The high court and the utility of multiple judgments

Recently, the High Court has been criticised for its supposed increasing tendency to deliver multiple majority judgments. Ostensibly this impairs the capacity for the Court to clarify and unify the law, thereby making it more difficult for citizens to plan and coordinate their affairs. This criticism of the High Court is unsound. First, there is no evidence to suggest that the High Court is now more fragmented than it has been during other periods of its history. Secondly, the precise reasoning process (and the underlying jurisprudence reflected by this) is a cardinal aspect of the development of precedent and legal principle. Convergence in conclusion only is of little utility and does not promote certainty and clarity in the law. One cannot make an informed assessment of the impact and breadth of a decision without an understanding of the (actual) premise underpinning the decision. It is for this reason that legislation is such a poor vehicle for declaring the law and why in recent decades there has been an increasing degree of reliance on extraneous material to assist in the interpretation of legislation. Conclusion without (genuine) reasons is not highly instructive. Coerced agreement, no matter how subtle, is undesirable. The High Court should resist calls to deliver more single majority judgments.<br />

Still plucking figures out of the air? Markarian and the affirmation of the instinctive synthesis

The High Court of Australia recently had the opportunity to reconsider the appropriate sentencing methodology to be adopted in the sentencing of offenders under Australian criminal law in the case of Markarian v The Queen. The High Court had to decide whether to continue with the instinctive synthesis approach to sentencing or a process that exposed in greater clarity the basis upon which sentencing was to occur. Ultimately, a majority of the Court favoured the continuance of the instinctive synthesis approach to sentencing in criminal cases. The article will consider the decision in Markarian and the implications that it will have for the sentencing of offenders in the States and Territories of Australia. <br />

Standing on the shoulders of giants : Are ERP success factors relevant for EDRMS implementation?

Records management has been a central concern for organisations in both private and public sectors since the beginning of the 21st century. This new focus is due both to the introduction of laws, regulations and standards affecting corporate information management; and to the way records are changing from paper-based to &ldquo;born-digital&rdquo; and &ldquo;made-digital&rdquo;. The need for an effective automated system to manage records is now greater than ever, with Electronic Document and Records Management Systems (EDRMS) being the most likely solution. Despite their increasing popularity, however, successful uptake of such systems is not yet widespread and research into their implementation is still limited. This paper investigates the possibility of applying existing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) models to EDRMS by analysing the substantial body of literature on success factors for ERP implementation, both qualitatively and quantitatively; and then comparing these with the still relatively limited literature on EDRMS.<br />

Obesity prevention : the role of policies, laws and regulations

The commercial drivers of the obesity epidemic are so influential that obesity can be considered a robust sign of commercial success &ndash; consumers are buying more food, more cars and more energy-saving machines. It is unlikely that these powerful economic forces will change sufficiently in response to consumer desires to eat less and move more or corporate desires to be more socially responsible. When the free market creates substantial population detriments and health inequalities, government policies are needed to change the ground rules in favour of population benefits.<br />Concerted action is needed from governments in four broad areas: provide leadership to set the agenda and show the way; advocate for a multi-sector response and establish the mechanisms for all sectors to engage and enhance action; develop and implement policies (including laws and regulations) to create healthier food and activity environments, and; secure increased and continued funding to reduce obesogenic environments and promote healthy eating and physical activity.<br />Policies, laws and regulations are often needed to drive the environmental and social changes that, eventually, will have a sustainable impact on reducing obesity. An 'obesity impact assessment' on legislation such as public liability, urban planning, transport, food safety, agriculture, and trade may identify 'rules' which contribute to obesogenic environments. In other areas, such as marketing to children, school food, and taxes/levies, there may be opportunities for regulations to actively support obesity prevention. Legislation in other areas such as to reduce climate change may also contribute to obesity prevention ('stealth interventions'). A political willingness to use policy instruments to drive change will probably be an early hallmark of successful obesity prevention.<br />

Corporate liability for workplace deaths and injuries-reflecting on Victoria's laws in the light of the Esso Longford explosion

The purpose of this article is to consider some different legal models for the liability of corporations for the deaths and serious injuries of their employees, with particular emphasis on the law in Victoria.<br /><br />Two recent developments in Victoria prompt this consideration. First, on 30 July 2001, the Victorian Supreme Court handed down its sentencing decision in the case arising from the explosion on 25 September 1998 at the Longford gas plant operated by Esso Australia Pty Ltd. The decision marked the end of the formal public consideration of a devastating event in Victorian industrial history, which began with the Royal Commission set up on 20 October 1998 to investigate the causes of an explosion in which two workers died and eight others were injured. Second, in early 2002, the Victorian Government failed in its attempt to introduce new criminal offences for corporate employers whose employees are killed or seriously injured at work. In spite of their failure to be passed by the Legislative Council in Victoria, these proposals warrant consideration. They represent a growing trend by policy makers in attempting to address more effectively the question of the liability for deaths and serious injuries of workers to employers who operate through the corporate form.<br />

So far so good? : A critical evaluation of racial vilification laws in Australia

Problems with Australia's racial vilification laws - s 18C of the Commonwealth's Racial Discrimination Act - free speech and public interest defences under the Racial Discrimination Act as well as State and Territory racial vilification laws - impact of free speech cases on the content of the racial vilification defences.<br />

A comparative analysis of opinions of Americans, Australians and Malaysians on the use of biometric devices in workplaces for security and monitoring of worker productivity

Since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York, the use of biometric devices such as fingerprint scans, retina and iris scans and facial recognition in everyday situations for national security and border control, have become commonplace. This has resulted in the biometric industry moving from being a niche technology to one that is ubiquitous. As a result. more and more employers are using biometrics to secure staff access to their facilities as well as for tracking staff work hours, maintaining 'discipline' and carry out surveillance against thefts. detecting work hour abuses and fraud. However, the data thus collected and the technologies themselves are feared of having the potential for and actually being misused - both in terms of the violating staff privacy and discrimination and oppression of targeted workers. This paper examines the issue of using biometric devices in organisational settings their advantages, disadvantages and actual and potential abuses from the point of view of critical theory. From the perspectives of Panoptic surveillance and hegemonic organisational control, the paper examines the issues related to privacy and identification, biometrics and privacy, biometrics and the 'body', and surveillance and modernity. The paper also examines the findings ofa survey carried out in Australia. Malaysia and the USA on respondents' opinions on the use of biometric devices in everyday life including at workplaces. The paper concludes that along with their applications in border control and national security, the use of biometric devices should be covered by relevant laws and regulations. guidelines and codes of practice. in order to balance the rights to privacy and civil liberties of workers with employers' need for improved productivity, reduced costs, safeguards related to occupational health and safety, equal opportunity, and workplace harassment of staff and other matters, that employers are legally responsible for.<br />

So far no good: the regulatory failure of criminal racial vilification laws in Australia

This article considers the efficacy of the two main legislative models in Australia which make racial vilification a crime. To this end, it considers whether the laws are compatible with the protection and promotion of freedom of speech; whether they sit comfortably within the existing criminal law frameworks; and whether the text of the offences is sufficiently clear and precise. It considers that the current models are fundamentally flawed and ought to be repealed, arguing, instead, for a particular kind of penalty enhancement statute.<br />

IT based approaches for integrating construction safety regulations with construction planning

The concept of a construction accident is extending from the traditional construction operation accident to contain all non-construction operation accidents in personnel's safety and health, global and local environment, and the insufficient facility planning for security&nbsp;and emergency. Construction accidents may cause human, social and sustainable tragedies directly, and indirectly delay construction progresses and adversely affect the reputation of construction industry. In order to reduce all possible construction accidents, lots of&nbsp;non-construction operation regulations are constituted according to the authoritative regulations and previous construction experiences. However, these non-construction operation regulations are not integrated with the construction production or process planning. This may&nbsp;cause that some of these non-construction operation regulations ,are disregarded in the practical construction progress. The aim of this research is to explore the possibility, methodology and techniques in practice in order to identify and specify the non-construction&nbsp;operation regulations for every individual construction production and process. Therefore, the construction planning does not only represent the time and resources of each construction product or process, but also its non-construction operation regulations. The main outcomes of this research are a systematic identification of non-construction operation regulations, and the potential techniques for integrating them with the construction planning.<br />

EDMS, ERMS,ECMS or EDRMS : fighting through the acronyms towards a strategy for effective corporate records management

Records management has been receiving increased attention around the world over the last two decades as governments issue ever more laws and regulations about the management of corporate records. An electronic system to manage records effectively is the ultimate goal of every organisation in both the public private sectors &ndash; whether to support the development of E-Government or to conduct business legally. Such systems are not yet clearly defined, however, as the obvious confusion and inconsistency of nomenclature makes very clear. This paper highlights the problem and calls for research into this essential but currently ignored area.<br />

Criminal laws in Australia : cases and materials

This book is the most user-friendly of all the criminal law books currently available in Australia. This is the only book that deals comprehensively with the criminal law in all Australian states and territories. Unlike the other criminal law books available to Australian law lecturers, it is both a casebook and textbook.<br />