Law Report

ABC Australia

From courtroom dramas to miscarriages of justice, to how the law affects you — and so much more. The Law Report is your accessible guide to the big legal stories unfolding in Australia and across the world.

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249 episodes
Updated Tuesday

Episodes249

Newest first

Aug 16, 2022 · 30 min
High Court rejects activists' challenge to NSW surveillance laws, and women bring prison stories to the stage
Should activist groups be allowed to use secretly filmed footage to expose the treatment of animals at farms and abattoirs? And Somebody's Daughter theatre company returns to the stage with stories of women's lives in prison, co-written and performed by former inmates.
Aug 9, 2022 · 30 min
Life, death and the law
When parents and doctors disagree, how do courts decide whether to withdraw life support from a hospitalised child? The creation of a federal judicial commission is among the recommendations of the Australian Law Reform Commission's report on judicial impartiality. The high-profile defamation litigation between billionaire politician Clive Palmer and WA premier Mark McGowan has ended in a draw.
Aug 2, 2022 · 28 min
Legal decisions and analytics
Should researchers collect and publish statistics which reveal how judges and tribunal members decide refugee cases? Is this a way of understanding legal decision making or does it risk undermining confidence in the justice system?
Jul 26, 2022 · 28 min
Who should be held legally liable for accidents involving e-scooters?
Electric scooters are becoming an increasingly popular form of transport, but there is a confusing mosaic of laws that regulate their use across Australia. So, when accidents happen – who should be held legally liable?
Jul 19, 2022 · 28 min
Queensland bans 'claim farming'; should media coverage affect sentencing decisions?
Queensland has introduced laws to crack down on 'claim farming', a practice where members of the public are contacted and encouraged to make compensation claims. And a new study has found 'inconsistencies' in the way courts consider the possible impact of media coverage on sentencing decisions.
Jul 12, 2022 · 28 min
Vanuatu's push for international court action on climate change
The small Pacific island nation of Vanuatu is behind a campaign to raise the issue of climate change before the International Court of Justice. And how should culturally sensitive historical photographs be handled? A leading US university is sued for allegedly causing emotional distress.
Jul 5, 2022 · 28 min
Victoria's Nazi swastika law prompts call for national ban
An in-depth look at Victoria's law to ban the public display of the Nazi swastika amid calls for the Federal Government to legislate a national ban on the symbol. And the case of a West Australian man who spent more than a decade in prison for a crime he didn't commit has led to new legal avenues for appeal for others who may have been wrongfully convicted.
Jun 28, 2022 · 28 min
Attorney General Mark Dreyfus speaks to the Law Report
Reforming the Public Interest Disclosure Act "is a significant matter because it is linked to the national anti-corruption commission that we hope to legislate this year," the federal Attorney General Mark Dreyfus has told the Law Report. In a wide-ranging interview, Mr Dreyfus outlines his legislative priorities, including reforming the Privacy Act, media freedoms, and a review of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Jun 21, 2022 · 28 min
Can machines invent, and animals create?
Should we grant patents to Artificial Intelligence algorithms? Should machines have copyright over the art works they generate? What about animals?
Jun 14, 2022 · 28 min
High Court curbs minister's citizenship powers, and landmark ruling on unpaid wages
The High Court has ruled that a decision by the former Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews to rescind the citizenship of an Australian man suspected of joining the Islamic State group was unconstitutional. And, for the first time, unpaid workers can pursue the director of a collapsed company in the small claims tribunal of the Federal Circuit and Family Court.
Jun 7, 2022 · 28 min
Judge v jury trials
Why did actor Johnny Depp's defamation case against his former wife Amber Heard succeed in the US after failing at a similar trial in the UK? And a man ordered to face trial before a judge alone under the ACT’s pandemic emergency law says he was denied the right for his case to be heard by a jury. But does such a legal right exist in Australia?
May 31, 2022 · 28 min
Fiji environmental crime verdict 'sets precedent'
Freesoul Real Estate has days to appeal a ground-breaking fine imposed by Fiji's High Court after the Chinese resort developer carried out unauthorised works on a remote island. And environmental law in the Pacific.
May 24, 2022 · 28 min
Radio on the inside
The world's only nationwide in-house prison network broadcasts 24 hours a day and is produced by and for inmates.
May 17, 2022 · 28 min
When is a de facto relationship over?
A High Court decision raises questions about how a de facto relationship is defined, and what happens when a person’s mental capacities decline with old age. And, if a person granted humanitarian protection by Australia commits a serious crime, can they be deported to a conflict zone?
May 10, 2022 · 28 min
Fears US Supreme Court will overturn Roe v Wade after draft opinion leaked
The publication of a leaked draft opinion by conservative judge Samuel Alito has sparked fears the United States Supreme Court could overturn a landmark decision that enshrines abortion rights for women.
May 3, 2022 · 28 min
Russia accuses NATO of 'proxy war' in Ukraine, and juror misconduct
Does NATO’s increasing military support for Ukraine amount to waging “a proxy war against Russia”? And the High Court has overturned a number of sex offence convictions of a tutor due to juror misconduct.
Apr 26, 2022 · 28 min
Employer liability for psychiatric injury
When is an employer liable for psychiatric injury sustained in the workplace?
Apr 19, 2022 · 28 min
Why gender diversity on the bench is important
In the second of a two-part series, the Law Report speaks with members of the International Association of Women Judges in several countries. They explain the obstacles women judges face and what gender diversity brings to legal decision making.
Apr 12, 2022 · 28 min
How Afghan women judges found safety in Australia
In the first of a two-part series on women judges, the Law Report introduces judge Shakila Abawi Shigarf, who was forced to flee Afghanistan when the Taliban retook power in August 2021.
Apr 5, 2022 · 28 min
Cheng Lei awaits China trial verdict, and Vic court rules on wind farm noise
The national security trial of Australian journalist Cheng Lei in China. And two Victorian farmers have won a legal battle over noise pollution against a neighbouring wind farm.