Principles of Public Law tutoring
Build your foundations in public law.
Most students walk into their first PPL lecture expecting black-letter rules and leave wondering how any of it could ever be applied in an exam. PPL isn't really about rules. It's about power. Who wields it, why, and what (hopefully) stops them getting carried away. Yes, you still need the rule of law, sovereignty, the Constitution, responsible and representative government, and federalism. But keep one fact front of mind, that this is the power subject and not the political theory subject, and you can cut through the fog and do the two things that actually win marks: interpret statutes and advance arguments.
Study it in pieces
The subject, one topic at a time
Public law covers a lot of ground, so it is broken into five parts. Open any topic to study it on its own page, with the idea, where it comes from, how it is examined and the trap to avoid. Each topic is tagged by how the exam tests it. Hypothetical means a problem you solve on the facts, such as statutory interpretation or an international-law question. Essay means you argue a principle with authority. Universities structure these topics differently, so check your subject’s reading guide to confirm what’s on your syllabus.
New · Practice bank: work 105 exam-style drills across six topic banks and 10 cross-topic exam scenarios, with Pass and H1 model answers and examiner's comments. →1Foundations
What public law is and where Australia's authority to make law comes from.
2The constitutional system
The Constitution and the institutions it creates.
3Statutory interpretation
The skill the exam tests as a problem.
5Public international law & rights
Where international law meets the Australian system and how rights are protected.
- Sources: customary international lawHypothetical drills (20) flowchart
- Sources: the law of treatiesHypothetical drills (10) flowchart
- The organs of the United NationsEssay flowchart
- Human rights under international lawHypothetical drills (10) flowchart
- Protecting rights in AustraliaHypothetical drills (15) flowchart
- Making and implementing treaties in AustraliaEssay
How to use this subject
The challenge
Where students get stuck
Most students know the principles well but come unstuck applying them to facts, under time, in the exam hall. Three reasons. First, there is a lot to take in, more reading than almost any other subject. Second, the doctrines blur together, so a question on representative democracy gets answered with responsible government. Third, statutory interpretation falls on students like a shadow. They freeze and recite it as if it were scripture, instead of using it as the flexible tool it is.
How I help
We divide and conquer. First I strip the subject back to its few moving parts so you can see how they fit. It is assessed by hypotheticals and essays, so we prepare for each. We drill statutory interpretation on real statutes until the method is automatic, and we work essays from past questions until you can name the principle a question is testing before you pick up your pen. You may get bored of me telling you to write with a chip on your shoulder and actually answer the question. Your examiner will reward you for it. And these ideas return in constitutional and administrative law, so the work pays off for years.
The method in action
See the four steps applied to a real public law problem
The method in action
A reliable answer under exam pressure comes from a fixed routine rather than from inspiration. The same four steps run every argument. A small set of rule shapes tells each argument what it has to do. Below is the routine, then a worked problem that puts it to work. The method is the same for any problem.
The four steps, every time
Know the shape of the rule
A rule that is a single statement with no working parts. It either covers the facts or it does not.
What it makes you doState it and apply it in a sentence or two. Then move on. Do not build machinery the rule does not have.
Several requirements and every one must be met. One unticked box and the whole rule fails, however strong the rest of the page looks.
What it makes you doRun every item in turn. Then give the quiet item the closest look. This is because strength on three items cannot repair a fourth.
One ring holding several keys. The rule is satisfied if any one key turns the lock. Every key opens the same door.
What it makes you doClaiming? Turn your best key and mention the spares. Defending? You must strip every key off the ring. This is because ruling out one key proves nothing about the others.
Steps applied in a fixed order, where each step conditions the next. The order is part of the law. Step two does not exist until you have stood on step one.
What it makes you doTake the stairs in order and show at each step why the next is reached. Where a step is arguable, conclude it and bridge with an if. If the direction is made out, did the board act on it?
One standard read through several factors. No single factor decides and none is required. A factor can be missing without changing where the needle settles.
What it makes you doArgue several factors and argue them both ways. Then read the needle. In law the facts are the magnet. The needle settles differently in every case. Ignore the factors the facts never engage, because raising a dead factor wastes time and can cost marks.
Two competing interests weighed against each other. The conclusion is wherever the scales come to rest.
What it makes you doWeigh like a shopkeeper. Start with the heaviest weight on each side and move to and fro, answering each point with the other side's best. Fine tune last and stop at close enough. The scales never sit perfectly level. State the balance only as firmly as they show.
Not a seventh shape. A fold that any shape can carry. The rule applies unless a defined exception is made out. Sometimes it holds as a default until it is displaced.
What it makes you doState the rule first and give it its authority. Then test only the exceptions the facts make live, each on its own requirements. And always ask who must untwist it. This is because the party relying on the exception usually carries that burden. Planted material that merely looks bad is often legally insufficient to displace the default.
See the six shapes and one twist →
Worked example
The question is whether an electric scooter is a "vehicle". The modern approach is applied in turn.
Does the ordinary meaning of "vehicle" cover an electric scooter?
Interpretation begins with the ordinary meaning of the words (Project Blue Sky v ABA). "Vehicle" ordinarily means a means of conveyance. An electric scooter carries a person and conveys them. On its face it falls within the word.
Does anything in the Act narrow "vehicle"?
The word is read in the context of the whole instrument (Project Blue Sky v ABA). The Act addresses "motorised traffic", and no definition cuts "vehicle" down. Nothing narrows it to exclude small motorised conveyances.
Does the purpose confirm that a scooter is a "vehicle"?
A provision is read to promote its purpose (Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 (Vic) s 35). The stated purpose is "to protect pedestrians and gardens from motorised traffic". An electric scooter is motorised, so including it advances that purpose. Reading it out would leave the mischief untouched.
What is the result?
"Vehicle" includes the electric scooter, so the fine stands. This is because the ordinary meaning covers it, the context does not narrow it, and the purpose confirms it.
Now the same answer, dissected step by step.
The question is whether an electric scooter is a "vehicle". The modern approach is applied in turn.
Sets out the issues and the order they are taken.
Does the ordinary meaning of "vehicle" cover an electric scooter?
Interpretation begins with the ordinary meaning of the words (Project Blue Sky v ABA). "Vehicle" ordinarily means a means of conveyance. An electric scooter carries a person and conveys them. On its face it falls within the word.
Starts with the ordinary meaning of the quoted word.
Does anything in the Act narrow "vehicle"?
The word is read in the context of the whole instrument (Project Blue Sky v ABA). The Act addresses "motorised traffic", and no definition cuts "vehicle" down. Nothing narrows it to exclude small motorised conveyances.
Reads the word in context and notes the absence of a narrowing definition.
Does the purpose confirm that a scooter is a "vehicle"?
A provision is read to promote its purpose (Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 (Vic) s 35). The stated purpose is "to protect pedestrians and gardens from motorised traffic". An electric scooter is motorised, so including it advances that purpose. Reading it out would leave the mischief untouched.
Applies the purposive provision and shows how purpose resolves the word.
What is the result?
"Vehicle" includes the electric scooter, so the fine stands. This is because the ordinary meaning covers it, the context does not narrow it, and the purpose confirms it.
Draws text, context and purpose together.
The by-law says no vehicles. A scooter is a small thing, not really a vehicle like a car, so the man has a point. But the purpose is to stop motor traffic and a scooter has a motor, so it probably counts. On balance the scooter is a vehicle and the fine is valid.
This is a pass-level answer. Click each line to see where the marks are lost.
Spending your time under pressure
A workable time split for a 45 minute problem. Adjust it to suit your exam.
Now try one
Work it yourself using IRAC. Fill in each step, then submit to self-check and reveal the model answer. This is a quick check for the essentials. Rubric self-marking is coming this semester.
Issue. Whether a high-powered nail gun is a "firearm" under the statute.
Rule. A word is read in its text, context and purpose (Project Blue Sky v ABA). Purpose can resolve an ambiguous word, but cannot stretch it beyond its ordinary meaning (Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 (Vic) s 35).
Application. A "firearm" ordinarily means a weapon that discharges a shot by an explosive or propellant. A "nail gun" is a tool, and does not obviously fit. The purpose favours inclusion, but cannot expand the word beyond its meaning.
Conclusion. A nail gun is probably not a firearm. This is because the ordinary meaning does not reach it, and purpose cannot stretch the text that far.
Common questions
Principles of Public Law tutoring FAQ
Is this the same as Constitutional Law?
No, but related. This is the foundational subject. Rule of law, separation of powers and statutory interpretation. I tutor Constitutional Law too.
Can you help with statutory interpretation?
Yes. Text, context and purpose, the presumptions and the interpretation legislation. It is a common request.
It is first year. Is tutoring worth it this early?
Often it is the best time. A strong base makes later subjects far easier.
Related subjects: Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, Criminal Law & Procedure. See all subjects, or read the publication on practice hypotheticals.
Build your public law foundations.
Step through the interactive method for this subject and see exactly what earns the marks.