On Friday, 5 June 2020, the High Court granted special leave to appeal to a landholder group, Oakey Coal Action Alliance Inc (OCCA), against a decision of the Queensland Court of Appeal. The grant of special leave is the latest step in long running litigation concerning applications by New Acland Coal Pty Ltd for an...Read More

Last week saw the launch of an important research report throwing light on the circumstances in which the death penalty is imposed in Malaysia. The report comes at an important time with Malaysia’s first non Barisan Nasional government since independence in 1957 collapsing after less than two years in government. Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had...Read More

Justice Mortimer of the Federal Court of Australia today handed down a 359 page judgment concluding that Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum Inc (“Friends”) had proved its pleaded case in litigation under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (“the EPBC Act”) against VicForests, the Victorian government agency entrusted with the management of Victoria’s...Read More

A 92 page report on Legal Perspectives on solitary confinement in Queensland has been launched by Prisoners Legal Service and the University of Queensland Law School. The report’s lead writers are Professor Tamara Walsh of the Law School and Helen Blaber of Prisoners Legal service. They were assisted in the writing by Claudia Smith, Lucy...Read More

This is the second of two posts aiming to help Australian lawyers seeking admission to practice as foreign lawyers in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The first post provided an overview of the PNG legal system and its links to Australia. This (second) post provides resources for Australian lawyers sitting the PNG foreign lawyer exams. As...Read More

This is the first of two posts aiming to help Australian lawyers seeking admission to practice as foreign lawyers in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The first post provides an overview of the PNG legal system and its links to Australia. The second post provides resources for Australian lawyers sitting the PNG foreign lawyer exams. This...Read More

Higgins Chambers expresses its congratulations to Greg Barns for being announced, this week, as one the four new senior counsel for the State of Tasmania. As well as being a highly respected barrister who has appeared in some of the longest and most difficult criminal cases in recent history, Greg is a frequent contributor to...Read More

Simon Cleary conducts a busy practice at the Queensland Bar. He is also a busy family man doing his fair share, with his wife, Alisa, of raising his two active and enthusiastic sons, Dominic and Liam to all three of whom The War Artist is dedicated. Rather, incredibly, Simon has just published The War Artist,...Read More

When you’re doing a contract law update one of the most difficult things is to decide which cases to review. Sometimes cases select themselves. The High Court case of Mann v Paterson Constructions Pty Ltd [2019] HCA 32 was one such case. The Victorian Court of Appeal had upheld a claim for restitution far in...Read More

You’ll Never Walk Alone: Thoughts on the Ups and Downs of engaging in Socially Constructive Legal Work: notes for a talk at the launch of the University of Queensland Law School Pro Bono Centre’s Indigenous Deaths in Custody Database at the TC Beirne School of Law on 1 August 2018. Introduction I have decided to...Read More