The appointment of judges has hitherto been an obscure and oftentimes clandestine affair. This has produced incompetent judges and led to claims that the judiciary is beholden to the executive.
While our judges may prefer their anonymity, the process for choosing who sits on the highest court must be more transparent. Our system is beginning to look outdated.
Victoria and the ACT just joined other states in implementing judge-alone trials during the pandemic. Such a significant change deserves much more public scrutiny than it has received.
The Australian Law Reform Commission’s report makes a radical new suggestion that federal family courts be abolished. It also recommends changes to laws concerning parenting and property division.
New laws were supposed to protect people from living in unsafe conditions – but in the eyes of a judge, property guardians might not even count as ‘tenants’.
Secure and appropriate compensation for judges is a constitutionally recognized component of judicial independence. Here’s why politics must not be allowed to interfere with it.
The Crown said this case was an example of the worst type of murder, but the judge disagreed, arguing the killer, when freed, would be less of a threat to the wider community than some other killers.
Appointing judges to lifetime terms can be among a president’s longest lasting legacies. The overwhelming majority of Trump’s nominees are conservative, white and male.
The proposed merger of the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court is intended to address delays and inefficiencies in the system. Experts question, however, how effective the reforms will be.
Inconsistencies in how judges handle appeal cases and different levels of legal provision around the country can leave asylum seekers facing a lottery.