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.

Gray on "Internment of Terrorist Suspects and the Australian Constitution"

Professor Anthony Gray of the USQ School of Law and Justice has published a new article in Volume 93(4) of the Australian Law Journal.  The article is titled "Internment of Terrorist Suspects and the Australian Constitution".  Here is the abstract:

"This article considers constitutional questions that arise in relation to recent calls for internment in Australia with respect to those suspected of engagement in terrorism activity. Internment has been practised in the past in Australia with respect to war or warlike conditions, though the extent to which Australia is currently “at war” is of course highly contested. Laws in various Australian States, and at federal level, also currently contemplate preventive detention, though this is in the context of individuals who have already been convicted and sentenced for crime. As such, the current proposal differs significantly from preventive detention as currently practised in Australia. The article considers whether the Commonwealth’s defence power would likely support such a scheme, whether it would be valid if the power were reposed in a member of the Executive, and whether it would be valid if reposed in a court. As a result, it considers whether such schemes are punitive in nature, and the essential character of such a power. The article is focused on the constitutionality of such a scheme, rather than its merits as public policy."

Collins Co-edits and Contributes to a New Book on Place and Conflict

Professor Pauline Collins of the USQ School of Law and Justice has recently co-edited and contributed to a new collection of essays titled: The Nexus among Place, Conflict, and Communication in a Globalising World.  Published by Palgrave MacMillan, the book is summarised as follows:

"The world abounds with conflicts and the associated communication practices and technologies that perpetuate and contest conflict as it occurs in place. All conflicts are crucially connected with place, and all conflicts are communicated in multiple ways. This book explores the complex nexus among place, conflict and communication and brings together 11 investigations around the interplay of place, conflict and communication. The interdisciplinary focus includes education, history, international relations, law and sociology. The chapters are geographically diverse, traversing Aceh in Indonesia, Australia, England, Finland, Ireland, Singapore, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The book highlights the possibilities for reimagining the future so that more democratic and peaceful understandings of place can lead to fewer conflicts and less conflict-based communication. Better futures are possible only if place is replotted, conflict is reconceptualised and communication is recontextualised from new, varied and more inclusive perspectives with a vision to creating a more harmonious world."