Law Internet Resources

Legal Profession and the Courts

This guide contains links to Internet resources and documents in the area of the legal profession and the federal courts, as well as providing links to other guides and directories which contain material on State and Territory and overseas law.

• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Commonwealth Attorney-General (History and Role)
• Courts
• Judges (including magistrates)
• Legal Profession (Barristers, Solicitors, Justices of the Peace)
• Legal Aid see Welfare Law
• Women and the Law
• Links to Other Australian Sites (State organisations, Pathfinders, Directories etc)
• Overseas Sites

Alternative Dispute Resolution

• Disputing culture: lawyers and ADR (A. Zariski)
• The Laws of Australia (Law Book Co). Title 13. Dispute Resolution
  Commercial publication. Not available outside Parliament
• Review of the adversarial system of litigation: ADR - its role in federal dispute resolution (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Alternative dispute resolution
  Directory of Internet resources compiled by the University of Queensland Law Library. Part of the Weblaw cooperative indexing project
• Kathy Mack, Court Referral to ADR: Criteria and Research. This project came about as a result of a joint initiative by the National ADR Committee (NADRAC) and the Australian Judicial Administration (AIJA) to develop information to assist courts in referring civil disputes to ADR.

Commonwealth Attorney-General (History and Role)

• 2008 Traditional notions of the Attorney-General: time for some justice (F. Hanlon, Alternative Law Journal, vol. 33). Looks at reforming both the functions and name of the position
• 2002 The Role of the Attorney-General (D. Williams). The Attorney-General's point of view
• 2002 The Role of the Attorney-General (G. Carney). An academic's point of view
• 1999 The Attorney-General, politics and the judiciary (L. King). A judge's point of view
• 1997 Report on the Review of the Attorney-General's Legal Practice. Chapter 3. Role of the Attorney-General. The Department's point of view

Courts

• Introductory overview of the court system (Legal Information Access Centre, Hot Topic 38)
• Australian Institute of Judicial Administration
• Judicial Conference of Australia
  The JCA was established in 1993 with the aim to maintain a strong and independent judiciary within a democratic society which adheres to the rule of law. Includes papers presented at its annual symposium
• High Court of Australia
• Law Foundation of New South Wales. Justice Research Centre
• University of Wollongong. Centre for Court Policy and Administration

Publications

Journals

• Australian bar review
  Contents page of latest issue

Articles, reports etc

• Halsburys laws of Australia. (Commercial publication. Not available outside Parliament)
  • Title 25. Arbitration;
  • Title 105. Contempt;
  • Title 115. Coroners;
  • Title 125 Courts and Judicial System;
  • Title 190. Estoppel;
  • Title 195. Evidence;
  • Title 325. Practice and Procedure
     
• The Laws of Australia (Law Book Co). Title 5. Civil Procedure; Title 13. Dispute Resolution; Title 16. Evidence
  Commercial publication. Not available outside Parliament
• Productivity Commission. Reports on Government Services
  Annual reports on courts are included under 'Justice'

2007

• Public Confidence in the Courts, National Judicial College of Australia, Canberra, 9 February, 2007 (Chief Justice Murray Gleeson)

2006

• National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference, Melbourne, 11 August, 2006. (Chief Justice Murray Gleeson)

2004

• Federal Court of Australia eCourt Integration Project: Final Report

2003

• Review of the Federal Magistrates Service

2001

• The Judicial power of the Commonwealth: a review of the Judiciary Act 1903 and related legislation (Australian Law Reform Commission)
  A review of the federal court structure

2000

• Managing justice: a review of the federal civil justice system: report no. 89 (Australian Law Reform Commission). A wide ranging report of 743 pages covering court administration, education training and accountability of judges, legal costs, legal aid, and practice, procedure and case management in the Federal and Family Courts and in merits review tribunals. Government response (2003)
• The Judicial power of the Commonwealth: a review of the Judiciary Act 1903 and related legislation (Australian Law Reform Commission discussion paper 64)
• Review of civil and administrative penalties in federal jurisdictions (Australian Law Reform Commission background paper 7)

1999

• Provisions of the Federal Magistrates Bill 1999 and Federal Magistrates (Consequential Amendments) Bill 1999 (Australia. Parliament. Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee)
• Federal Magistrates Bills 1999: bills digest (Commonwealth Parliamentary Library)
• Review of the federal civil justice system: discussion paper no. 62 (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Guide to uniform production of judgments (Australian Institute of Judicial Administration)

1998

• Review of the adversarial system of litigation: federal tribunal proceedings (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Technology – what it means for federal dispute resolution (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1997

• 1997 Review of the adversarial system of litigation: rethinking the federal civil litigation system (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1996

• Beyond the door-keeper: standing to sue for public remedies (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1995

• Costs shifting – who pays for litigation (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1992

• Children's evidence: closed circuit TV (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Choice of law rules (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1988

• Grouped proceedings in the Federal Court (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1987

• Service and execution of process (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Evidence (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Contempt (Australian Law Reform Commission)

1985

• Standing in public interest litigation (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Evidence (interim report) (Australian Law Reform Commission)

Judges (including magistrates)

• High Court of Australia. Speeches made by judges
• Judicial Conference of Australia
  Contains material on the role of judges and judicial independence including papers presented at the annual symposium of the JCA
• National Judicial College of Australia
  Provides programs and professional development resources to judicial officers. Includes conference papers on judicial education and other topics eg children and the courts

Publications

2008

• Policy on the Process of Judicial Appointments (Law Council of Australia)

2007

• The State of the Judicature, 35th Australian Legal Convention, Sydney 25 March, 2007 (Chief Justice Murray Gleeson)
• The Role of a Judge in a Criminal Trial, Lawasia Conference, Hong Kong, 6 June, 2007 (Chief Justice Murray Gleeson)

2006

• Strengthening the Judicial Role in the Protection of Human Rights - An Action Plan, Inter-Regional Conference on Justice Systems and Human Rights, Concluding Session 20 September, 2006 (The Hon Justice Michael Kirby)
• Judicial Dissent - Common Law and Civil Law Traditions, Law Quarterly Review, 2006 (The Hon Justice Michael Kirby)

2005

• The Federal Judiciary in Australia, Federal Magistrates' Conference, Melbourne, 20 October, 2005 (Chief Justice Murray Gleeson)

2004

• Charter of Judicial Independence (Australian Bar Association)

2002

• Guide to judicial conduct (Council of Chief Justices of Australia)

2001

• Tackling judicial corruption, globally (M. Kirby)

2000

• Modes of appointment and training of judges: a common law perspective (The Hon Justice M. Kirby)
• Judicial legitimacy (The Hon M. Gleeson)
• The Proposal for an Australian Judicial College (Christoper Roper)

1999

• The Australian magistracy: from justices of the peace to judges and beyond (J. Lowndes)

1998

• Judicial education (J.A. Dowsett)
• The appointment of judges (R.W. Gotterson)
• The future state of the judicature (The Hon M. Gleeson)
• The Role of the judge and becoming a judge (The Hon M. Gleeson)
• Independence of the judiciary: basic principle, new challenges (The Hon Justice M. Kirby)
• Judging: reflections on the moment of decision (The Hon Justice M. Kirby)
• Acting judges: a non-theoretical danger (The Hon Justice M. Kirby)
• Attacks on judges: a universal phenomenon (The Hon Justice M. Kirby)

1997

• The role of the judiciary in a modern democracy (H. Cunningham)
• The role of the judiciary in a modern democracy (Hon. M. Gleeson)
• Judicial reticence (Hon Justice G. Davies)
• Judicial reticence (Comments by the journalist Bernard Lane)
• Appointing judges: Australian judicial reform proposals in light of recent North American experience (C. Kendall)

1996

• Judicial independence (Hon Sir Gerard Brennan)
• Judges, courts and tribunals (K. Ryan)
  

Legal Profession (Barristers, Solicitors, Justices of the Peace)

• Australian Plaintiff Lawyers Association
  APLA Ltd is an association of lawyers and other professionals devoted to the protection and enhancement of the rights of those injured or adversely affected by wrongdoers, and dedicated to injury prevention through safer products, workplaces and other environments
• Law Council of Australia: The National Council of Lawyers
  See under "Policies" for statements on a national legal profession
• Links to lawyers, lawyers' organisations, legal aid centres, legal services and patent attorneys (via AUSTLII)
   
• Halsburys laws of Australia. Title 250. Legal Practitioners
  Commercial publication. Not available outside Parliament
   
• 2005 Independence of the Legal Profession: Global and Regional Challenges, Law Council of Australia, Presidents of Law Associations in Asia Conference, Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre, Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia, Sunday, 20 March, 2005 (The Hon Justice Michael Kirby)
• 2001 Complaints against lawyers: an interim report (NSW Law Reform Commission report 99)
• 2000-2002 Reform of the legal profession (National Competition Council)
  Commentary by the Law Council of Australia
• 1993 Scrutiny of the legal profession: complaints against lawyers (NSW Law Reform Commission report)

Women and the Law

• National Women's Justice Coalition. The NWJC aims to promote women's equality before the law by: raising awareness of issues relating to women's legal equality; coordinating and lobbying on women's justice issues, and building networks and facilitating the work of individuals and groups
• Woman and the law
  Directory of sites, compiled by the University of Sydney. Part of the WEBLAW cooperative indexing project
• Women and the law (AustLII)
  A list of Australian websites
• Woman and the law
  A list of UK and international Internet resources compiled by the Fawcett Library (UK)

2006

• Caroline Kirton, "Has the System Failed Women?" (Australian Bar Association)

2004

• 20 Years of Women in the Law (Jennifer Batrouney)

2003

• Women in Law - Doldrums or Progress? Women Lawyers of Western Australia, Perth, 22 October 2003 (The Hon Justice Michael Kirby)

2002

• After Ada: A New Precedent for Women in Law (The Law Society of New South Wales)

1998

• Reg Graycar, Jenny Morgan & Hillary Charlesworth, 'Equality for Women under the Constitution?' Presented at the Women's Constitutional Convention, January 1998.
  • Equality for women or equality for gender neutral persons?
  • Application of an equality guarantee: public and/or private spheres?
  • A bill of rights/equality guarantee for Australia?

1994

• Equality before the law. Part 1. Justice for women. Report no. 69 (Australian Law Reform Commission)
• Equality before the law. Part 2. Women's equality. Report no. 69 (Australian Law Reform Commission)

Links to Other Australian Sites (Pathfinders, Directories etc)

• via AUSTLII
• via Foundation Law (links to home pages of courts and tribunals)

Overseas links to legal profession and the courts

• via University of Kent at Canterbury (UK sites)
• via Legal Information Institute (US sites)

Comments to: roy.jordan@aph.gov.au
Last reviewed 29 June, 2009 by the Parliamentary Library Web Manager
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