SOCIOL 315 Law, Inequality and the State - Course Outlines

Course Prescription

Examines, in a comparative mode, how law as a set of social relations and categories can both create and remedy inequalities of gender, race, and class.

Course Overview

This is a course in the “sociology of law,” and it is designed for Sociology and Gender Studies students who have an interest in how both state actors (such as lawyers, judges, and politicians) and people in everyday life use the law and legal ideas to promote and maintain social inequities—frequently under the guise of promoting “equality.”

We will consider how the interpretation and application of laws shape social identities and how social norms shape public policy and legal reasoning. We will also think about how public policy and the legal system can be tools to contest inequality. The course focuses on Western legal rules and norms, with examples drawn from New Zealand, the United States, Canada and Australia. Because these states were all part of the British colonial project, the on-going effects of colonialism are critical to thinking through how the law works in these places and how social norms have evolved.

Assessments will require students to demonstrate knowledge of key themes from the readings and lectures and the ability to synthesise material across the course. Within these parameters, assessments are designed so that students can pursue questions of inequality, identity and the law that are interesting to them. Each assessment is structured so that students have some choice in topic and/or format. The course is 100% internally assessed; there is no final exam.

A Note About Course Content:

As this course deals with the sources and experiences of structural inequalities that are on-going in our lives, a full-course content advisory applies: we will regularly discuss racism, sexism, poverty, and violence, and we will do so by looking at specific issues such as sexual violence, hate speech, affirmative action, family violence, and other important, but difficult, topics. In order to tackle inequality we have to talk about it, sometimes explicitly. Every effort will be made to be as sensitive as possible to the effects such discussions can have, but please be aware that readings and lectures will still need to address directly these challenging topics.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 30 points at Stage II in Sociology or 15 points from CRIM 201, 202 or 30 points at Stage II in Global Politics and Human Rights Restriction: SOCIOL 215

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Define and explain basic principles of liberal jurisprudence and the ideas of equality and inequality that they produce (Capability 1.1, 1.3, 4.1 and 4.2)
Define, explain, and apply key concepts in law and society scholarship. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.3, 4.1, 4.2, 6.2 and 6.3)
Use and apply historical and contemporary examples to explain how inequalities of race/ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality have been created and maintained through legal rules in Western, liberal nations (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.2 and 6.3)
Use and interpret historical and contemporary examples to explain how laws and legal norms have been used as tools of resistance as well as discrimination (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.2 and 6.3)

Assessments

Assessment Type	Percentage	Classification
This course is fully internally assessed. There is no exam.	100%	Individual Coursework
	100%

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course. Students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect to spend 3 hours in lectures (a 2-hour lecture +a 1-hour seminar each week). The additional 7 hours each week will be spread across reading and thinking about the content and work on assignments. The precise number of hours per week spent on assessments will vary depending on the time of the semester.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at lectures and seminars.

Lectures will be available as recordings. Other learning activities--specifically the third hour seminar--will not be recorded. All lecture recordings are subject to editing if sensitive discussions in class need to be removed from the recorded material. Recordings should not be used as a substitute for lecture attendance but as a means of reviewing material after class as needed.

Unless Covid/lockdown requires it, the course will not include live online events.

The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

This course is not available for delivery to students studying remotely outside NZ in 2023.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

All course readings will be made available through the course Canvas page. There is no textbook to purchase for the course.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Every time the course is taught, lecture material and the mix of course themes are revised to keep the course up-to-date and to reflect student feedback on assessments and content where it is both practicable and appropriate.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

All course assessments will need to be submitted through Turn It In (via Canvas).

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Class representatives are not tutors. All questions about course content should be directed to the lecturer.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Capability 1:	Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2:	Critical Thinking
Capability 3:	Solution Seeking
Capability 4:	Communication and Engagement
Capability 5:	Independence and Integrity
Capability 6:	Social and Environmental Responsibilities

SOCIOL 315 : Law, Inequality and the State

Arts

2023 Semester Two (1235) (15 POINTS)