Australian Universities in Court: The Causes, Costs and Consequences of Increasing Litigation

Australasian Dispute Resolution Journal, Vol. 19, No. 3, pp. 156-169, 2008

Sydney Law School Research Paper No. 08/133

20 Pages Posted: 4 Nov 2008

See all articles by Hilary Astor

Hilary Astor

The University of Sydney - Faculty of Law

Date Written: November 2, 2008

Abstract

Concerns have been burgeoning about the increasing number and complexity of disputes involving Australian universities, their extensive monetary costs and the damage they cause to the reputation of those universities. However there is very little empirical data about disputes in universities to show whether or not these concerns are well founded and, if they are, to suggest what may be causing the increase. In the absence of data we do not know whether there is a problem or, if there is, how to remedy it. This article reports results from a survey of litigation involving Australian universities from 1985-2006. It demonstrates that litigation involving universities has indeed increased significantly; reveals who litigates with universities; confirms the assertion that many of these cases are very complex. It discusses the factors that appear to have contributed to the increase.

Keywords: disputes, universities, litigation, dispute resolution

JEL Classification: K10, K30, K40, K41

Suggested Citation

Astor, Hilary, Australian Universities in Court: The Causes, Costs and Consequences of Increasing Litigation (November 2, 2008). Australasian Dispute Resolution Journal, Vol. 19, No. 3, pp. 156-169, 2008, Sydney Law School Research Paper No. 08/133, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1294021

Hilary Astor (Contact Author)

The University of Sydney - Faculty of Law ( email )

New Law Building, F10
The University of Sydney
Sydney, NSW 2006
Australia

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