Bachelor of Laws / Bachelor of Innovation and Design
Blended learning – on-campus and digital learning
This course has been discontinued - this course is closed for new enrolments, the information on this page is provided for continuing students.
The Bachelor of Laws / Bachelor of Innovation and Design offers students a course focused on commercial law, with an additional emphasis on intellectual property law.
As the only double degree in Victoria with this specialisation, students learn about trade marks, patents, copyright, the prohibition of misleading or deceptive conduct and competition law.
Students complete law-related professional experience placements and are introduced to the practical aspects of legal practice through moot court scenarios and advocacy exercises.
This combination of degrees equips students with the skills to work with law principles in design and information technology businesses – using legal knowledge across entrepreneurship, innovation, design management, product systems, service design, intellectual property and more.
Every international student application is considered for a scholarship
Whether you’re living in Australia or overseas, you’re automatically considered for a scholarship of up to 20% off your course fees. Please check our updated entry requirements.
Duration
5 Year/s
Full-time
VTAC codes
- 3400210521 (CSP)
- 3400210523 (IFP)
CRICOS code
087851D
Fees
A$34000 (annual for 2020)*
The indicative course fees shown in Course Search apply to international students for the relevant year only. They are based on a standard study load per year. However, please note that fees are assessed according to a student's study load in each semester, and variation to study load will result in an adjustment to tuition fees. All fees are subject to annual review and may be adjusted.
International students in Australia who hold student visas are required to study full-time and on campus. Courses that are taught entirely online are only available to international students studying outside Australia or those in Australia who are not on a student visa. Online courses are not available to international students in Australia who hold a student visa.
Course details
- Course structure, work integrated learning, career opportunities and professional recognition.
Course structure
Successful completion of the Bachelor of Laws / Bachelor of Innovation and Design requires students to complete units of study to the value of 500 credit points. All units of study are valued at 12.5 credit points unless otherwise stated.
View course rules and special requirements
| Units | Unit codes | Credit points |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Australian Law and Statutory Interpretation | LAW10010 | 12.5 |
| Contract Law | LAW10011 | 12.5 |
| Commercial Law | LAW10013 | 12.5 |
| Torts 1 | LAW10014 | 12.5 |
| Criminal Law & Procedure | LAW10015 | 12.5 |
| Torts 2 | LAW10025 | 12.5 |
| Legal Writing | LAW10026 | 12.5 |
| Evidence | LAW20009 | 12.5 |
| Administrative Law | LAW20010 | 12.5 |
| Trade Marks and Related Rights * | LAW20011 | 12.5 |
| Federal & State Constitutional Law | LAW20012 | 12.5 |
| Property Law | LAW20013 | 12.5 |
| Land Law | LAW20014 | 12.5 |
| Copyright * | LAW20043 | 12.5 |
| Patents & Designs * | LAW30011 | 12.5 |
| Equity & Trusts * | LAW30012 | 12.5 |
| Company Law * | LAW30013 | 12.5 |
| Legal Practice & Professional Conduct * | LAW30015 | 12.5 |
| Civil Procedure and Alternative Dispute Resolution | LAW30029 | 12.5 |
*Outcome unit – completion demonstrates the attainment of course learning outcomes
+
| Units | Unit codes | Credit points |
|---|---|---|
| Professional Communication Practice | COM10007 | 12.5 |
| Introductory Design Studio | DDD10006 | 12.5 |
| Innovation Design Studio 1 | DID10005 | 12.5 |
| Design Ethnography | DID10007 | 12.5 |
| Entrepreneurship and Opportunity | ENT10001 | 12.5 |
| Creativity and Innovation | ENT10002 | 12.5 |
| Fundamentals of Marketing | MKT10007 | 12.5 |
| Design Systems and Services | DDD20007 | 12.5 |
| Toolbox for Prototyping and Interdisciplinary Collaboration | DES20057 | 12.5 |
| Innovation Design Studio 2 | DID200006 | 12.5 |
| Strategic Design Innovation | DID30007 | 12.5 |
| Lean Startup Springboard | ENT20006 | 12.5 |
| Design Thinking | DDD30006 | 12.5 |
| Innovation Design Studio Capstone – Research | DID30005 | 12.5 |
| Innovation Design Studio Capstone – Practice | DID30006 | 12.5 |
| Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship and Innovation | ENT30010 | 12.5 |
+
Placement
3 units (0 credit points)
| Units | Unit codes | Credit points |
|---|---|---|
| Professional Experience in Law 1 | LAW10016 | 0 |
| Professional Experience in Law 2 | LAW20018 | 0 |
| Professional Experience in Law 3 | LAW30016 | 0 |
+
Other studies
5 units (62.5 credit points)
Choose from a combination of the following course components to complete 62.5 credit points of other study. Students may also select elective units (12.5 credit points each).
Work Integrated Learning
Swinburne's Work Integrated Learning program provides additional opportunities for you to gain valuable skills and real industry experience in the form of placements, internships or study tours - all while earning credit towards your degree.
Choose a Work Integrated Learning option:
You'll get paid to work in an area related to your field of study for 12 months, where you'll combine hands-on learning with academic submissions, workplace reflection and feedback from your host organisation. Most students undertake their placements in the third year of their degree, so you’ll want to map out your electives as soon as you can and register for a placement at least 6 months before your preferred start date.
The Professional Placement co-major has four 25 credit point units.
Professional Placement in Law
| Units | Unit codes | Credit points |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated Professional Placement A – Law | LAW20021 | 25 |
| Integrated Professional Placement B – Law | LAW20022 | 25 |
| Work Experience in Industry A | WEI20001 | 25 |
| Work Experience in Industry B | WEI20002 | 25 |
You'll get paid to work in an area related to your field of study for 6 months, where you'll combine hands-on learning with academic submissions, workplace reflection and feedback from your host organisation. Most students undertake their placements in the third year of their degree, so you’ll want to map out your electives as soon as you can and register for a placement at least 6 months before your preferred start date.
The Professional Placement minor has two 25 credit point units.
Professional Placement in Law
| Units | Unit codes | Credit points |
|---|---|---|
| Work Experience in Industry A | WEI20001 | 25 |
| Integrated Professional Placement A – Law | LAW20021 | 25 |
A Professional Internship is all about gaining valuable real-world skills in your area of study all while earning credit points towards your degree. Plus, it looks great on your CV as it shows you’ve had real industry experience before you’ve even graduated!
You might choose to complete your internship part-time over a semester or in a more intensive block during Summer or Winter terms.
Travel overseas, discover other cultures, enrich your professional experience and enhance your CV all while gaining credit towards your course.
- Full-time study: 100 credit points/eight standard units of study per year
- Part-time study: 50 credit points/four standard units of study per year
- One credit point is equivalent to one hour of study per week per semester (including contact hours and private study)
- See the course planner for an example degree structure
Course learning outcomes
The Bachelor of Laws / Bachelor of Innovation and Design provides an accredited qualification in law whilst enabling learning to be contextualised to the disciplines of innovation and design. The degree also provides students with a broad, well-rounded legal education that inculcates an understanding of the role the law plays in our society and of how it can assist Australia as a trading nation. Graduates will also have a broad and coherent body of knowledge about entrepreneurship and innovation management, with depth in the underlying principles and concepts in product, system and services development and its applications in other specialised fields as a basis for independent lifelong learning.
Upon successfully completing the Bachelor of Laws, students will be able to:
- describe and demonstrate the application of the fundamental areas of Australian law and the Australian legal system and of the principles and doctrines that underpin them
- describe and demonstrate the application of ethical and professional responsibility in the practice of the law and a commitment to the pursuit of justice
- analyse and evaluate the interdisciplinary contexts in which legal issues arise and the disciplines and policy considerations that influence the content and operation of the law
- describe and compare the international legal order and the law and legal systems of Australia’s major trading partners
- critically evaluate events or factual situations, identify the legal issues to which they give rise and develop and articulate appropriate and creative responses
- undertake and critically evaluate research from a variety of sources to make judgements to solve complex legal problems with intellectual independence
- demonstrate effective and persuasive communication capabilities with legal and non-legal audiences
- communicate proficiently in professional practice to a variety of audiences, function as an effective member or leader of a diverse team and critically reflect on individual performance and professional development.
Upon successfully completing the Bachelor of Innovation and Design, students will be able to:
- demonstrate knowledge and cognitive skills to review critically, analyse, consolidate and synthesise knowledge in the field of design management, product system and service design and apply in a range of practices
- define and integrate theoretical principles applicable to entrepreneurship and innovation and apply those principles in a range of practices
- systematically review and critically evaluate research from a variety of sources in order to make informed judgements on options for innovatively solving a range of problems that arise in business contexts
- apply knowledge and technical skills to demonstrate a broad understanding of design management, product, system and service design knowledge with depth in product development, manufacturing knowledge and ideation and manual sketching skills
- apply knowledge and cognitive and creative skills to exercise critical thinking and judgement in identifying and solving design management, product system and service design problems independently and collaboratively, in diverse contexts
- apply cognitive and technical skills to know and apply principles of sustainability and respectful design to their knowledge of design management, product system and service design and development of their design solution with responsibility and accountability.
Career opportunities
Graduates will have the theoretical and practical knowledge required to operate effectively in diverse settings such as law firms and barristers’ chambers, not-for-profit organisations, government, small businesses, as well as design, media and corporate organisations.
In particular, the studies in design and the specialisation in intellectual property law equip graduates for careers in the new knowledge economy, giving them the skills to work in media and entertainment, design, branding and advertising, and in internet companies and firms advising information-dependent industries.
Graduates may also find careers in research and development, and new product development.
Professional recognition
The Bachelor of Laws satisfies the academic requirements for admission to practice as a lawyer in the Victorian and Australian Federal legal systems as set by the Victorian Legal Admissions Board. Please be advised that non-academic requirements must also be satisfied for admission to practice and that no law degree allows graduates to practise straight away.
Bachelor of Innovation and Design graduates may be eligible for membership of the Design Institute of Australia (DIA).
Scholarships
At Swinburne scholarships are about providing opportunity, promoting equity and recognising excellence and achievement. Scholarships are available for both commencing and current students.
How to enter this course
- Entry requirements and English language requirements.
How to apply
View the Course Admission Information, which includes the ATAR and Student profiles for this course. Swinburne’s general admissions information is also available here.