Gaye Lansdell

Infringement systems in Australia: A precarious blurring of civil and criminal sanctions?

The infringement notice system is used extensively in Australia to address the effect of minor law breaking with minimum recourse to the machinery of the formal criminal justice system. However, while many people view this system as an expedient approach to this issue, it also has the potential to perpetuate and entrench disadvantage for marginalised members of the community, often disproportionately caught up in the system. Many of these people are living in relative poverty; their living conditions falling below general community standards, affecting ‘adequate health and dental care, housing, education, employment opportunities, food and recreation.’1

''Terror among the Gum Trees'' - Is Our Criminal Legal Framework Adequate to Curb the Peril of Bushfire Arson in Australia?

Many Australians choose to live in a natural environment which places them at risk of the devastating impact of bushfires. The threat of loss from bushfires appears to be on the increase assisted by the climatic conditions in Australia that are set to continue in the foreseeable future. Human activity is stated to be the single greatest cause of bushfire ignitions whether it is due to arson or from an accidental source. Against the backdrop of the catastrophic Victorian bushfires of February 2009 the authors examine the legal and regulatory frameworks relating to bushfire arson in Australia and also consider international perspectives as to both legislation and sentencing ideologies. Although a nationally co-ordinated approach is required in the formulation of substantive legislative provisions aimed at the crime of arson, the authors also advocate that the future way forward in the management of bushfire arson is to adopt a preventative rather than reactive approach. The creative role that courts can play with respect to sentencing options to address the needs of those involved in bushfire arson is also considered. Analysis of regulatory efforts both within and outside Australia reveal that the ‘terror’ in the bush is unlikely to be controlled by legal proscriptions alone but by an integrated approach involving police, the fire services and other correctional service agencies within the criminal justice system.

Friend or foe: the media’s power to inform and shape societal attitudes towards people with acquired brain injury

Abstract Media representations play an integral role in modern society, informing the public about a range of issues affecting their communities. Using qualitative content analysis, this article reports on the study of a sample of Australian media coverage, spanning 30 years, covering issues associated with acquired brain injury (ABI) and related cognitive disabilities. The analysis explores how the media both portray and actively shape public perceptions about people living with ABI, the lived experience of the condition, and its broader social implications. The authors identify a range of themes arising in the sample that communicate specific ideas about ABI, disability, and deviance. Importantly, they identify how these themes are able to either construct or reinforce dominant understandings of disability and deviance through both their content and structure.

‘I am not drunk, I have an ABI’: findings from a qualitative study into systematic challenges in responding to people with acquired brain injuries in the justice system

The over-representation of acquired brain injury (ABI) amongst prisoner and juvenile justice populations is a significant issue across jurisdictions. This article reports on the findings of over 100 interviews conducted in Victoria, Australia with people who have an ABI, as well as key stakeholder groups who work in, or with, the justice system. The study identified systemic problems faced by people with ABI along multiple points of the justice system continuum. Improved identification and diagnosis of ABI, well-resourced support for those with the condition, comprehensive training to improve ABI literacy among all stakeholder groups, and a more appropriate and therapeutic approach to people with ABI in the justice system are all recommended.

Reflections on ‘professionalism’ and legal practice – an outmoded ideology or an analytically useful category?

ABSTRACT This article examines whether the concept of ‘professionalism’ as applied to the legal profession serves any useful guide as to how lawyers should act. Professionalism is defined in terms of civility for the purposes of this article and considered against the backdrop of a perceived ‘decline’ in professionalism in the legal profession. Arguably, professionalism is all too often subsumed under the heading of ethics in both common parlance and in course content in law schools where Ethics, Professional Responsibility are part of the curriculum with little weight given to professionalism per se. This article reflects, in part, on the student perception as to the state of the profession garnered from their responses to an assessment task at an Australian university. The issue is ripe for further discussion given that in Australia, the Law Admissions Consultative Committee has queried whether the teaching of Ethics (and therefore Professionalism) should be withdrawn from the core curriculum. The article queries if there is in fact a ‘decline’ in standards and civility and, if so, considers the potential to arrest this ‘decline’ by the profession, universities and students working together to revive ‘professionalism’.