Optimising Industry-led Regulation for the Digital Platforms Era. This project aims to investigate how harms caused by digital platforms can be effectively prevented through co-regulation where industry develops rules enforced by a regulator. Widely used in the broader communications sector, ‘co-regulation’ remains chronically under-theorised and its effectiveness has never been adequately reviewed. Meanwhile, harms such as disinformation and violent content expand in both scale and impact. This ....Optimising Industry-led Regulation for the Digital Platforms Era. This project aims to investigate how harms caused by digital platforms can be effectively prevented through co-regulation where industry develops rules enforced by a regulator. Widely used in the broader communications sector, ‘co-regulation’ remains chronically under-theorised and its effectiveness has never been adequately reviewed. Meanwhile, harms such as disinformation and violent content expand in both scale and impact. This research will provide an evidential base for optimising co-regulation in the contemporary Australian communications environment, benefiting regulators seeking to meet public policy goals; consumers experiencing online harms; and platforms themselves, who might otherwise be subject to blunt regulatory tools.Read moreRead less
Freedom of Expression in Democratic States: A New Theoretical Direction. Modern democratic states must protect freedom of expression while also responding to the harms caused by hateful, violent and dangerous form of speech - a problem accentuated by increasing racial, religious and ethnic conflict and the threat of (and responses to) terrorism.
The project is important because it aims to develop a theory of freedom of expression that - free from the distorting influence of the United States ....Freedom of Expression in Democratic States: A New Theoretical Direction. Modern democratic states must protect freedom of expression while also responding to the harms caused by hateful, violent and dangerous form of speech - a problem accentuated by increasing racial, religious and ethnic conflict and the threat of (and responses to) terrorism.
The project is important because it aims to develop a theory of freedom of expression that - free from the distorting influence of the United States jurisprudence - can explain and guide the courts in other democratic countries. Its comparative and theoretical innovation will place Australian scholarship at the forefront of a central problem in modern political life and enrich scholarly and public debate.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.
Protecting economic, social and cultural Rights in the ACT: models, methods and impact. This project will generate new thinking on the protection of economic, social and cultural rights. It will develop impact assessment frameworks and protocols for the assessment of compliance with these rights. The project will benefit not only the ACT by informing consideration of the inclusion of economic, social and cultural rights in the ACT Human Rights Act, but also other Australian jurisdictions' deli ....Protecting economic, social and cultural Rights in the ACT: models, methods and impact. This project will generate new thinking on the protection of economic, social and cultural rights. It will develop impact assessment frameworks and protocols for the assessment of compliance with these rights. The project will benefit not only the ACT by informing consideration of the inclusion of economic, social and cultural rights in the ACT Human Rights Act, but also other Australian jurisdictions' deliberations over bills of rights, including consideration of a national bill. Other benefits include training students and informing Australia's engagement with the UN on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.Read moreRead less
Meeting the challenges of constitutional comparison. This project offers a more genuinely global approach to comparative constitutional law. It will deepen understanding of the operation and underlying assumptions of systems of government in countries around the world, assisting Australia in its dealings with neighbours and strategic partners and in developing its own constitutional arrangements.
Constitutional resilience in South Asian democracies. This project aims to find out whether constitutional design could, and should, be used to make constitutional democracies more resilient. Democratic constitutionalism is facing serious challenges, not only in new fragile democracies, but also older established ones. The project will investigate the role that the constitutional accommodation of salient ethnocultural and ideological groups, the autonomy of non-partisan constitutional watchdog i ....Constitutional resilience in South Asian democracies. This project aims to find out whether constitutional design could, and should, be used to make constitutional democracies more resilient. Democratic constitutionalism is facing serious challenges, not only in new fragile democracies, but also older established ones. The project will investigate the role that the constitutional accommodation of salient ethnocultural and ideological groups, the autonomy of non-partisan constitutional watchdog institutions, and the adaptability of the constitution to changing circumstances could play in securing its resilience against serious threats. Relying on conceptual and empirical methods, using case studies from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, to answer these questions, the project will produce a better understanding of constitutional resilience, and the features that promote it to allow constitution makers and reformers to better protect democracy, human rights and the rule of law. This will provide significant national benefit for Australia as it deepens its engagement with South Asia, and the world more generally.Read moreRead less
A study of law reform and its responses to rapid social and community change. This research is designed to assist law reform agencies and other bodies charged with ensuring that the law responds to rapid social change to design and implement best practice modes of responding most effectively both to the changing nature of the legal problems that arise in the 21st century and to the changing constituencies that are affected by them. Through three cases studies: family law reform, laws governing ....A study of law reform and its responses to rapid social and community change. This research is designed to assist law reform agencies and other bodies charged with ensuring that the law responds to rapid social change to design and implement best practice modes of responding most effectively both to the changing nature of the legal problems that arise in the 21st century and to the changing constituencies that are affected by them. Through three cases studies: family law reform, laws governing defences to domestic homicide and tort law reform the project will assess the extent to which they are responsive to the concerns of those traditionally excluded from the legal mainstream.Read moreRead less
Emerging technologies of warfare as a challenge to the law of armed conflict: cyber-attacks, robotics and nanotechnology. In order to reduce suffering in war, international law places limits on the ways in which the adversary can be harmed. This project will assess how the law fares in dealing with emerging technologies, such as hostile uses of computer networks, robotics and nanotechnology. It will provide guidance to policy makers on how the law can be improved.
Reconceiving Australian federalism: fundamental values, comparative models and constitutional interpretation. Through systematic comparison with other federal systems, this project identifies the range of fundamental principles and values that could underlie the Australian system of government, explores their application to the interpretation of the Australian Constitution and scrutinises proposed reforms to the Australian system on the basis of that analysis.
Sentencing and public confidence: public perceptions and the role of the public in sentencing practice and policy. Public confidence is critical to the effective operation of the criminal justice system. This project will generate much needed current national data on public attitudes about sentencing. It examines avenues for the incorporation of public opinion into sentencing policy and processes, and provides accurate measures of the factors involved. The results will enable governments to res ....Sentencing and public confidence: public perceptions and the role of the public in sentencing practice and policy. Public confidence is critical to the effective operation of the criminal justice system. This project will generate much needed current national data on public attitudes about sentencing. It examines avenues for the incorporation of public opinion into sentencing policy and processes, and provides accurate measures of the factors involved. The results will enable governments to respond to periodic crises in public confidence in constructive and informed ways, rather than act in response to law and order rhetoric, linked with harsh sentencing regimes, and costly and potentially unnecessary increases in incarceration rates.Read moreRead less