Can Police Enter My Residence to Check Compliance With a Public Health Order?
The outbreak of COVID-19 has led to unprecedented controls being placed on the Australian population, significantly restricting movement, association and gatherings. State and federal parliaments have been shut down, the executive has taken over powers normally exercised by parliament and...
The Interlinked Crises of COVID and Climate: An Interview with Health Professor Ro McFarlane
A different aspect within many Australian urban centres over the last summer was the site of locals wearing face masks on city streets due to the intense smoke pollution rolling in from the bushfires that were ravaging the eastern seaboard....
COVID-19 Powers: Police Need to Use Common Sense When Exercising Their Discretion
Under NSW’s strict lockdown laws, it is an offence to leave home unless it is for work, school, to get groceries or for a limited number of other essential trips. Gatherings of more than two people are not permitted. And...
The Need for Parliamentary Oversight is Greater Than Ever
The Morrison government shut down federal parliament due to concerns around the spread of COVID-19 on 23 March. And besides a special reduced sitting day set to take place on 8 April, the chambers in Canberra aren’t expected to start...
Should the Government Rescue Australians Stranded Overseas?
The plight of a young South Australian family trapped in the Philippines made headlines this week, as President Duterte gave police, military officials and barangay officials ‘shoot to kill’ orders for anyone disobeying rules, protesting against the country’s strict Coronavirus...
George Pell Not Guilty, High Court Finds
Cardinal George Pell will walk free today after the High Court of Australia granted special leave for him to appeal against his convictions in the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria for child sexual offences, allowed his...
No Worker Left Behind: An Interview With the May 1 Movement’s Robert Car
The Morrison government on 30 March announced a $130 billion wage subsidy package as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that qualifying businesses will be provided with a fortnightly wage subsidy of $1,500 per employee over...
The Law on Observing, Filming and Distributing Intimate Images in NSW
Isolation can be lonely, so it’s only natural that many of us will be reaching out in intimate ways via text and video-calls whilst we are cooped up indoors. But ‘sexting’ in the time of COVID-19 comes with certain risks...
The COVID-19 Response Is Undermining the Rule of Law
Australia’s liberal democracy rests upon the doctrine of the separation of powers, which upholds the rule of law. It ensures that the three arms of government - the legislative, the executive and the judicial - remain separate entities. The legislature,...
The Offence of Criminal Negligence in New South Wales
The same day that The New South Wales Government ordered the closure of Bondi Beach, slamming beachgoers for being careless and flouting COVID-19 social distancing regulations, the Ruby Princess was given the go-ahead to dock in Sydney, bringing with her...
