politics good evidence

gotta crack 50 in this spicy area 🙏

Constitution chapters

Chapters 1, 2 and 3 of the constitution outline the powers of the legislative, executive and judiciary respectively. This demonstrates a clear separation of powers.

High court related sections of the constitution

s71 - establishes the high court as the constitutional court

s72 - outlines the independence of the high court (s72 (ii) can’t be removed by the executive, s72 (iii) fixed salary)

s73 - sets out appellate jurisdiction of the high court

Examples of poor SOP

• Responsible government causes fusion of the executive and legislature (eg Albanese is PM and member for Grayndler)

• Delegated legislation (eg Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 gives the e safety commissioner the power to change the list of platforms which the law is applicable to)

Right to vote

s7 and s24 of the constitution ‘directly chosen by the people’

Judicial appointment process

s6 of the High Court of Australia Act 1979 (Attorney General must consult with state counterparts but isn’t required to listen to them)

Transparency in the lawmaking process

Parliament is open to the public and transcript of parliament is available in the Hansard

Case in which the judiciary acted independently

Minister for Immigration v NZYQ (2023). Ruled that the executive government does not have the power to indefinitely hold asylum seekers in offshore detention

Strengths of political participation

• 1924 amendment to the Electoral Act 1918 which made voting mandatory for the vast majority of Australians over 18

• Section 163 of the electoral act allows citizens entitled to vote the right to run for parliament (10 independents)

Lacking right to protest

NSW police commissioner can put a blanket ban on protests up to 90 days after a terrorist attack. Limited the ability of protestors to march in February 2026 protests against the Israeli president’s visit

Direct democracy in Australia

s128 of the constitution outlines the referendum process. Also displays the entrenched nature of the constitution - only 8 of 45 proposals have been successful.

Rights protection in the constitution

Very weak, with only 5 explicit rights and a number of implicit rights

State and federal laws in the constitution

• s52 outlines exclusive powers of the federal government

• s51 outlines concurrent powers

• s109 outlines that when state law conflicts with federal law, the state law is overruled

Debate cut off (weaker laws, less views and perspectives)

In late Nov 2024, 27 bills were passed using a guillotine motion to cut short debate. This affected legislation such as the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024

Propensity evidence

Past convictions which go towards the accused’s ability to commit the crime must be of ‘significant probative value’ (s31 A of the Evidence Act 1906 (WA))

Right to legal representation

Established in Dietrich v The Queen (1992)

Juror misconduct

DPP v Lehrmann (2022) ended in a mistrial when a juror was found to have brought in research of their own, disobeying the instructions of the judge and undermining the accused’s right to a fair trial

Example of precedent changing

The precedent set in Al-Kateb v Godwin (2004) was overturned in 2023 by NZYQ

Example of precedent

Mabo v Queensland (No. 2) (1992) established the precedent of native title. This was then codified into statute law by the Native Title Act 1993

Example of changing views

the Marriage Act 1961 was changed in 2017 to allow for gay marriage

Source of authority for anything jury related

Juries act 1957

• As per s2 (b) (IV) of the Juries Act 1957, Persons ‘convicted of an offence and sentenced to life imprisonment or imprisonment for a term exceeding 2 years’ can’t be jurors

Mandatory sentencing

Under s 401 of the Criminal Code Compilation Act 1913, an adult who is being convicted for burglary with 2 prior relevant convictions must be sentenced at least 2 years imprisonment