Cartel Offences in Australia: The Crime of Anti-Competitive Conduct
Japanese shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd – also known as K-Line – was fined $34.5 million over cartel conduct in the Federal Court last month. K-Line admitted to engaging in anti-competitive conduct with other shipping companies between July 2009...
What are the Mental Elements for Criminal Code Act Offences?
There are hundreds of Commonwealth Acts which contain criminal offences, perhaps the most notable of which is the Criminal Code Act 1995 (‘the Act’) – the stated purpose of which is ‘to codify the general principles of criminal responsibility under...
Desperate and Hungry: Struggling to Survive on Newstart
In a raw series produced by the Guardian Newspaper earlier this year called “On the Breadline,” a group of Australians opened up, telling their own personal stories of what it’s like to be struggling to make ends meet. What most...
Tax Office Attacks Client Legal Privilege
During his speech at the Law Society’s 2016 Opening of Term Dinner, NSW Chief Justice Tom Bathurst made clear he had identified 397 state laws that encroach upon three fundamental legal protections alone – the presumption of innocence, the right...
What are the Penalties for Tax Fraud in Australia?
A sister and brother have been ordered to pay a total of more than $2.3 million in taxes, administrative costs and interest after a court found that ‘thou shall not pay tax’ is not only absent from the Bible, but...
Sydney Police Officer Pleads Guilty to “Vile, Cowardly and Intolerable” Threats
Senior Constable Sean Daniel Murphy, a 57-year-old officer with 30 years in the NSW Police Force and two awards for bravery to his name, has pleaded guilty to ‘using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend’ after calling federal...
Torture is a Crime, but it’s Still Widely Practised
The Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1984. Since it came into force in June 1987, it’s prohibited torture under international law. Article 1...
Sydney Police Officer Accused of ‘Vile, Cowardly and Intolerable’ Conduct
A Sydney police officer has been charged under the Criminal Code Act 1995 after allegedly threatening a public official in a phone call to Federal Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. Ms Hanson-Young says the threats made by the officer were about...
Commonwealth to Strengthen Laws Against Online Bullying
Commonwealth cyberbullying legislation is currently contained in a number of sections of the Criminal Code Act 1995. Section 474.17 of that Act, for example, makes it an offence punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment to use a carriage service...
New Zealand Customs Can Now Require Your Passwords
New Zealand is reported to have become the first country in the world to pass laws requiring travellers to reveal their personal passwords to electronic devices such as phones and computers at the border, and Australia is likely follow in...
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