Law in Context

Send us a text message with feedbackIn this episode we look at the body of judge-made law called Equity, which emerged in England as a separate body of case law from "the common law". Whereas common law focuses on clear rules and rights, equity focuses on conscience and doing what is fair. These two conceptual systems were developed in separate courts but are now applied concurrent

Send us a text message with feedbackWe keep hearing about "the common law", but what exactly is it? In this episode, we look at three separate meanings. First, the common law describes a whole legal system, such as Australia, England, the United States and Canada. This contrasts those jurisdictions with civil law, religious law and customary law systems. In practice, there are many

Send us a text message with feedbackAny competent lawyer should be able to say what is the law on a given topic in their area of expertise. However, most lawyers find it surprisingly difficult to answer persuasively the general question "what is law?".In this episode we grapple with some debates that go back centuries. We look at the positivist approach: that law is simply whatever

Send us a text message with feedbackIn this episode, not daunted by their previous challenge to explain basic legal concepts clearly, the Two Steves take on the big one: What is Justice?Most lawyers instinctively take a procedural approach to justice. If the rules have been followed and the judge is impartial, then the outcome is just. And yet every day we hear people say that a pa

Send us a text message with feedbackMyths abound about crime rates and law-breaking. In fact, some kinds of crime are going down and others are probably going up. A more interesting question is why so many people obey the law most of the time. In this episode we look at the main theories about legal obedience. There is a legitimacy theory, that if people think their society is fair

Send us a text message with feedbackThere is almost nothing we do in our everyday lives that does not involve corporations or companies. From small family companies to global corporations which are larger than the economies of some countries, corporations dominate our lives. In this episode we look at what a corporation is. We focus on a subset of corporations; companies with a sha

Send us a text message with feedbackLawyers have a very particular role in the adversarial system, and a corresponding set of ethical requirements. In the 2000s in Victoria, Nicola Gobbo, a criminal defence barrister became a secret, registered informer with the police. She arranged for some clients to give evidence against other clients, arguably framing them. In one case, Faruk O

Send us a text message with feedbackThe Rule of Law may be a great ideal, but does it mean anything if in practical terms many people do not have access to legal advice and adjudication. In this episode we look at the barriers to access to justice and some of the ways in which these barriers are at least partially overcome, including Alternative Dispute Resolution and the emerging

Send us a text message with feedbackJuries make for great books and movies, but what really is their role in the adversarial system? Do they lead to fair decisions? Are they too expensive, leading to court backlogs? Have they had their day? In this episode we look at the jury, its history, and why it is mainly a feature of common law systems.For the transcript of this episode and f

Send us a text message with feedbackHow can we ensure that those who judge between government, citizens, or businesses are impartial? All Rule of Law systems have protections for judicial independence, to promote impartiality. But there are weak spots, as we explore in this episode.For the transcript of this episode and further reading, visit https://lawincontext.com.au/judges/For