Legal

• Law


  Rules which are enforced by punishment, apply to country/community
• Customs


  Traditions which are not written, e.g. 18th birthdays
• Rules


  Directions for a group of people, not the state, e.g. no hat no play
• Laws


  Bind the whole community, enforced by the state, e.g. don't murder people
• Values


  Society's sense of right and wrong, which laws reflect, not everyone has the same values so not everyone is happy about the law, values shift so laws shift
• Ethics


  Values in real life
• Characteristics of just laws

  • Everyone equal
  • Majority of society values them
  • Benefit most of society
  • Reduce inequality
  • Be fast
  • Good for the future
  • Well-known
• Equality


  • Everyone =
  • Same laws for everyone
  • Fairness
  • No discrimination judgment
  • Access
  • Can formally be in court
  • Engages with social context of world
• Just outcome


  Reached when solving legal issues
• Nature of justice


  • Right to be heard
  • Right to unbiased decision maker
• Law


  Apply to everyone, constant & consistent
• Anarchy - no law = disorder
• Somalia - no effective system of gov or law
• Tyranny - one person too much power = harsh rule
• North korea-kim jong un has absolute power
• How was common law developed?

  Common law developed in England by judges administering a common set of laws through Great Britain
• What is common law?

  Common law refers to laws made by judges when they make a decision in a case and that decision establishes a precedent
• What is equity?


  Equity is the body of law that supplements the common law and corrects injustices by judging each case on its merits and applying principles of fairness
• What are precedents?


  A precedent is a judgement that is authority for a legal principle, and that serves to provide guidance for deciding cases that have similar facts
• What is the doctrine of precedent and why isn't it important?

  It is a legal principle by which judges are obliged to the binding precedents established by prior decisions it is important as it limits a judge's ability to be creative when it comes to making decisions
• What is the adversarial system?

  The adversarial system is a legal system where two advocates represent their parties' position before an impartial judge and sometimes a jury
• What is the difference between an original jurisdiction

  Original jurisdiction is when a court is hearing a matter for the first time
• What is an appellate jurisdiction?

  An appellate jurisdiction is when a court reviews decisions and changes the outcomes of decisions made in lower courts
• What does the Local Court's jurisdiction allow them to deal with?

  • indictable offences

  • civil matters with monetary value of up to $100 000

  • committal hearings
• What does the District Court's jurisdiction allow them to deal with?

  • manslaughter, malicious wandering and dangerous driving, assaults, sexual assaults

  • civil cases with monetary values between $100 001 and $750 000

  • appellate jurisdiction
• What does the Supreme Court's jurisdiction allow them to deal with?

  • It deals with the most serious criminal matters and civil cases involving large sums of money

  • It also deals with appeals from lower courts

  • It has criminal jurisdiction over the most serious indictable offences

  • All cases are heard before a judge and jury
• What does the High Court's jurisdiction allow them to deal with?

  Deals with appeals from the Federal Court of Australia and the state's Supreme court
• What is statute law?

  Statute law is law made by parliament and is also known as 'legislation' or 'Acts of Parliament
• What is the role of the parliament?

  The role of the parliament is to make laws for the peace, order and good of the Commonwealth
• What is the structure of the parliament?

  It is bicameral which means that they have two houses, an upper house (Senate) and a lower house (House of Representatives)
• Outline the legislative process.

  1. Need for new law is identified 2. Draft Bill 3. First Reading 4. Second Reading 5. Committee Stage 6. Third Reading 7. Upper House 8. Royal Assent
• What is delegated legislation?


  Delegated legislation is legislation made by non-parliamentary bodies. It involves 'less important' laws that parliament doesn't have time to draft
• What are the advantages of delegated legislation?

  • The people making the legislation are usually experts in that field

  • Delegation of minor legislation frees up parliamentary time for very serious issues

  • It is easier to amend it, making it more flexible
• What are the disadvantages of delegated legislation?

  • Members of parliament don't have time or expertise to fully check the delegated legislation

  • There can be inconsistencies

  • The public can't usually voice their opinions about the delegated legislation because of little publicity
• What is the constitution?

  The Australian Constitution is the set of fundamental rules by which Australia is governed and the supreme law under which the Australian Government operates
• What is division of powers?

  The division of powers is the way that the legislative powers are divided between the Australian government and the state governments
• What happens if a State law is in conflict with a Commonwealth law?

  Section 109 states that if a state law is in conflict with a Commonwealth law, the Commonwealth law is the one that will be followed
• What is the separation of powers and why was it created?

  The separation of powers refers to the fact that there are three major powers: the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. It was developed to prevent the abuse of power.
• What is the role of the High Court?

  • The court interprets and determines the validity of any Commonwealth or state law

  • They have the power to conduct a judicial review of state and Commonwealth legislation

  • They interpret the meaning of the Constitution
• What is the main difference between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander laws and British legal traditions?

  It is seen in the area of land ownership:

  • The right to possess property is a key principle of English and European law

  • In Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander law, land is sacred and can't be owned. Instead people are custodians of the land, looking after it for future generations