Succession and Indigenous Australians : addressing Indigenous customary law notions of 'property' and 'kinship' in a succession law context

The purpose of this article is to critically evaluate the existing capacity of Indigenous people to exercise succession rights against their estate. This article begins with a discussion of the sources of the general succession laws in Australia, noting that they have derived from UK law, where the common law notions of property, property rights and family, including the expectational right to succeed to property, are all important factors. These common law notions do not easily fit within the spectrum of Indigenous customary law. Generally, many Indigenous Australians will die without executing a valid will (ie, they die intestate) and it is here that this article undertakes an examination of the general intestacy laws in all Australian jurisdictions noting the inadequacy of the provisions to recognise Indigenous persons’ spiritual and cultural obligations to property, land or otherwise, together with a failure to distinguish extended Indigenous kinship relationships under Indigenous customary law. It is argued that Indigenous people who die intestate should be supported by a flexible and adaptive intestacy framework, responsive to the full customary and cultural responsibilities of the deceased, thus promoting an organic and developmental approach to succession entitlements.

Determinants of maternity leave duration in Australia : evidence from the HILDA survey

We use the first five waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey to examine what determines the maternity leave taken by pre-birth employed mothers of newborn children in Australia. We find that the difficulties faced by mothers in finding appropriate child care in terms of both cost and quality hinder them from returning to the labour market following childbirth. Maternity leave entitlements lead to an earlier return to the labour market following the birth of a child, relative to those who have no leave rights at all. Mothers with higher wages in their pre-birth employment and mothers with higher education levels tend to return to the labour market earlier than their lower wage and less educated counterparts. More flexible pre-birth jobs are associated with an increase in the likelihood of mothers returning to the workforce earlier than the average. Household wealth, however, seems to play a facilitating role in mothers taking a longer period of maternity leave to look after the newborn child. That is, mothers who have higher wealth levels can ‘afford’ to stay on maternity leave longer, to look after their children better during their primary developmental months. We believe that this article provides useful insights into the employment transitions of Australian mothers after having a baby.

Trevor Gale raises equity fears as Bradley recommendations could concentrate disadvantage

Disadvantaged students could be further concentrated in younger and regional universities if Bradley review recommendations on entitlements are implemented without stringent controls, derailing a major objective of the review, according to National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education director Trevor Gale.

Re-positioning Australia's international education in global knowledge economies : implications of shifts in skilled migration policies for universities

In recent times, many key host nations have made it easier for foreign graduates to migrate after graduation. These students are often considered ideal migrants, possessing local qualifications along with a degree of acculturation, language skills and, in many cases, relevant local work experience. For the student, the opportunity to obtain international work experience adds to the appeal of the overseas study experience and enhances the graduate skills necessary to compete in the global labour market. This paper examines recent changes to migration policy in Australia affecting the post-study work entitlements of international students studying at Australian universities and explores the underlying rationale and consequences of the recent changes in policy direction. An examination of migration policies in the United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Canada indicates that recent changes to skilled migration policy in Australia, along with bleak economic conditions in a number of key host countries, has opened up opportunities for Australia to re-position itself favourably.

The nature and scope of rights of removal

The rationale underlying the fixtures and accession presumptions is the need to protect the value of the chattel as well as the need to protect third-party interests. The destruction of the independent legal status of an attached chattel is generally deemed appropriate where the value of the co-mingled asset will be diminished if the chattel retains a separate legal title and this would generate unfairness because third parties have dealt with the co-mingled asset on the basis of its overall value. Rights to remove have evolved under both common law and equity to moderate the scope of these presumptions. Common law will uphold the right of a tenant to remove chattels that have been attached to leased premises during the currency of the lease. Equity on the other hand will uphold the right to remove affixed chattels in circumstances where the enforcement of such an entitlement is consistent with contractual intention and transactional fairness. This article examines the different rights of removal that have evolved under Australian law to date and the emergent statutory framework supporting these rights. It discusses the historical purpose and structural utility of these entitlements within a land framework that supports fixtures presumptions. Rights of removal, whether validated at law or in equity, confer positive entitlements upon the holder to access and remove affixed goods in circumstances where, because of the fixtures and accession presumptions, those goods no longer retain any separate legal status. The capacity of the holder to enforce this right against third parties is illustrative of their distinctive proprietary perspective.

Law, Theology, and Morality: Conceptions of the Rights to Relief of the Poor in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries

This article presents an analysis of certain ways of thinking about law and its relationship to the poor, in particular the rights and entitlements of the poor to the basic necessities of life and the obligations of society to provide those necessities. It focuses on the works of Peter the Chanter and his “circle” at Paris in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. Significant in their writings on the quandary between respect for private property and the need to allow those in need to take a share of this private property in order to survive is their negotiation of the intellectual boundaries and understandings between law, theology, and morality. In addition, an understanding of their discussions in light of canonistic and theological works of the time reveal a hitherto under-appreciated contribution to the “subjective rights” language in Peter the Chanter.

Examining the viability of windows impact/update method for delay analysis in construction disputes

Nowadays, construction delay disputes often end up on the arbitration route where the delay experts appointed by the parties advise the tribunal on the extension of times entitlements of the parties. For this purpose, the identification and quantification of concurrent and pacing delays are integral aspects of resolving these disputes using a proper delay analysis methodology. The aim of the study is therefore, threefold. Firstly, the available literature on the concurrent and pacing delays are analyzed in detail to establish the principles for the evaluation of the concurrency and pacing delays. Secondly, a robust delay analysis methodology called ‘windows impact/update method’ is explained often used by the experts for the effective quantification of concurrent and pacing delays. This methodology is an improved version of time impact analysis and normal windows analysis. For better demonstration, the explanation of the methodology is facilitated with the help of a typical case study analysis. Finally, the principles of concurrency and pacing, as explained in the literature review, are promptly applied to the case study results to show the applicability of the analysis method on any types of delay disputes. The study shows the effectiveness of the windows impact/update method for the quantification of the concurrent and pacing delays.

Employment arrangements and mental health in a cohort of working Australians : are transitions from permanent to temporary employment associated with changes in mental health?

We investigated whether being in temporary employment, as compared with permanent employment, was associated with a difference in Short Form 36 mental health and whether transitions from permanent employment to temporary employment were associated with mental health changes. We used fixed-effects regression in a nationally representative Australian sample with 10 waves of data collection (2001–2010). Interactions by age and sex were tested. Two forms of temporary employment were studied: “casual” (no paid leave entitlements or fixed hours) and “fixed-term contract” (a defined employment period plus paid leave). There were no significant mental health differences between temporary employment and permanent employment in standard fixed-effects analyses and no significant interactions by sex or age. For all age groups combined, there were no significant changes in mental health following transitions from stable permanent employment to temporary employment, but there was a significant interaction with age (P = 0.03) for the stable-permanent-to-casual employment transition, because of a small transition-associated improvement in mental health for workers aged 55–64 years (β = 1.61, 95% confidence interval: 0.34, 2.87; 16% of the standard deviation of mental health scores). Our analyses suggest that temporary employment is not harmful to mental health in the Australian context and that it may be beneficial for 55- to 64-year-olds transitioning from stable permanent employment to casual employment.

Supporting working parents: findings from the AHRC’s national inquiry into the prevalence of pregnancy and return to work discrimination in the workplace

In July 2014 the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) released the findings of its national review into pregnancy and return to work discrimination in the workplace1 which it conducted following a request from the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department.2 The review comes 15 years after the commission’s first inquiry into pregnancy discrimination in the workplace.3Federal law has prohibited pregnancy discrimination in the workplace since the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) (SDA) came into force.4 It is now unlawful in every state and territory.5 Discrimination on the basis of breastfeeding and family or carer’s responsibilities is also prohibited.6 Since 2009 the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FW Act) has prohibited workplace discrimination based on pregnancy and family or carer’s responsibilities7 and the Act gives employees additional entitlements relating to their parental and caring responsibilities. Male and female employees who are the primary caregiver for a child are entitled to 12 months unpaid parental leave upon the birth or adoption of the child and can request an additional 12 months leave.8 Upon returning to work, they can request flexible working conditions9 and they are protected from adverse action, such as dismissal, for exercising these rights.10 Yet despite these legal protections, the findings of the national review show that employees continue to experience discrimination during pregnancy, when taking parental leave and upon re-entering the workforce. This note presents the main findings from the surveys and consultations that were held with employers and employees as part of the review and the review’s recommendations for addressing the prevalence of what it terms ‘pregnancy/return to work discrimination’.

Migration and the right to social security: perceptions of off-farm migrants' rights to social insurance in China's Jiangsu Province

In 2001 China ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. By so doing the national government became legally bound, "to the maximum of its available resources", to achieve "progressively" full realization of the rights specified in the Covenant. Included amongst these entitlements is the "right of everyone to social security, including social insurance". This paper uses data from Jiangsu to examine the extent to which urbanites agree that previously disenfranchised migrants have the same right to social insurance as the urban population. Many urbanites fear that their existing entitlements to social protection will be diluted if social insurance coverage is extended to include new populations. Accordingly, state agencies and the media have sought to promote acceptance of a more positive view of migrant workers than has traditionally prevailed within towns and cities. We find that younger urban residents, urban residents who already have social insurance and urban residents working in the state-owned sector are more likely to agree that migrants have the same right to social insurance as the urban population. © 2007 Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Awarding damages or demanding performance? a performance-oriented approach for international investment law

This paper examines two different approaches to judicial protection of entitlements in international economic law. One of them, ‘performance-oriented’, is applied by WTO adjudicators. Performance-oriented remedies focus on inducing wrongdoers to resume compliance with the underlying substantive rules. The other, ‘reparation-oriented’, is applied overwhelmingly in international investment law. Reparation-oriented remedies aim at offsetting the injury caused to private parties by the wrongful conduct. This paper discusses the utility of performance-oriented remedies within WTO law, and assesses the possibilities for otherwise reparation-oriented investment tribunals to have recourse to these remedies. It examines a number of decisions that, it is argued, favor performance over pecuniary compensation. From the viewpoint of the state found in breach, compensation then appears as a threatened sanction for non-compliance with the performance obligations determined.

Gender, pensions and social citizenship in Latin America

Includes bibliography

Institutional requirements for market-led development in Latin America

Includes bibliography

Ex-post Liability Rules in Modern Patent Law

This doctoral thesis examines the use of liability rules to protect patent entitlements, focusing on a specific type of rule named ex-post since it is applied and designed ex-post by a court or an agency. The research starts from the premise that patents are defined by the legal and economic scholarship as exclusive rights but nevertheless, under certain circumstances there are economic as well as other compelling reasons to transform the exclusiveness of patent rights into a right to receive compensation.

Bewertungsportale im Internet – Meinungsfreiheit versus Datenschutz und Haftungsfragen der Portalbetreiber

Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit rechtlichen Fragestellungen rund um Bewertungs-portale im Internet. Zentrale Themen der Arbeit sind dabei die Zulässigkeit der Veröffentlichung der von den Nutzern abgegebenen Bewertungen vor dem Hintergrund möglicherweise entgegenstehender datenschutzrechtlicher Bestimmungen und der Persönlichkeitsrechte der Betroffenen. Des weiteren wird der Rechtsschutz der Betroffenen erörtert und in diesem Zusammenhang die haftungsrechtlichen Risiken der Forenbetreiber untersucht. Gegenstand der Arbeit sind dabei sowohl Online-Marktplätze wie eBay, auf denen sowohl der Bewertende als auch der Bewertete registriert und mit dem Bewertungsverfahren grundsätz-lich einverstanden sind (geschlossene Portale), als auch Portale, auf denen – oftmals unter einem Pseudonym und ohne vorherige Anmeldung – eine freie Bewertungsabgabe, zu Pro-dukteigenschaften, Dienstleistungen bis hinzu Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen des Bewerteten möglich ist (offene Portale). Einleitung und Erster Teil Nach einer Einleitung und Einführung in die Problematik werden im ersten Teil die verschie-denen Arten der Bewertungsportale kurz vorgestellt. Die Arbeit unterscheidet dabei zwischen so genannten geschlossenen Portalen (transaktionsbegleitende Portale wie eBay oder Ama-zon) auf der einen Seite und offenen Portalen (Produktbewertungsportale, Hotelbewertungs-portale und Dienstleistungsbewertungsportale) auf der anderen Seite. Zweiter Teil Im zweiten Teil geht die Arbeit der Frage nach, ob die Veröffentlichung der durch die Nutzer abgegebenen Bewertungen auf den offenen Portalen überhaupt erlaubt ist oder ob hier mögli-cherweise das Persönlichkeitsrecht der Betroffenen und hier insbesondere das Recht auf in-formationelle Selbstbestimmung in Form der datenschutzrechtlichen Bestimmungen die freie Bewertungsabgabe unzulässig werden lässt. Untersucht werden in diesem Zusammenhang im einzelnen Löschungs- bzw. Beseitigungsan-sprüche der Betroffenen aus § 35 Abs. 2 Satz 2 Nr. 1 BDSG bzw. §§ 1004 i. V. m. 823 Abs. 1 BGB (allgemeines Persönlichkeitsrecht). Die Arbeit kommt in datenschutzrechtlicher Hinsicht zu dem Schluss, dass die Bewertungen personenbezogene Daten darstellen, die den datenschutzrechtlichen Bestimmungen unterlie-gen und eine Veröffentlichung der Bewertungen nach dem im deutschen Recht geltenden da-tenschutzrechtlichen Erlaubnisvorbehalt grundsätzlich nicht in Betracht kommt. Vor dem Hintergrund dieser den tatsächlichen Gegebenheiten und Interessenlagen im Internet nicht mehr gerecht werdenden Gesetzeslage diskutiert der Autor sodann die Frage, ob die datenschutzrechtlichen Bestimmungen in diesen Fällen eine Einschränkung durch die grund-gesetzlich garantierten Informationsfreiheiten erfahren müssen. Nach einer ausführlichen Diskussion der Rechtslage, in der auf die Besonderheiten der ein-zelnen Portale eingegangen wird, kommt die Arbeit zu dem Schluss, dass die Frage der Zuläs-sigkeit der Veröffentlichung der Bewertungen von einer Interessenabwägung im Einzelfall abhängt. Als Grundsatz kann jedoch gelten: Ist die bewertete Tätigkeit oder Person in Bezug auf die bewertete Eigenschaft ohnehin einer breiten Öffentlichkeit zugänglich, erscheint eine Veröffentlichung der Daten nicht bedenklich. Dagegen wird man einen Löschungs- bzw. Be-seitigungsanspruch bejahen müssen für die Bewertungen, die Tätigkeiten oder Eigenschaften des Bewerteten, die in keinem Zusammenhang mit ihm als öffentlicher Person stehen, betref-fen. Anschließend geht die Arbeit auf die Persönlichkeitsrechte der Betroffenen und der sich hier-aus ergebenden Beseitigungs- und Unterlassungsansprüchen gemäß der §§ 1004 Abs. 1, 823 Abs. 1 BGB ein, verneint jedoch wegen dem Vorrang der spezialgesetzlichen Bestimmungen aus dem Bundesdatenschutzgesetz letztlich eine Anwendbarkeit der Anspruchsgrundlagen. Schließlich wird in diesem Teil noch kurz auf die Zulässigkeit der Bewertung juristischer Per-sonen eingegangen, die im Grundsatz bejaht wird. Dritter Teil Sofern der zweite Teil der Arbeit zu dem Schluss kommt, dass die Veröffentlichung der Be-wertungen zulässig ist, stellt sich im dritten Teil die Frage, welche Möglichkeiten das Recht dem Bewerteten bietet, gegen negative Bewertungen vorzugehen. Untersucht werden, dabei datenschutzrechtliche, deliktsrechtliche, vertragliche und wettbe-werbsrechtliche Ansprüche. Ein Schwerpunkt dieses Teils liegt in der Darstellung der aktuellen Rechtsprechung zu der Frage wann eine Bewertung eine Tatsachenbehauptung bzw. ein Werturteil darstellt und den sich hieraus ergebenden unterschiedlichen Konsequenzen für den Unterlassungsanspruch des Betroffenen. Diejenigen Bewertungen, die eine Meinungsäußerung darstellen, unterstehen dem starken Schutz der Meinungsäußerungsfreiheit. Grenze der Zulässigkeit sind hier im wesentlichen nur die Schmähkritik und Beleidigung. An Tatsachenbehautpungen dagegen sind schärfere Maßstäbe anzulegen. In diesem Zusammenhang wird der Frage nachgegangen, ob vertragliche Beziehungen zwischen den Beteiligten (Bewertenden, Bewertete und Portalbetreiber) die Meinungsäußerungsfreiheit einschränkt, was jedenfalls für die geschlossenen Portale bejaht wird. Vierter Teil Der vierte Teil der Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit den „Zu-gut-Bewertungen“. Es geht dabei um wettbewerbsrechtliche Ansprüche im Falle verdeckter Eigenbewertungen. Solche Eigenbewertungen, die unter dem Deckmantel der Pseudonymität als Werbemittel zur Imageverbesserung in entsprechenden Bewertungsportale verbreitet werden ohne den wahren Autor erkennen zu lassen, sind in wettbewerbsrechtlicher Hinsicht grundsätzlich unzulässig. Fünfter Teil Im letzten Teil der Arbeit wird schließlich der Frage nach der Verantwortlichkeit der Portal-betreiber für rechtswidrige Bewertungen nachgegangen. Zunächst wird die Feststellung getroffen, dass es sich bei den von den Nutzern abgegebenen Bewertungen um fremde Inhalte handelt und somit die Haftungsprivilegierungen der § 11 Abs. 1 TDG, § 9 Abs. 1 MDStV eingreifen, wonach die Forenbetreiber für die rechtswidrigen Bewertungen jedenfalls so lange nicht verantwortlich sind, solange sie hiervon keine Kenntnis haben. Da von dieser Haftungsprivilegierung nach der Rechtsprechung des Bundesgerichtshofs die Störerhaftung nicht umfasst ist, wird die Reichweite die Forenbetreiber aus der Störerhaftung treffenden Überwachungspflichten diskutiert. Die Arbeit kommt hier zu dem Ergebnis, dass in den Fällen, in denen dem Adressaten der Bewertung die Identität des Verfassers bekannt ist, sich die Verpflichtungen der Forenbetrei-ber auf die Beseitigung bzw. Sperrung der rechtswidrigen Bewertung beschränken. Sofern die Identität des Bewertenden unbekannt ist, haften die Forenbetreiber als Mitstörer und dem Be-troffenen stehen Unterlassungsansprüche auch gegen die Forenbetreiber zu.