Two Hour Law Courses

Every family has its black sheep ... but not every family has limitless wealth!

Prince Jefri Bolkiah v KPMG (Conflict of interest and Information barriers) In this case KPMG found that it had a conflict of interest, and attempted to cure that conflict by using an "information barrier" or "Chinese wall". The cou...

At what point does a person who is becoming bankrupt lose the right to deal with their assets?

Ponsford Baker v London & Smiths Bank (Relation back) This insolvency law case gives the rationale for the doctrine of relation back in insolvency law, whereby a person cannot deal with their assets after an act...

It's not enough to have laws for environmental protection. To actually protect the environment, those laws must be properly implemented.

Common Cause v India (Environmental Approvals) In this Indian Supreme Court case, civil society group Common Cause stepped in to challenge illegal mining activities in India, and the Supreme Court observe...

Some people will do almost anything to get out of a traffic ticket ...

Crossman v TMR (Lawful traffic signs) In this case, a litigant challenged a traffic offence by attacking the lawfulness of the signage which had given rise to the offence.See all the two minute c...

The concept of gross negligence is no longer a concept found in Australian law, but it is still prominent in the USA. The key difference is that you can contract out of liability for negligence, but not usually for gross negligence.

Sommer v Federal Signal Corp (Gross negligence) In this New York Negligence Law case, we learn that parties can contract out of liability for negligence, but they cannot contract out of liability for gross...

Sometimes the law gives choices, instead of prescribing or forbidding. However when this happens, you need to know precisely what choice is on offer!

Blackburn v Flavelle (Conditional choices) In this statutory interpretation case, the court emphasised that where a statute leaves a party with a choice, one must carefully identify the nature and bou...

Turn out, there are risks from doing business with corrupt developing country governments ...

Vivendi v Argentina (National responsibility for provincial governments) In this international law case a French company rather unwisely made investments in repairing the water infrastructure in a corrupt Argentine province. The ...

Apparently, if people are so stupid that they ignore the warning signs, this can sometimes create a duty to take even more care ...

RTA v Dederer (Ignoring warnings) This negligence case stands as authority that if a person knows their warning signs are routinely being ignored, then the warning signs alone may not be suff...

There's a fine line between competition and collusion ...

ACCC v Flight Centre (Competition policy) Is a travel agency like Flight Centre in competition with the airlines whose flight it sells? Are arrangements between the agency and the airline potentiall...

Our criminal laws include higher sentences for people with commercial quantities, rather than personal quantities, of drugs. But just having a commercial quantity might not mean the person is acting commercially ...

R v CWW (Commercial quantity of drugs) Our criminal laws distinguish between personal and commercial quantities of drugs. This case explains that a person might unknowingly have a commercial quan...

In Australia, the law says you must cast a vote in each election, even if you don't support any of the candidates.

Judd v McKeon (Compulsory voting) Are you still required to cast a vote in Australia, even if all of the candidates on offer are fundamentally objectionable to you?In this electoral law case,...

We've all gotten used to the idea that "service animals" can go places where other animals cannot. But what makes an animal into a service animal? (Hint: more than just a little coat saying "service animal")

Ondrich v Kookaburra Park (Service animals) In this animal law case, the court was required to consider what makes an animal into a service animal, as opposed to merely an animal from which the owners ...

Should a single episode of psychosis be enough to deny a pilot their licence, or is this just discrimination?

Neal v Dept Transport (Pilot mental health) In this aviation law casenote, we look at whether a single instance of a medical condition can be enough to deny a pilot their licence. In the case of a psy...

Don't tell Pauline Hanson, but here is an example of the Australian courts giving effect to Sharia law. And the sky didn't fall in!

Mohamed v Mohamed (Mahr in Australia) In this case, a woman who had been married under Sharia law and then divorced, sued for the payment of Mahr under the laws of New South Wales, Australia. Sh...

When a Coroner looks into the causes of a person's death, they are allowed (and even expected) to look beyond the immediate causes of the person's death, and to examine underlying systemic or environmental factors which affected the leadup to that sad outcome - so that the whole community can benefit.

Re Malcolm (Coroners and cause of death) In this case, the court authoritatively determined that coroners should look beyond the immediate and proximate cause of death, and inquire into the more ext...

Did you know that the parliament actually has the power to jail people, for contempt of the parliament?

Sheriff of Middlesex (Contempt of Parliament) In the first of my casenotes on Parliamentary Law, we look at an early case when the court was asked to review a decision by the Parliament to jail two perso...

Isn't it amazing that legal principles established thousands of years ago can still be cited in modern law?

Marriage Act Case (filii familias) This is the first of my casenotes focusing on the impact which Roman Law has had on modern Australian law. This one examines how the High Court used Roman L...

Did you know an adoptive guardian cannot be liable to pay child support?

Tobin & Tobin (child support) Is the guardian of a child, who has not adopted the child, liable to pay child support? In this case, the court determined that under the Family Law Act 197...

A cigarette company being evil? Who'd have thought, right?

Gregory v Philip Morris (unfair dismissal) In this employment law case, the courts began the process (continued in later cases) of working out exactly what is meant by unfair dismissal.Statute has cha...

Oh, the price people are willing to pay for beauty!

Pro Teeth Whitening v Parlsec to Treasurer (Product recall powers) In this Consumer Law case, the court considered the process that the Minister must follow before issuing an emergency product recall notice for dangerous pro...

A person with diabetes in the middle of a hypoglycaemic attack may not be criminally liable for their conduct ... they're simply not in control of what they are doing.

R v Quick (Voluntariness) In this criminal law case, we learn that a person in the throes of a hypoglycaemic attack may be deprive of their capacity for voluntary conduct, so that any...

Ever wondered why it is lawful to punch someone in a boxing ring, but not in daily life?

Pallante v Stadiums No. 1 (Assault and boxing) In this tort law case the court clarified that boxing as a sporting contest does not constitute tortious assault or unlawful prize fighting, particularly if ...

Once upon a time, judges on the US Supreme Court still thought that maintaining the stability of the law was more important than imposing their own political agenda ...

Planned Parenthood v Casey (stare decisis) In this case, the US Supreme Court considered the importance of maintaining stability of law, and being guided by its own prior decisions even though it is n...

Did you know my channel includes a limited number of cases from Indian law? Including this interesting one about the relationship between the Parliament, the Constitution, and Fundamental Rights.

https://youtu.be/YcYL1AN5GAk

Can you own the right to view something, like a horse race or a football match? Sure, you can charge people to enter the venue, or you can charge broadcast rights, but if someone can see the spectacle from outside the venue, are you allowed to stop them?

Victoria Park v Taylor (Property in a Spectacle) In this famous High Court case, the court rejected the idea that a person can own, or have property in, a spectacle, and thereby prevent others from viewing ...

Some driving offences can be committed anywhere, whereas others can only be committed "on a roadway". What, then, counts as a roadway?

Schwinge v Dowell (What is a roadway?) This early transport law case provides one of the foundational legal expressions of what we mean by a roadway, which can be traveled on by any member of the ...

I've never really been able to work out why a company would sell expensive furs, but choose for themselves the name "Gutter Furs". Kind of like naming a restaurant "Trash cuisine".

Gutter Furs v Jewellers Protection (Gross negligence) This negligence case from New York State confirms that Gross Negligence is a different TYPE, not just a different degree of negligence, and that parties cann...

We all know to be wary whenever it's suggested that we trust a politician ... but in this case the High Court said that sometimes (shock and horror) the expression of policy by a Minister can raise legitimate expectations that the policy will be followed!

Haoucher v Minister for Immigration (Legitimate expectations) In this administrative law case, the High Court found that under some circumstances, the expression of a government policy, made in public by a senior minist...

Do you know that if a property has a river for its boundary, and the river slowly changes course over time, the boundary moves with the river?

Gifford v Yarborough (Accretion) My first land law casenote! This old case established the doctrine of accretion, where sediments washed up by the ocean or the river can increase the land o...

Not only is this a great statutory interpretation case: it's also the story of one of the most courageous flight attendants who ever crewed a plane.

Sillery v R (Interpretation of penal clauses) In this case, the High Court confirmed that ambiguity in clauses which will affect the liberty of a person, must be resolved in favour of the person whose li...