LAW3JUS JUSTICE AFTER ATROCITY - RESEARCH ESSAY ASSIGNMENT HELP

Task

On the basis of assigned materials and some independent research, articulate your own research question* or respond to one of the following questions:

1. How does the Yoorrook Justice Commission contribute to justice after atrocity?
2. What is the role of forgiveness in transitional justice?
3. How should institutions of justice deal with victim-perpetrators?
4. What is the role of art in justice after atrocity?

*If you choose to articulate your own research question, the question needs to be approved by Maria – please submit no later than 23 May (ideally earlier).

The essay shall articulate an argument in response to the question. The introduction shall set out the chosen question, state the argument and explain the outline of the essay. The essay shall finish with a conclusion.

Submission

The essay is due 6 June 2022 at 11.59pm.

Submit the essay through Turnitin on the LMS (under ‘Assessment’). Note that Turnitin requires the submission to be in a word document or Pdf. I prefer word document. Students are NOT permitted to submit any assignment by email attachment or in person. Hard copies will not be marked.

Late penalties apply. That is, if the essay is submitted after the due date, the student will incur a penalty of 5% of the total marks available for the particular assignment per calendar day late. For more information students should refer to the La Trobe Law School Policy on late submission of assignments.

Word limit

The essay should be 2,500 words, excluding footnotes and bibliography.

A leeway of 10% above the word limit applies. Answers that exceed 10% above the word limit will incur a penalty of 5% of the total available marks for every 100 words or part thereof in excess. You must include a word count at the end of your assignment. The word limit includes headings but not footnotes.

Note that all substantial text should be incorporated into the body of your report, not in the footnotes. If substantial text is incorporated in your footnotes it must be included in your word count.

Format and referencing

It is essential that you use appropriate referencing. Referencing should be in accordance with the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4^th ed, 2018), or Harvard. Do ensure that you provide pinpoints/page number in the reference.

The essay must be typed in 12 font and be 1.5 spaced.

The use of headings and/or sub-headings is encouraged.

When quoting another person’s words, it is important to use quotation marks (‘ ‘), cite the source and the particular page from which the quote is extracted. When referring to another person’s ideas and/or paraphrasing their words, it is necessary to cite the source and the particular page from which the ideas are taken.  All sources must be included in your bibliography.

Marking criteria

This assignment assesses your capacity to critically engage with the materials discussed so far in the subject. Marking is done in accordance with La Trobe Policy on assessment.

The essay is marked on the following criteria:

1. Addressing the assigned question OR articulating an appropriate question and addressing it;
2. Engagement with subject themes and materials;
3. Appropriate independent research;
4. Clear and sophisticated the analysis;
5. Depth of understanding;
6. Logical and well-organised essay structured;
7. Clarity in writing with appropriate spelling, grammar and formatting
8. Correct citation

The marking criteria will be discussed during tutorial.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity involves being honest, demonstrating what is your work and properly acknowledging the work of others including by proper referencing. At the most basic, it is about not cheating. Be aware that cheating receives strong penalties, and buying an essay or paying someone to do your assessment tasks can result in expulsion from the University.

La Trobe takes academic integrity seriously. For more information, see:

https://www.latrobe.edu.au/students/admin/academic-integrity 

Extensions

For information about extensions and how to apply, please see the links provided on the LMS page. Please note that:

• La Trobe has recently updates some of its policies regarding extensions, special consideration and how to apply for them, so do ensure you read the latest info
• Extensions will only be considered if submitted up to 3 days prior to the due date
• A Medical Impact Statement is required as supporting evidence for a special consideration request

Suggestions of journals

You are asked to both engage with assigned readings and do some independent research for this essay. The following journals are a good starting point.

• International Journal of Transitional Justice;
• Journal of Perpetrator Research;
• Humanity;
• Griffith Law Review;
• London Review of International Law;
• International Criminal Law Review;
• Leiden Journal of International Law;
• European Journal of International Law;
• Law, Text, Culture;
• Theoretical Criminology;
• British Journal of Criminology;
• Crime, Media, Culture;
• Australian Feminist Law Journal;
• Law, Culture and the Humanities;

Frequently Asked Questions

“How much further research do I need?”

You need to both engage with assigned materials (readings) AND conduct independent research. The balance between these two will depend on your question and your approach. If you are unsure, a good starting point is to draw on the assigned materials for your background and theoretical approach but do independent research on a case study we have not studied in the subject.

“How many references do I need?”

It is not about the number of references but about how you engage with them. It also depends on your question – some questions will require many references to pull information together whereas other questions will need much deeper engagement in fewer articles. It also depends on the type and quality of your material (hint –Wikipedia should never be used and news paper articles only if you are doing a media analysis). You need to engaged with academic scholarship. See list of suggested journals

“How do I get a good mark?”

1. Read the feedback you received on the review essays. The feedback included advice on how to improve.
2. Ensure you read and understand the subject materials. For example, if your argument is ‘transitional justice is great’, you have not understood the nuances and complexities we have studied in this subject.
3. Read the marking criteria carefully to ensure you understand what we are looking for
4. Ensure you meet the standards of academic honesty by

• Providing proper references for all claims you make
• Providing references every time you draw on someone else’s work
• Not reusing essays from other subjects (or your mate’s!)
• Learning the difference between summarizing, paraphrasing and quoting. This is key – it is academic dishonesty to reference as if paraphrasing when actually quoting.

5. Ask for help

• See Library resources @ Learning hub
• Meet with a peer learning advisor