Gray on "Good Faith--The Incomplete Legal Transplant"

USQ School of Law and Justice Professor Anthony Gray has published a chapter in an edited collection.  The essay is titled "Good Faith--The Incomplete Legal Transplant" and appears in Dr. Vito Breda's book Legal Transplants in East Asia and Oceania.  Here is a summary of the chapter from the publisher's website:

This chapter will consider a legal transplant that is potentially still occurring – the broad recognition of notions of ‘good faith’ in relation to contracts. Whilst notions of good faith surround early conceptions of contractual relations, as will be seen, the common law, whilst initially apparently accepting good faith as part of the law of contract, set its face against such a doctrine, except in relation to insurance contracts. That resistance had been stoic for many years, until finally in recent years, the United Kingdom Supreme Court accepted the doctrine as a principle applicable to contracts, at least to some extent. In so doing, it followed in the footsteps of the Canadian Supreme Court, which finally recognized a general doctrine of good faith earlier in the same year. The doctrine is broadly recognized in the United States.

Breda on "Legal Transplants in East Asia and Oceania"

USQ School of Law and Justice Senior Lecturer Dr. Vito Breda has edited a new collection of essays titled Legal Transplants in East Asia and Oceania.  The book was published in June of this year by Cambridge University Press, and has a website here.  According to the publisher,

This volume provides a unique overview of methodologies that are conducive to a successful legal transplant in East Asia and Oceania. Each chapter is drafted by a scholar who holds direct professional experience on the legal transplant considered and has a distinctive insight into the pragmatic difficulties related to grafting an alien institution into a legal tradition. The range of transplants includes the implementation of contractual obligations, the regulation of commercial investments and the protection of the environment. The majority of recent legal reforms in these geographical areas have aimed at improving national economic performance and fostering trade and have been directly inspired by European and North American institutional experiences. There is also, however, a tendency to couple economic reforms, aimed at attracting foreign investment, with constitutional reforms that improve the protection of individual rights, the environment and the rule of law.

McKibbin & Mortensen on "The HCCH Judgement Conventions in Australian Law"

USQ School of Law and Justice Lecturer Ms. Sarah McKibbin and Professor Reid Mortensen have co-authored, along with Michael Douglas and Mary Keyes, an important new article titled "The HCCH Judgment Conventions in Australian Law".  The article appears in Volume 47(3) of the Federal Law Review.  Here is the abstract:

"In May 2018, the Hague Conference on Private International Law (‘HCCH’) produced a draft convention for the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. A Diplomatic Session of the HCCH is expected to take place in 2019 at which this draft ‘Judgments Convention’ will be presented. If a multilateral convention emerges from the Diplomatic Session, Australia is likely to be an early adopter: the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department conducted a public consultation on the draft Judgments Convention in 2018. Against that background, this article considers the impact of implementation of the Judgments Convention in Australia. It is argued that domestic legislation that emerges from the Judgments Convention will deliver an overdue refurbishment of the Australian law relating to the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. Australia’s adoption of the Judgments Convention ought to be welcomed."

Gray on "The Offence of Sedition"

USQ School of Law and Justice's Professor Anthony Gray has published a new article titled "The Offense of Sedition: Its History, Its Current Status in Australian and International Law, and Its Constitutionality."  The article appears in Volume 47(2) of the Australian Bar Review.  According to the abstract:

"This article considers the offence of sedition. The offence is of ancient vintage. Over the years its scope has narrowed, but sedition-type offences remain a feature of Australian criminal law. This article considers whether a constitutional challenge against such laws might be successful on the basis of the implied freedom of political communication."

Mortensen on "The Case Management Stay in Private International Law"

USQ School of Law and Justice Professor Reid Mortensen has contributed to a recent essay collection on private international law.  The book, Commercial Issues in Private International Law: A Common Law Perspective, is published by Hart and edited by Michael Douglas, Vivienne Bath, Mary Keyes, and Andrew Dickinson.  Professor Mortensen's contribution is titled "The Case Management Stay in Private International Law."  Here is the publisher's description of the book:

As people, business, and information cross borders, so too do legal disputes. Globalisation means that courts need to apply principles of private international law with increasing frequency. Thus, as the Law Society of New South Wales recognised in its 2017 report The Future of Law and Innovation in the Profession, knowledge of private international law is increasingly important to legal practice. In particular, it is essential to the modern practice of commercial law.

This book considers key issues at the intersection of commercial law and private international law. The authors include judges, academics and practising lawyers, from Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom. They bring a common law perspective to contemporary problems concerning the key issues in private international law: jurisdiction, choice of law, and recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. The book also addresses issues of evidence and procedure in cross-border litigation, and the impact of recent developments at the Hague Conference on Private International Law, including the Convention on Choice of Court Agreements on common law principles of private international law.

Colloquium: "Freedom of Religion: Challenges and Possibilities" [CALL FOR PAPERS]

CALL FOR PAPERS

FREEDOM OF RELIGION: CHALLENGES AND POSSIBILITIES

The proper scope of religious freedom continues to be an issue that vexes lawmakers, the public, and faith communities around the world.  Is there too much or too little room for the free practice of religion?  How should freedom of religion be balanced against other rights?  Is the law keeping up with changes in society?

Against the backdrop of controversies like same-sex marriage, the Ruddock Report, and the high-profile religious discrimination claim of Israel Folau, an opportunity arises to re-evaluate the fundamental right of religious freedom in Australian and beyond.

The Colloquium

The USQ School of Law and Justice together with the Law, Religion, and Heritage Research Program Team are hosting a scholarly colloquium on the scope, value, and status of religious freedom in Australia and beyond.

Date:  22 November 2019

Venue: USQ Toowoomba Campus, Q501/2

Invitation

Academics and students from any discipline are invited to present their scholarly research on the colloquium's theme.  Contributors should expect to present for about 20 minutes with time for questions afterwards.

Queries

RSVP to Dr Jeremy Patrick with a title and 100-word precis via e-mail to jeremy.patrick@usq.edu.au by 31 August 2019.

Hemming on Common Law Forfeiture

USQ School of Law and Justice Senior Lecturer Dr. Andrew Hemming recently submitted a paper to the South Australian Law Reform Institute for its review of common law forfeiture.  The full text of the paper can be found on USQ ePrints, here.