In a recent speech at the Great Synagogue in Sydney, Chief Justice James Allsop of the Federal Court spoke candidly about the need to value “civility, reason, fairness and justice. … Civility and manners in social intercourse are not bourgeois affectations; they are...
The Crimes Amendment (Intoxication) Bill 2014 was introduced this week into the NSW Parliament. It increases the penalty by two years for a number of assault offences if they were committed by an adult who was intoxicated at the time. They also set mandatory minimum...
In the recent High Court decision Barbaro v The Queen; Zirilli v The Queen [2014] HCA 2 the High Court considered another aspect of the sentencing process: does the prosecution have any role in informing the judge about what sentence should be imposed? A practice has...
The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) has released the National Curriculum on Civics and Citizenship that, pending approval from State and Territory education ministers, will be implemented over the next few years in schools throughout...
Don’t attack the lawyers Mandatory sentencing and Bills of Attainder ASADA and the Rule of Law Don’t attack the lawyers Judges and juries determine guilt, not barristers and solicitors. Legal representation of a defendant is critical to a fair trial. Without it,...
