The Legal Status of Sex Work Across Australia
The Queensland government has announced it will implement a decriminalised model of sex work, following a series of recommendations from the Queensland Law Reform Commission. The legal status of sex work varies throughout Australia, ranging from areas of significant criminalisation...
Coronial Inquests in NSW: Mandatory Inquests, Discretionary Inquests and Appeals
There will be no full coronial inquest into the death of the woman who accused Christian Porter of historical sexual assault. The South Australian Coroner, David Whittle, has officially ended the investigation and made a confidential finding into the cause...
Terrorism Offences: History, Motivations and Current Laws
American Philosopher Michael Walzer opined in 2002 that, “Terrorism is the deliberate killing of innocent people, at random, to spread fear through a whole population and force the hand of its political leaders.” And while his opinion is not consistent...
Sydney Criminal Lawyers® Weekly Rundown – Articles from 24 to 30 April 2023
In case you’ve missed any of them, here’s a rundown of the past week’s articles: The Hypocrisy and Absurdity of Christian Groups Accusing LGBT People of Child Sexual Abuse Perhaps ‘Christian Lives Matter’ should focus on religious institutions rather than...
The Offence of Unlawfully Importing a Firearm into Australia
A woman from the United States was arrested by Australian Border Force (ABF) earlier this week over allegations she attempted to import a firearm into Australia. But the pistol was not just any old firearm - but a 24 carat...
Welcome to the Australian War Economy, Where Offense Is the New Defence
After last month’s AUKUS announcement, it’s been clear that the nation’s global military stance is shifting dramatically. In its acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines, Australia, a middle power, is no longer solely concerned with its defence, but rather it’s now becoming a...
Bigoted White Man’s Opinion Reigns Supreme, as Black Sovereigns Silenced on Voice
For weeks the voice of federal Liberal leader Peter Dutton has drowned out all others in relation to the coming referendum, which will put to the nation, whether a constitutionally-enshrined Indigenous voice to parliament should be established. During a 5 April...
Clean Energy Projects: Governments Must Fully Disclose Potential Impacts
In this day and age, with the ‘climate emergency’ on our doorstep, you’d be crazy and ‘out-of-touch’ for expressing concern about or opposition to a renewable energy project, right? After all, the world needs to transition to renewable energy, sooner,...
Labor Is Expanding and Consolidating Cashless Welfare, Not Ending It as Promised
Slight of hand politicking has fast become Labor’s stock-in-trade. It promised climate reform and delivered a rejigged 2016 fossil fuel industry-friendly Abbott initiative, while on refugees, it provided pledged permanent protection, but only to 19,000 of 31,000 individuals living in the community....
Victoria Looks Set to Raise the Age of Criminal Responsibility
Victoria looks set to raise the age of criminal responsibility, with reports that Premier Daniel Andrews has signed off on paperwork to increase the age at which children can be prosecuted for criminal offences from 10 to 12 years. And while...