The International Bill of Rights
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the ICCPR and the ICESCR. William Shrubb looks back on the so-caleld international bill of rights.
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Author: RuleofLawInstitutePerson
The ICC and challenges to international rule of law
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a pillar of the international rule of law but in recent months, the ICC has been rocked to its core.
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The Federal Court
Today marks the 40th anniversary of the Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 (Cth). William Shrubb looks back on Australia’s second highest court.
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Sir Alan Taylor
Today would have been former High Court Justice Sir Alan Taylor’s 115th birthday. William Shrubb looks back on one of the High Court’s most genial judges.
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Dilma Rousseff and the politics of impeachement
In the eighth post in our series of collaborative posts with New South Wales Young Lawyers’ International Law Committee, Louise Lau looks at the impeachment of Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff.
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The Rule of Reason and the Rule of Law
How does the law handle questions about what is a reasonable or unreasonable use of power? Unsurprisingly, this question about power and reasonableness is integral to the rule of law. Jack Maxwell explains…
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October in Review – Rule of Law Digest
The Institute’s staff keep a digest of interesting things they read about legal topics. The...
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Summary and indictable offences
The NSW Government is currently in the process of trying to alleviate the substantial workload of the NSW District Court. One of the mechanisms through which the government proposes to do this is by introducing the option of summary proceedings for four indictable criminal offences. What does this mean? How might it help? What are some concerns? William Shrubb has a look.
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Firearms trafficking and mandatory sentences
The Federal Government has introduced new legislation to deal with firearms trafficking in Australia, but they have included a mandatory minimum sentencing scheme. William Shrubb examines the legislation.
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Book Review: ‘Saltwater’ by Cathy McLennan
Reading Saltwater has called us to consider to what extent the law can be a complete solution to social problems, and at a principled level how freedom to choose and the responsibility to protect people from harm is rarely easy or simple.
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Deaf jurors and discrimination, Part 2
Earlier this year, the Institute noted the upcoming High Court appeal of a deaf woman from Queensland who had been excluded from jury service by the registrar of Ipswich Courthouse. The High Court has now published its judgment in that matter. William Shrubb has a look.
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September in Review – Rule of Law Digest
The best reads from September’s rule of law digest.
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The Nuremberg trials
Tomorrow marks the 70th anniversary of judgment being delivered in the main Nuremberg trial after the Second World War. William Shrubb examines the war crimes trials and their impact on the rule of law.
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The Truman Proclamation and the Rule of Law
In the seventh post in our series of collaborative posts with New South Wales Young Lawyers’ International Law Committee, Laura Hugh looks back on the Truman Proclamation and its impact on the law of the sea.
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Inspector’s Review of ICAC
The President of the Rule of Law Institute, Robin Speed, has been an active participant in the NSW parliamentary committee inquiry into ICAC and the ICAC Inspector’s report to the Premier earlier this year, drawing the committee’s attention to the case of former SES commissioner Murray Kear.
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Organised crime bill in Queensland
The Queensland Government has recently tabled its proposed amendments to the organised crime scheme set up by the previous Newman Government. Some of these amendments signal a turn back towards the rule of law, while others raise potential concerns. The Institute will continue to monitor the debate.
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The powers of courts
A couple of weeks ago, the High Court handed down an important judgment about the powers and jurisdiction of courts. William Shrubb has a look.
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‘Kable’ and the rule of law
The ‘Kable’ case is one of the most significant constitutional law cases of recent times. It looks at the power of a court to exercise non-judicial power in breach of the doctrine of separation of powers. The High Court also had to consider whether this NSW Act gave a State court power which was incompatible with Chapter III of the Australian Constitution.
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The principle of legality
Today marks the twelfth anniversary of an important High Court decision on the principle of legality. Jack Maxwell examines the principle.
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Diagnosing corruption within judicial systems
In the sixth post in our series of collaborative posts with New South Wales Young Lawyers’ International Law Committee, Marina Kofman looks at the IBA’s latest program on judicial corruption.
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