Risk, Urban Fire Protection and Security Networks. Urban fire prevention is a critical field for public security and economic development. As such, it has always been shaped by factors beyond those of simple technological growth. These include major unanticipated events and the responses to them by many state and non-state agencies with divergent interests and knowledge bases. By analysing the resulting 'technological politics', the project will examine the ways in which this strategic field ....Risk, Urban Fire Protection and Security Networks. Urban fire prevention is a critical field for public security and economic development. As such, it has always been shaped by factors beyond those of simple technological growth. These include major unanticipated events and the responses to them by many state and non-state agencies with divergent interests and knowledge bases. By analysing the resulting 'technological politics', the project will examine the ways in which this strategic field has taken on a risk-based preventative orientation. This will contribute new perspectives and considerations for the assessment and development of fire prevention and urban security in the 21st century.Read moreRead less
Coherent, independent and user-friendly? Participant perceptions of social security administrative review processes in Australia and Britain. The capacity to exercise rights associated with citizenship, and to participate meaningfully in community life, is significantly affected by access to financial security and by community confidence in the independence and fairness of systems of entitlement review. This research will examine recent developments in Australian social security review mechanism ....Coherent, independent and user-friendly? Participant perceptions of social security administrative review processes in Australia and Britain. The capacity to exercise rights associated with citizenship, and to participate meaningfully in community life, is significantly affected by access to financial security and by community confidence in the independence and fairness of systems of entitlement review. This research will examine recent developments in Australian social security review mechanisms, in both policy and practice. It is of national significance as it will demonstrate the extent to which statutory objectives of fairness, comprehensibility and accessibility are achieved, particularly from the perspectives of participants in appeals. The research has critical implications for legislation, policy and practice in administrative law and tribunal practice. Read moreRead less
Courts, the Judiciary and Social Change. While few Australians have direct experience of courts, nearly all agree that courts are important to the community, though public confidence is low. Social changes and the ambiguous position of courts in relation to change are part of this tension. This project will undertake a concrete examination of one aspect of social change and the courts: the increasing number of women in the judiciary. The focus on how gender interacts with judicial work and th ....Courts, the Judiciary and Social Change. While few Australians have direct experience of courts, nearly all agree that courts are important to the community, though public confidence is low. Social changes and the ambiguous position of courts in relation to change are part of this tension. This project will undertake a concrete examination of one aspect of social change and the courts: the increasing number of women in the judiciary. The focus on how gender interacts with judicial work and the wider roles of courts will produce new and valuable understandings of gender and judging, gender and work, and courts and social change. Better knowledge about these complex relationships will strengthen Australian society and its legal integrity.Read moreRead less
A cancer on our economy? An empirical interdisciplinary study of the criminalisation of serious cartel conduct in Australia. Serious cartel conduct is seen as highly damaging to Australia's economic welfare but only recently has it been regarded as criminal. This research will inform public debate about the impetus and justification for this major shift in competition law policy and enforcement. It will provide robust empirical evidence about public opinion and business behaviour and derive insi ....A cancer on our economy? An empirical interdisciplinary study of the criminalisation of serious cartel conduct in Australia. Serious cartel conduct is seen as highly damaging to Australia's economic welfare but only recently has it been regarded as criminal. This research will inform public debate about the impetus and justification for this major shift in competition law policy and enforcement. It will provide robust empirical evidence about public opinion and business behaviour and derive insights into whether criminalisation will promote greater compliance with the law. It will assist in refining practical implementation measures to ensure the effectiveness of a criminal regime and it will aid legislators and regulators in policy-making, regulatory design and enforcement in relation to competition law and business regulation more generally.Read moreRead less
Sacred Rules, Secular Revelations: The Conceptions of Rights in Pre-Modern Europe. This project provides a deeper understanding of the origins of and background to contemporary debates on the role of religion in law, and vice-versa. This is particularly relevant at a time when law and human rights face questions about their moral and normative qualities. It will contribute to debates about the origins of the humanities in higher learning by reminding us that such studies had their origins in re ....Sacred Rules, Secular Revelations: The Conceptions of Rights in Pre-Modern Europe. This project provides a deeper understanding of the origins of and background to contemporary debates on the role of religion in law, and vice-versa. This is particularly relevant at a time when law and human rights face questions about their moral and normative qualities. It will contribute to debates about the origins of the humanities in higher learning by reminding us that such studies had their origins in resolving practical problems and conflicts, rather than esoteric ends. This project will further reinforce Australia's reputation for integrating sound scholarship with innovative methodology and inter-disciplinarity in pre-modern European studies. Read moreRead less
Testing Court Reform Projects in Cambodia and Vietnam. Financial assistance for court reform projects in ASEAN countries is among Australia's foreign aid priorities, consuming highly sought-after aid dollars. This research will make recommendations aimed at increasing the efficacy of aid-assisted court reform projects. By paying particular attention to indigenous perspectives of successes and failures of such projects, the research will contribute to Australia's understanding of the legal and ju ....Testing Court Reform Projects in Cambodia and Vietnam. Financial assistance for court reform projects in ASEAN countries is among Australia's foreign aid priorities, consuming highly sought-after aid dollars. This research will make recommendations aimed at increasing the efficacy of aid-assisted court reform projects. By paying particular attention to indigenous perspectives of successes and failures of such projects, the research will contribute to Australia's understanding of the legal and judicial contexts in two of its Southeast Asian neighbours. The research will inform Australia's aid investments in Cambodia and Vietnam, the region and internationally. It will enhance Australia's ability to achieve more effective design, implementation and evaluation of court-related aid interventions. Read moreRead less
Enhancing Reproductive Opportunity in Australia: Reconsidering Consent, Altruism and the Legal Status of Embryos in ART Processes. This project meets the national research priority of a healthy start to life by enhancing reproductive opportunity while safeguarding the rights and interests of all involved in reproduction with donor gametes. This research will create significant national benefits in the form of an up to date, practical and coherent platform for the reform of all aspects of embryo ....Enhancing Reproductive Opportunity in Australia: Reconsidering Consent, Altruism and the Legal Status of Embryos in ART Processes. This project meets the national research priority of a healthy start to life by enhancing reproductive opportunity while safeguarding the rights and interests of all involved in reproduction with donor gametes. This research will create significant national benefits in the form of an up to date, practical and coherent platform for the reform of all aspects of embryo and gamete donation and embryo disputes. We propose a pro-active consultative model that centres the needs and experiences of gamete and embryo donors and recipients. Our research will inform current and future modes of regulation of gamete and embryo donation and dispute resolution, including legislation, ethics guidelines and codes of practice.Read moreRead less
The Impact of Hate Speech Laws on Public Discourse in Australia. 2009 will mark the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the first Australian laws (NSW) directed at the regulation of hate speech. Although hate speech laws are now firmly embedded in Australia's legal landscape, and have been extended in some jurisdictions to vilification based on religious and sexual orientation, they remain a controversial instrument for supporting Australia's policies on multiculturalism, religious tolerance an ....The Impact of Hate Speech Laws on Public Discourse in Australia. 2009 will mark the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the first Australian laws (NSW) directed at the regulation of hate speech. Although hate speech laws are now firmly embedded in Australia's legal landscape, and have been extended in some jurisdictions to vilification based on religious and sexual orientation, they remain a controversial instrument for supporting Australia's policies on multiculturalism, religious tolerance and respect for difference. An examination of the effects of hate speech laws on public discourse - both intended and unintended - will offer valuable insights about the capacity of law to deliver social cohesion in 21st century Australia.Read moreRead less
Defamation and Privacy: Law, Media and Public Speech. This project investigates important recent legal changes in defamation and privacy, laws which can considerably limit public speech. It addresses the urgent need in law for a more sophisticated understanding and evaluation of the practices of media professionals. It will assist lawyers and judges apply the changed laws, contribute to scheduled reviews of legislation, assist publications and journalists deal with risks of legal liability, deve ....Defamation and Privacy: Law, Media and Public Speech. This project investigates important recent legal changes in defamation and privacy, laws which can considerably limit public speech. It addresses the urgent need in law for a more sophisticated understanding and evaluation of the practices of media professionals. It will assist lawyers and judges apply the changed laws, contribute to scheduled reviews of legislation, assist publications and journalists deal with risks of legal liability, develop critical academic and legal debates about the media, and clarify the parameters of lawful public speech. It promotes better legal understanding of popular media forms, which have key roles in contemporary economies and public debate.Read moreRead less
The Legal Function of Serious Disability in Prenatal and Neonatal Health Care Settings. Increasing numbers of Australians are using prenatal testing technologies to avoid having a disabled child. Australians also have access to a range of sophisticated life-sustaining technologies for premature newborns and seriously imperiled infants. Legal guidance on the appropriate uses of these technologies is piecemeal and inconsistent across Australia's States and Territories, and the meaning of serious ....The Legal Function of Serious Disability in Prenatal and Neonatal Health Care Settings. Increasing numbers of Australians are using prenatal testing technologies to avoid having a disabled child. Australians also have access to a range of sophisticated life-sustaining technologies for premature newborns and seriously imperiled infants. Legal guidance on the appropriate uses of these technologies is piecemeal and inconsistent across Australia's States and Territories, and the meaning of serious disability varies amongst members of the community. This project will benefit Australians by providing greater consistency in decision-making about disability. This will be achieved by assessing the value of a uniform framework for governing legal responses to serious disability in the context of reproduction.Read moreRead less