Abstract

 
 

Footnotes (17)

Beta

 


 



Three Good Things and Three Not-so-Good Things about the Australian Legal System


Michael Coper


Australian National University (ANU) - College of Law


October 1, 2007

ANU College of Law Research Paper No. 10-37

Abstract:     
It is often thought that, as a former British colony, Australia must have a legal system that mirrors that of its colonial parent. To an extent this is true. Australia inherited that weird and wonderful body of judicial doctrine, and law-making process, called the 'common law', that uniquely melds and simultaneously produces constancy and change.

Moreover, in addition to this slow and accidental accretion of judge-made law that combines fidelity to precedent with incremental growth through the adaptation of precedent, Australia inherited many of the underlying and fundamental values and principles of the English common law, such as the rule of law, equality before the law, the presumption of innocence, the imperative of a fair trial, and an independent judiciary – all in the context of the achievement of finality (not necessarily of truth) through adversarial rather than inquisitorial processes.

This paper was presented at the International Association of Law Schools Conference, Learning from Each Other: Enriching the Law School Curriculum in an Interrelated World, Kenneth Wang School of Law, Soochow University, Suzhou, China, 17-19 October 2007.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 6

Working Paper Series

Date posted: July 09, 2010  

Suggested Citation

Coper, Michael, Three Good Things and Three Not-so-Good Things about the Australian Legal System (October 1, 2007). ANU College of Law Research Paper No. 10-37. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1636074 or doi:10.2139/ssrn.1636074


Export to: Export Citation What's this?

Contact Information

Michael Coper (Contact Author)
Australian National University (ANU) - College of Law ( email )
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200
Australia
Feedback to SSRN (Beta)


Paper statistics
Abstract Views: 128
Downloads: 28
Footnotes: 17

© 2012 Social Science Electronic Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.  FAQ   Terms of Use   Privacy Policy   Copyright
This page was processed by apollo3b in 0.234 seconds