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...
COVID-19 Social Controls: ‘An Authoritarian Wet Dream In Progress’
In the past several weeks, the government has pushed through legislation with unprecedented speed, ostensibly to slow the spread of COVID-19 by enforcing physical distancing and restricting travel. Amongst these laws are those which severely restrict our freedom of movement...
Judges Call For Oversight of Police Powers During COVID-19
A number of prominent former Australian judges are calling for a bi-partisan parliamentary oversight committee to ensure adequate scrutiny of Australia’s COVID-19 response. A similar body has already been established in New Zealand, with many local legal scholars sounding the...
The Gates Foundation’s Prophetic Coronavirus Pandemic Simulation
On 18 October last year, the Gates Foundation, the World Economic Forum and the John Hopkins Centre for Health Security held a pandemic simulation exercise, with the aim of “educating senior leaders” about an adequate response to the type of...
Man Fined for Eating a Kebab Alone on a Bench
When New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian shut down Parliament House last week, she essentially left the NSW Police Force in charge of the health and wellbeing of the state. New laws had already been rushed through Parliament giving police...
Should the Government Introduce ‘Pandemic Leave’?
COVOID-19 effectively brings Australia to a grinding halt, workplace laws are set to change to provide more entitlements to employees in the face of ‘pandemic’. The Fair Work Commission has announced plans to give unpaid pandemic leave to any Australians...
Innocent Refugees Denied COVID-19 Protection
“This is coronavirus torture. It will come sooner or later,” Mostafa Azimitabar made certain, as he spoke over the phone from his room at the Mantra Hotel. “If one person catches this virus, all of these refugees will get it...
The Legal Obligations of Parents Whose Children Are Learning From Home
A lot of Mums and Dads have just found out that school teachers do a very difficult job. Teaching your kids to tie their shoelaces, or cook a meal, or clean the windows, might be one thing, but actually guiding...
All Local Court Bail Applications to Be Heard in the Downing Centre
The past few weeks have seen drastic changes to the way in which criminal cases are dealt with in the Children’s, Local, District and Supreme Courts. On 2 April 2020, the Chief Magistrate of New South Wales, Judge Graeme Henson,...
