry Hutchinson — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 22:50:10 PDT

This issue contains six ‘General Articles’ and two ‘Practice Articles’. A decision was made by the journal’s Editorial Committee to change the terminology for the ‘Teaching Notes’ segment to ‘Practice Articles’ which better reflects the nature of the articles in that segment of the journal. All the articles in the Legal Education Review are double blind refereed. The articles in this issue cover some very important topics for academic lawyers and the legal profession. Professor Margaret Thornton examines the challenges for Australian law schools in the context of the knowledge economy. Professor Paula Baron explores the notion of ‘thriving’ within the modern academic workplace. Other authors continue this theme with a discussion of current issues within the legal academy — plagiarism, and the role of theory and social justice values. This issue of the Legal Education Review has involved the efforts of many people, mainly academics, who have volunteered their time and expertise with little thought of reward or recognition. Special thanks needs to go to the Faculty of Law at UTS and Professor David Barker, Samantha McGolrick and their team for the support provided through the ALTA office. Thanks are due to the members of the 2007 Editorial Committee for their work in putting this issue together — Associate Editor Dr Sam Hardy, Business Editor Dr Allan Chay, Dr Nick James, Jacqueline Mackinnon, Associate Professor Lee Godden, and especially our new Production Editor Michelle Sanson. Gratitude is due by both the authors and the editors to our referees who spend many hours of their own time reading and commenting extensively on the papers in order to encourage and support our contributors. Their efforts are always respected and genuinely appreciated. Submissions of articles for inclusion in the 2008 edition (Vol 18) are due by 30th April 2008. There will continue to be one issue in 2008. The Review follows the Australian Guide to Legal Citation, Melbourne University Law Review Association (2nd ed, 2002).

Examining the psychosocial and academic factors predicting depression and anxiety symptomology across first year and later year university students

Natalie Eckberg et al. — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 23:51:45 PDT

University students across the world report higher levels of mental health problems compared to the general population. Past research has focused on investigating mental health problems among first-year university students. However, a paucity of existing research compares the prevalence of mental health problems in first-year university students to students in later year-levels. To address this gap, the current study compared the level of depression and anxiety symptomology experienced by university students (n = 198) from Australia and the United States, across first, second, third, and fourth-year levels. The results found no significant differences in the level of depression and anxiety symptomology between university students from these countries, and no significant differences in the level of depression symptoms across year-levels. However, university students in the secondyear level reported significantly higher levels of anxiety symptoms compared to first, third, and fourth-year levels. The current study assessed the role of stress appraisal, psychosocial, and coping factors as predictors of depression and anxiety symptoms across all year-levels of university students. Hierarchical multiple regressions indicated higher levels of perceived stress and lower levels of perceived social support from family significantly predicted higher levels of depression symptoms. Higher levels of perceived stress and academic avoidance coping, and lower levels of campus connectedness significantly predicted higher levels of anxiety symptoms. Limitations and implications for future research are discussed.

Disordered or [Ab]normal Eating in Pregnancy

Amy Bannatyne et al. — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 00:01:23 PDT

Introduction:

Pregnancy is a powerful biopsychosocial event that involves a multitude of rapid changes to a woman’s body, eating patterns, social functioning, and self identity – most of which are largely outside her control. Although it is well known that eating disorders and disordered eating disproportionally affect young women often during childbearing years, historically, scientific understanding of the intersection between pregnancy and eating disorders has been poor. Overall, it is known that pregnancy can impact an eating disorder in three main ways:

1) Pregnancy may function as a catalyst for remission

2) Pregnancy may exacerbate existing ED symptoms

3) Pregnancy may act as a trigger for relapse However, pregnancy may also serve as a period of risk for unaffected women, acting as precipitating event for the development of disordered eating behaviours in women without a lifetime history of an eating disorder.

However, pregnancy may also serve as a period of risk for unaffected women, acting as precipitating event for the development of disordered eating behaviours in women without a lifetime history of an eating disorder.

Client Group Activism and Student Moral Development in Clinical Legal Education

Adrian Evans — Tue, 04 Jul 2017 19:08:00 PDT

At its best, clinical legal education exposes law teachers and students to the complexity of responding to clients’ legal issues. The development of holistic, skilled and ethical student responses to clients’ casework issues is of course an appropriate objective of a law school clinical program. Beyond this, it is also possible to look behind individual clients’ problems at the common social factors contributing to their difficulties. Students who examine these “systemic” issues in their clients’ lives seem to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the legal issues confronting their clients individually and as members of a group. Some clients who are encouraged to see their problems as a part of a wider social context also become active in the political process in order to try and improve their own circumstances and those of others. Law teachers who facilitate the exposure of their students and clients to the relationship between individual and collective social problems also benefit. They mature in the depth of their appreciation of substantive law reform.

Examining the psychosocial and academic factors predicting depression and anxiety symptomology across first year and later year university students

Natalie Eckberg et al. — Tue, 04 Jul 2017 18:47:38 PDT

Shrinkage of the Sample Correlation Matrix of Returns Towards a Constant Correlation Target: A Pedagogic Illustration Based on Dow Jones Stock Returns

Clarence C. Y. Kwan — Tue, 04 Jul 2017 12:43:30 PDT

This paper extends the introduction to shrinkage estimation in a recent paper from the same journal. The extension, which is in a portfolio investment context, is on shrinkage of the sample correlation matrix of returns towards a constant correlation target. Here, shrinkage estimation is about finding a weighted average of the sample correlation matrix and the target matrix, for a balance between reducing overall forecast errors and maintaining some existing idiosyncrasies in the individual correlations. Excel plays an important pedagogic role here. Besides illustrating the computations involved, the use of Excel also enables students to gain valuable hands-on experience in shrinkage estimation, by working with the Dow Jones stock returns in an Excel file accompanying this paper.

Secondary psychological outcomes in a controlled trial of Emotional Freedom Techniques and cognitive behaviour therapy in the treatment of food cravings

Peta Stapleton et al. — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 22:17:22 PDT

Objective: Examining the effectiveness of psychological interventions in treating secondary psychological outcomes of obesity has become prioritized in recent times. The objective of the present study was to compare an eight-week Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) intervention program, in the treatment of food cravings and secondary psychological outcomes among overweight or obese adults (N = 83).

Method: A controlled non-inferiority trial was performed comparing group-delivered CBT to group-delivered EFT. Participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire at pre- and post-intervention, and at six and 12-months follow-up.

Results: The CBT group did not report any significant changes in anxiety scores over time, but the decrease in depression symptoms pre-to post-intervention was significant and this was maintained at 6-and 12-months. Anxiety and depression scores significantly decreased from pre-to post-intervention for the EFT group, and was maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-up. Somatoform scores significantly decreased from pre-intervention to all follow-up points for the CBT group, while the EFT group did not report any significant changes in somatoform symptoms. Results also revealed that EFT is capable of producing reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms, and may be comparable to gold standard approaches such as CBT.

Conclusion: The current study supports the hypothesis that psychological intervention is beneficial for treating psychological comorbidities of obesity and points to the role mental health issues may play in this area.

Attentional focus strategies used by regular exercisers and their relationship with perceived exertion, enjoyment, and satisfaction

Miriam Emad et al. — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 20:38:43 PDT

Individuals can focus their attention in different ways during exercise and different foci may influence psychological states experienced. The present study examined the distribution of attentional focus strategies in exercisers and their relationships with gender, perceived exertion, enjoyment, and satisfaction. Regular exercisers (176 females, 144 males) completed a measure of attentional focus and rated their perceived exertion, enjoyment, and satisfaction during an exercise session. All participants used more than one type of attentional focus during an exercise session. Males spent more time than females attending to task-relevant thoughts and external cues whereas females spent more time attending to task-irrelevant thoughts and external distractions. In females and males, time spent engaging in task-irrelevant thoughts was negatively correlated with perceived exertion and satisfaction with exercise. For females only, time using external distractions was negatively correlated with satisfaction and positively correlated with enjoyment. For males only, time attending to task-relevant external cues was positively correlated with perceived exertion and enjoyment. The observed gender differences in attentional focus preferences and the relationships with psychological states have implications for advice given to exercisers and approaches that aim to promote adherence to exercise programs.

Cost performance of public infrastructure projects: The nemesis and nirvana of change-orders

Peter E D Love et al. — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 17:20:49 PDT

The cost performance of a wide range of public sector infrastructure projects completed by a contractor are analysed and discussed. Change-orders after a contract to construct an asset was signed were, on average, found to contribute to a 23.75% increase in project costs. A positive association between an increase in change orders and the contractor’s margin were identified. Taxpayers pay for this additional cost, while those charged with constructing assets are rewarded with an increase in their margins. As the public sector embraces an era of digitisation, there is a need to improve the integration of design and construction activities and engender collaboration to ensure assets can be delivered cost effectively and future-proofed. The research paper provides empirical evidence for the public sector to re-consider the processes that are used to deliver their infrastructure assets so as to reduce the propensity for cost overruns and enable future-proofing to occur.