A Federation of cultures? Innovative approaches to multicultural accommodation. This project examines how state and federal governments can better protect and support the values, beliefs and cultural practices of different cultural and religious groups, especially in matters concerning family life, community identity and freedom of conscience, within a framework of respect for human rights.
New models of co-operative federalism in Australia: constitutional principles and practice. This project will research the effect of intergovernmental co-operation, through bodies such as the Council of Australian Governments, on Australia's system of constitutional democracy. It will determine how federal governance can be made more effective while respecting State autonomy and maintaining parliamentary and public accountability.
Recognition after Uluru: what next for First Nations? This project aims to examine the extent to which Australia’s system of government appropriately serves and represents the interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Such improvements offer the potential to enhance programs in areas such as health and education, including the Closing the Gap initiative. Drawing on public law principles as well as comparative and international legal material, the project will develop a model of ....Recognition after Uluru: what next for First Nations? This project aims to examine the extent to which Australia’s system of government appropriately serves and represents the interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Such improvements offer the potential to enhance programs in areas such as health and education, including the Closing the Gap initiative. Drawing on public law principles as well as comparative and international legal material, the project will develop a model of governance against which the Australian system can be assessed. An audit will then be conducted of how that system operates in comparison to this model, before drawing conclusions and identifying potential reforms. The outcome of this project will be original scholarship of domestic and international significance that will inform academic and policy debate during and beyond the proposed referendum to recognise Indigenous peoples in the Constitution.Read moreRead less
Law, order and federalism in Australia. In a series of recent cases the High Court has emphasised the constitutional imperatives of judicial independence and impartiality in State court systems. These developments provide minimum human rights protections to individuals confronting criminal justice in the States. But what has not been considered is the cost of these developments. This project will investigate the uncertainty of the constitutional restrictions confronting State governments when re ....Law, order and federalism in Australia. In a series of recent cases the High Court has emphasised the constitutional imperatives of judicial independence and impartiality in State court systems. These developments provide minimum human rights protections to individuals confronting criminal justice in the States. But what has not been considered is the cost of these developments. This project will investigate the uncertainty of the constitutional restrictions confronting State governments when responding to law and order priorities, and the extent to which these have led to the frustration of policy development and experimentation across the Australian federation.Read moreRead less
The court as archive: rethinking the institutional role of federal superior courts of record. This project examines the institutional role of federal superior courts of record to ground an analysis of their responsibilities as curators of a significant national archive. It will provide principles for the administration of court records that respond to the competing legal and civic demands of contemporary Australian society.
Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and compar ....Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and comparing the constitutional values and federal political culture of Australian citizens, citizens in Canada, USA and UK, and Australian reform policymakers, in more detail than ever before, it will give insights into how this key paradox might be resolved, helping unlock reform potential and restore adaptive capacity to our political system.Read moreRead less
The law of deliberative democracy: theory and reform. Deliberation is essential to the health of electoral and representative democracy. This project will evaluate and recommend the reform of the law underpinning democratic politics in Australia, to enhance its deliberative quality.
Constitutional Design & Democratic Resilience . Democracy is under stress worldwide. Both new and longstanding are seeing waves of democratic erosion. In many cases, this erosion is also taking new and more subtle forms, which are harder to detect than outright coups or suspensions of democracy – that is, they involve a form of “abusive constitutional change” that uses existing legal democratic norms and processes to subvert democracy from within. This Project will investigate the nature and sc ....Constitutional Design & Democratic Resilience . Democracy is under stress worldwide. Both new and longstanding are seeing waves of democratic erosion. In many cases, this erosion is also taking new and more subtle forms, which are harder to detect than outright coups or suspensions of democracy – that is, they involve a form of “abusive constitutional change” that uses existing legal democratic norms and processes to subvert democracy from within. This Project will investigate the nature and scope of this problem of abusive constitutional change, as well as potential solutions through constitutional design. It will offer new theoretical insights for the field of comparative constitutional studies, and practical insights for policymakers in Australia and globally.Read moreRead less
The legal framework of public administration: a comparative study. This project explores the relationship between administrative law and public administration in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. It's main aim is to give Australians generally and Australian public administrators in particular a clearer understanding of the way law frames and regulates the day-to-day implementation of public policy and programmes.
Contemporary populism and constitutional democracy. This project aims to explain and evaluate constitutional populism, or regimes that have come to power in a global wave of ‘populist’ parties challenging traditional ones. The project will identify, reconstruct, and evaluate legal and constitutional aims of, and institutional solutions adopted by, such regimes. It will examine whether they respect the forms of democracy, or just pay lip service to, for example, principles of the rule of law and ....Contemporary populism and constitutional democracy. This project aims to explain and evaluate constitutional populism, or regimes that have come to power in a global wave of ‘populist’ parties challenging traditional ones. The project will identify, reconstruct, and evaluate legal and constitutional aims of, and institutional solutions adopted by, such regimes. It will examine whether they respect the forms of democracy, or just pay lip service to, for example, principles of the rule of law and constitutionalism, while working to subvert such principles. The project will focus on what ‘new populists’ do with power once they have it, what the consequences are for a global view of democracy, and on informing Australia’s geopolitical engagement with such regimes.Read moreRead less