To some, it is a gross miscarriage of justice. To others, it is a textbook example of a middle class problem. But since the Sydney University corporations law exam was disrupted by a fire alarm a fortnight ago, the law faculty has been pitched against elements within the law student body, with enough claims and counter-claims to outdo the saltiest of courtroom dramas.

The facts of the case are these: on Tuesday November 12, 450 law students presented themselves at the university's McLaurin Hall for their corporations law exam. Some students spilt over into a smaller exam room adjoining the university quadrangle. About 20 minutes into the test, a fire alarm sounded and the students were evacuated.

"Treat it as a life lesson. Stuff does happen. Stuff will keep happening." Credit:Michel OSullivan

As they milled about in the evacuation zones, there are reports - all hearsay, and therefore generally considered inadmissable - that some students consulted smartphones or conferred over correct answers to the exam's gnarlier questions. After about half an hour, the students returned to their exam rooms and the clocks were reset so they could start over.

Soon after, they were interrupted again, by a pair of corporations law lecturers who informed them university protocol was that they had to complete the exam, even though, given the interruption and early reports of cheating, they would probably have to resit it. They should treat it as good practice.