semester one exam revision Flashcards
what is the principle of justice of equality?
no discrimination, attention to vulnerabilities and equal protection doesn’t mean same protection
what is the principle of justice of access?
access to court processes, info, documents and legal personnel
what is the principle of justice of fairness?
independence and impartiality, no delays, full disclosure, opportunity to present, time to prepare and right to a lawyer.
what is social cohesion?
the willingness of members of society to cooperate with each other in order to survive and prosper
what is the rule of law?
the principle that everyone in society, including lawmakers and leaders, are bound by the law and must obey the law. the law must be certain, clear and stable.
what is the role of law?
law provides guidelines on what is acceptable behaviour and sets expectations. laws protect the right of individuals and is fundamental to achieving social cohesion
what is the role of individuals?
individuals must be aware of the law and abide by it. before taking an important action an individual must find out what the law is and their responsibilities
the role of the legal system
the law is only effective when it is applied evenly and enforced regularly
what are the characteristics of an effective law?
known to the public, acceptable to the community, able to be enforced, clear to understand, must be stable and applied consistently
what is statute law?
law made by parliament via the legislative process. it is supreme to all other laws
what are the stages of a bill through parliament?
1 2 C 3 SH RA P
first reading, second reading, committee stage, third reading, second house, royal assent, proclaimation
what is delegated legislation?
parliament passes an act to allow other government body to create and enforce laws in their area of expertise
jurisdiction
authority of a government to govern or legislate
what is common law?
judge made law through court decisions. can be overridden by legislation
statutory interpretation
judges interpret the words/phrases of legislation when where is a dispute as to what the words of statute mean in regard to a particular case
precedent
judges develop new law on an issue that arises in a case before them, for which there is no existing relevant statute or common law
what is the victorian court hierarchy
- High court of Australia (federal)
- supreme court (Vic) – court of appeal and trial division
- county court (vic)
- magistrates court (vic)
what are the terms that ensure consistency and ratio?
- ratio decidendi - the reason for the decision
- stare decisis - stand by what has been decided
- obiter dictum - other things said
what are the two types of precendent?
binding precedent (must be followed by lower courts in the same hierarchy) and persuasive precedent (established in another state/country, set by lower/same court or was made in obiter dictum)
how does parliament influence the courts?
parliament establishes the courts, codifies common law and abrogates common law
how does criminal law protect individuals?
by establishing crimes and punishments for people who injure or harm others
what are the purposes of criminal law?
to protect individuals, protect property, protect society and promote justice
how does criminal law protect society?
by setting standards of what behaviour isn’t tolerated by the community and legal system
how does criminal law promote justice?
by providing processes to deal with offenders and helping people feel that justice has been served
what is the presumption of innocence?
accused person does not have to prove their own innocence and they are entitled to be treated as and considered to be innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt
what protects the presumption of innocence?
- burden of proof on prosecution
- right to silence
- right to legal rep
- standard of proof is beyond reasonable doubt
- right to appeal and apply for bail
- previous convictions are withheld until end of case
what are the two elements of a crime?
actus reus (a guilty act) and mens rea (a guilty mind)