The Court of Appeal’s decision in Bell v Brisbane City Council [2018] QCA 084 (Sofronoff P and Philippides and McMurdo JJA), delivered 4 May 2018, is a very significant appeal for planning law in Queensland which emphasises the importance of development complying with the planning scheme. The appeal concerned a large development at Toowong, an inner-city suburb of Brisbane...Read More

Advocacy is almost a secret art. It is one of those skills about which a teacher can say many things. But none of those things that are said about advocacy tells you how to be an advocate. The paper available at this link tells of the importance of advocacy when initiating and conducting an appeal....Read More

State of Queensland v Noble concerns an application for a forfeiture order against an elderly man guilty of multiple counts of animal cruelty. The parties agreed that the property in question was “tainted” and subject to possible forfeiture but differed on what the court should consider when deciding the application. Noble came after broad community...Read More

The 7th edition of Blackshield and Williams Australian Constitutional Law and Theory Commentary and Materials recently published by Federation Press is a great book that will make a useful addition to any chambers’ library. The previous edition was published in 2014 and the new edition incorporates recent developments such as the evolution of the implied...Read More

The Supreme Court of the United States has been precariously balanced with four progressive justices; four conservative (translatable as “extreme right wing”) and one swing justice, Justice Kennedy. The edge of the precipice concern is what would happen if the present president of the United States got to appoint another justice in place of one...Read More

R v Williams concerns appropriate sentencing for a young offender guilty of multiple counts of child pornography offences, threatening behaviour, and harassment. By use of false identities, threats, and blackmail, Williams had manipulated and coerced the underage complainant into sending him more than 100 explicit photos and videos of herself. Williams had also threatened the...Read More

The now famous refugee journalist, Behrouz Boochani, heads up a claim by 731 asylum seekers on Manus Island for damages for breach of constitutional rights. Procedural matters play a significant role in most litigation. The same is true of Mr. Boochani’s litigation. The State of PNG brought an application for the Court to dismiss Mr....Read More

This paper examines the Queensland Court of Appeal’s decision in Stevenson Group Investments Pty Ltd v Nunn [2012] QCA 351 and whether it remains good law having regard to the Court of Appeal’s decision in BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd v BGC Contracting Pty Ltd [2015] 1 Qd R 228; [2013] QCA 394, and...Read More