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Tag Archives: Law

Celebrity politicians – are they worth it?

February 12, 2010 – 1:10 pm

I confess that I’ve never really held much brief for celebrity politicians.  Of course, I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, so I try to cast my prejudice aside. But I can’t help thinking that if you’re a performer or an actor or a musician, you might not have had much experience [...]

By Legal Eagle | Posted in Politics, Public Policy, Society | Also tagged , , , , , , | Comments (31)

The limits of law

January 19, 2010 – 9:07 pm

[Update: now cross posted at Online Opinion - 22/1/10]
One of the things that I’m thinking about in my PhD is the limits of law. What can law change? And more importantly, what can’t it change? Who enforces the law? Can we change the way in which people behave by regulating them more?
Via CoreEconomics, I came [...]

By Legal Eagle | Posted in Economics, Human/Civil rights, Law, Personal liberty, Society | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (48)

What law may do

December 2, 2009 – 9:02 pm

There is a lively debate going on among members of the skeptical listserv I frequent about Senator Fielding’s call for a Royal Commission, with one poster commenting:
I always thought that Senator Fielding was a dill, but his latest call for a
Royal Commission into climate science really takes the cake. The notion that
lawyers (who do most [...]

By skepticlawyer | Posted in Law, Science, Skeptics | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (51)

When is a trust not a trust?

October 19, 2009 – 5:45 pm

Via the Restitution Discussion Group (yes, there really is such a thing), I hear that the Australian High Court has indulged in yet another snark at unjust enrichment. Is it just me, or are these self-righteous little rants getting boring?
The case is Bofinger v Kingsway Group Limited [2009] HCA 44. The issue raised is an [...]

By Legal Eagle | Posted in Equity, Insolvency law, Law, Northern Ireland, Restitution, Wales, scotland | Also tagged , , | Comments (15)

The more the merrier?

October 5, 2009 – 9:41 pm

Keysar Trad has written an article in The Age today calling for Australians to reconsider their attitudes to polygyny (where a man has multiple wives). He says:
Who someone marries first is an accident of history. If a man who has an affair had met his mistress before his wife, he may have married her. Why [...]

By Legal Eagle | Posted in Feminism, Marriage | Also tagged , , , , | Comments (58)

Defamation for dummies

April 1, 2009 – 6:43 pm

In light of the recent publication of photos purportedly showing a semi-naked Pauline Hanson, we thought it was time to learn a thing or two about the law of defamation. The law of defamation not only has ramifications for newspapers, but also for blogs.
Main Entry: de·fa·ma·tion
Pronunciation: “de-f&-’mA-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : communication to third parties of false [...]

By Legal Eagle | Posted in Blogging, Law, Media | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (37)

Stereotypes and victims of crime

March 9, 2009 – 10:40 am

There’s a lengthy and surprisingly bitter thread over at Larvatus Prodeo on two related but conceptually distinct phenomena. The first concerns cultural and racial stereotyping. The second concerns the safety advice police widely give to those who have a greater risk of being victims of crime. The post is a thoughtful one (written by regular [...]

By skepticlawyer | Posted in Australian internet filter, Cricket, Law, Media | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (122)