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Beyond the Preamble: Legislating the right to self-determination in a NSW Human Rights Act Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-26 Isabel Kallinosis
This article examines the inclusion of the right to self-determination in existing models of state and territory human rights legislation and proposes its inclusion in a future human rights act in New South Wales (NSW), to advance the rights of First Peoples in the criminal justice system. I explore how this would provide a mechanism for state restraint and a legal framework for prioritising self-determined
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Family inclusion in child protection: Law, courts and balancing risks Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-26 Nicola Ross, Wendy Foote, Kate Davies
Australian child protection systems are being challenged to find more effective ways of responding to the needs of children and families. This article describes legal processes that govern children’s removal from their families and queries whether we are doing enough to prioritise children’s relationships with their families. The court’s capacity to review the decisions of state welfare authorities
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Returning to rebellious roots: What rebellious lawyering can offer progressive law in Australia Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-22 Brooke Greenwood, Sarah Schwartz, Susan Wnukowska-Mtonga
Over the last 50 years, the practice of progressive law in Australia has drifted from radical, change-focused origins to a more cautious and limited approach. The theory of rebellious lawyering offers an evolving and principled model that can assist a new generation of Australian lawyers seeking to build the power of grassroots movements for transformative social change. As progressive law in Australia
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Forks in the road to equality: The path for same-sex attracted individuals in Australia and Nigeria Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-14 Chisom Ihekwaba, Anne Hewitt
This article will consider the trajectory towards equality for same-sex attracted people in Australia and compare that to the reduction in legal rights in Nigeria over a comparable period. It will set out some of the critical legislative changes in both jurisdictions and consider why these countries are moving in radically different directions in relation to this issue.
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Legal chatbots: Can they really help, or is it all talk? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-14
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‘Don’t dream it’s over … There’s a battle ahead’: The AltLJ 50 years on Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-12 David Brown
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Bearers of rights, not just babies: Pondering pregnancy as an impairment to explore pathways to equality Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-08 Belinda Smith, Rosemary Kayess, Dominique Allen, Adriana Orifici
This article takes a novel approach of conceptualising pregnancy as an impairment in order to reconsider how the law responds to pregnant workers. We argue that this understanding may lead to developing more appropriate workplace responses to accommodate the changing body during pregnancy, as well as help to challenge the stigma associated with impairments.
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A lounge of one’s own: Art, gender, discrimination and the law Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-08 Robin Banks, Alice Taylor, Beth Goldblatt
In this essay, the authors consider the recent discrimination law decision of the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in relation to the ‘Ladies Lounge’, an artwork by Kirsha Kaechele at the Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart. The article first considers the question of whether there was unlawful direct discrimination before turning to the application of defences (referred to as ‘exceptions’
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Large language models and community legal centres: Could chatbots help reduce Australia’s justice gap? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-08 Will Cesta
This article considers the extent to which chatbots based on large language models could reduce unmet demand for services offered by Australian community legal centres. It argues that while chatbots developed to streamline intake processes and assist lawyers with research and document preparation are unlikely to significantly reduce Australia’s justice gap, client-facing legal information chatbots
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NZYQ and constitutional culture Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-08-03 Samuel Naylor
The political and social reaction to the High Court's decision in NZYQ is evidence of a deficit of constitutional culture in Australia: there has been a race to the bottom in public debate. This is against the background of the failed Voice referendum. Possible ways forward are discussed, and France is mentioned as counterpoint on the issue of constitutional culture.
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Health justice partnership: Access to justice meets health equity Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-07-26 Suzie Forell, Emily McCarron
Access to justice research identifies how unmet legal need arises from and exacerbates disadvantage. In parallel, epidemiological research identifies the inequitable impact of social determinants on health. Health justice partnership (HJP) is an innovative response to this evidence: providing accessible legal help to individuals experiencing complex needs; building the capability of health and legal
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A sovereign citizen by any other name? Risks in the terrorism high-risk offender context Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-07-21 Teresa Singh
While the nuisance that ‘sovereign citizens’ pose to courts and authorities across Australia continues to gain media attention, there is much less known about the controversial New South Wales government scheme which seeks to preventatively supervise and detain these individuals. This article argues that use of this scheme to quell the risk posed by sovereign citizens would be at its most problematic
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Hashtag capitalism: An introduction Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-07-20 Akshaya Kamalnath
This article aims to introduce the phenomenon of ‘hashtag capitalism’ – that is, the ability of shareholders, employees, customers and even members of society to leverage social media in a way that influences corporate behaviour. While it is a positive development that, via social media, members of society are engaging with and influencing corporate decision-making, there are also concerns that some
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Institutionalising women’s experiences in law: Possibilities and pitfalls of parliamentary gender audit committees Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-13 Ramona Vijeyarasa
Feminist legal scholars have long recognised that law is gendered, being a manifestation of power that often works to the detriment of women. This need not be the case. This article tests the capacity of law to make a material difference on women’s lives through parliamentary auditing. The arguments springboard from an innovation emerging in Tasmania in 2022: a Gender and Equality Audit Committee in
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Australian Indigenous people and treatment decision-making at end-of-life Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-11 Penny Neller, Rachel Feeney, Lindy Willmott, Shih-Ning Then, Eliza Munro, Katie Cain, Patsy Yates, Ben P White
This article analyses Australian law and literature to identify the key cultural and legal considerations that can arise in medical treatment decision-making with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples at the end-of-life. The authors explore how First Nation peoples’ cultural values, connection to Country, family, and community, history, and health care experiences, intersect with end-of-life
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Zombie contracts: Can ‘coffin confessions’ be enforced beyond the grave? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-10
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Virus, weapon, litter, industry: Generative metaphors that shape policy around emerging threats Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-09 Samuel White
This article examines the use of generative metaphors in the context of interference operations, particularly focusing on trolling and disinformation. It begins by emphasising the crucial role of metaphors in shaping perceptions of cybersecurity issues and subsequent government policies. To demonstrate this, the study delves into two case studies – the Philippines and Australia – analysing how their
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The future of work in an ageing world: Priorities for advancing age equality at work Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-08 Alysia Blackham
In an ageing world, age equality is critical for securing the future of work. Yet workplaces have not been designed with demographic ageing in mind, and age discrimination remains prevalent. This article offers a provocation to encourage the use of an age lens when considering the future of work and workplace change. It puts forward suggestions for future research and scholarship, to reframe equality
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We still do things differently up here Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-05-06 Russell Goldflam
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Restorative justice in healthcare settings: Better outcomes for patients and medical professionals Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-30 Ray Nickson, Alice Neikirk
Current responses to medical negligence insufficiently consider the broader needs of affected stakeholders. We argue that responses to medical negligence should adopt a restorative justice frame. This article recounts the experience of our daughter’s avoidable suffering and subsequent death in the healthcare system. Our experience as victims of medical negligence, and the broader literature on restorative
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Coffin confessions and contract: Why agreements to divulge secrets post-mortem might be unenforceable Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-24 Mark Giancaspro
Death and taxes are not only life’s two guarantees but also lucrative industries. The former has historically been dominated by morticians and funeral directors but now ‘coffin confessors’ have entered the market. These professionals are engaged to divulge specified information at the client’s funerary service, normally in an abrasive or humorous manner, for a fee. This article queries whether contracts
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Is it time to move on from ‘Mr Big’? Scenario evidence and the risk of unreliable confessions in Australia Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-24 Lisanne Adam, Celine van Golde
The ‘Mr Big’ method is a non-custodial investigative method used by police forces worldwide. A Mr Big operation involves an undercover operation in which a person suspected of involvement in an indictable offence, is unknowingly drawn into a fictitious criminal enterprise, in order to elicit a confession. There are ample concerns around the use of this method. Consequently, courts around the world
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Demonised energy: Could nuclear power help Australia achieve net zero emissions by 2050? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-24 Evgeny Guglyuvatyy
Nuclear energy is probably the most controversial source of energy praised by some and demonised by others. Although several countries acknowledge the benefits of nuclear power and continue to support its use, there are some nations such as Australia that reject nuclear energy. The implementation of the nuclear moratorium by the Australian federal government in 1998, coupled with the shared net zero
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Examining BA v The King: Can a ‘home’ provide security from domestic violence? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-06 Bill Swannie
This article examines the High Court decision in BA v The King, which involved the relationship between tenancy law and the criminal offence of burglary. It argues that the Court should have given greater weight to the safety of victims of domestic violence, rather than privileging the rights of the accused under tenancy law.
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Under my umbrella: LGBTQIA+ rights, LGBTQIA+ researchers and ‘internal allyship’ Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-04-05 Aidan Ricciardo, Liam Elphick
In this article, we consider the ethical obligations that LGBTQIA+ researchers have in researching LGBTQIA+ rights. First, we consider the potential impact of identity and positionality. Although people of all LGBTQIA+ identities share common experiences of marginalisation and persecution, there is much diversity among LGBTQIA+ people and their many intersections. We then propose that LGBTQIA+ researchers
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Person, or property? Brain-Computer Interface technology and the law Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-02-13 Lachlan Robb, Scott Kiel-Chisholm
Discussions of robotics and the law are often limited to ‘what technology harms humans’, rather than considering what it means when ‘humans harm technology’. This article looks to advancements of Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) technology to argue how this can be an extension of individuals and therefore causes complicated legal questions that are yet to be resolved. This article identifies the law
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A decision-making guide for online content regulation Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-02-12 Dan Svantesson
This article examines the seven standard questions that must be confronted in nearly all decisions in the online content regulation field. By mapping out and discussing those standard questions, the article may hopefully aid both legislators and judges engaged in online content regulation. The checklist of questions canvassed here may also be used as a tool to evaluate laws aimed at online content
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LGBT people in prison in Australia and human rights: A critical reflection Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-02-08 Rachel Walters, Dwayne Antojado, Matt Maycock, Lorana Bartels
This article examines the human rights protections relevant to lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender (‘LGBT’) people in Australian prisons. We commence by addressing some of the inequalities experienced by incarcerated LGBT people, before outlining the relevant international human rights frameworks and their implementation in Australia. We focus on Victoria as a case study, demonstrating that there
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The death of Veronica Nelson: Reconsidering the criminalisation of opiate use Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-02-06 Mark Davison, Patrick Keyzer
This article considers the preventable death of Veronica Nelson, an Aboriginal woman who had been denied bail and then suffered a terrible death in custody, which was the subject of recent bail reforms and a Coroner's Report that has recommended sweeping reforms to the management of people in custody. This article considers a reform that the Coroner and the Parliament did not, removing the criminal
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Where is the mutilation? Understanding the High Court’s deliberation on FGM in Vaziri and Magennis Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2024-01-30 Juliet Rogers
In 2015, Vaziri and Magennis – the first case on female genital mutilation (FGM) – was prosecuted in Australia. Three people were convicted. In 2018, the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal ruled that the judgment was a ‘potential miscarriage of justice’. The prosecution pushed for ‘leave to appeal’ to the High Court of Australia and for consideration of the meaning of mutilation. The appeal was held in 2019
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Injustice and indignity in the threshold of materiality Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-05-15 Catherine Zhou
This article considers the role of dignity in the context of procedural fairness and the threshold of materiality. The author argues that dignity and indignation operate as social contingencies wit...
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Ensuring universal access: The case for Medicare in prison Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-05-04 Damien Linnane, Donna McNamara, Lisa Toohey
This article makes the case for the provision of Medicare universally to all Australians, specifically to those who are currently incarcerated. As the article explains through its focus on mental h...
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The Jason Roberts case: A second or subsequent appeal process to correct miscarriages of justice? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-05-04 Pascale Chifflet, Meribah Rose
The first re-trial under the second or subsequent appeal provisions introduced into the Criminal Procedure Act 2009 (Vic) has recently concluded, resulting in the acquittal of Jason Roberts for the...
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations: Time for a rethink? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-04-17 Marina Nehme
The Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (Cth) is not currently equipped to empower Indigenous Australian to set up their for-profit businesses under its regime due to its ...
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The role of a First Nations Voice for delegated legislation Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-04-14 Lorne Neudorf
This article explores the role of a proposed Indigenous Voice in relation to Australia's largest source of new law: delegated legislation. It argues that in order for the Voice to have a meaningful...
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Preventing torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of children in detention in Australia Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-04-11 Anita Mackay
This article considers the multitude of inquiries and investigations into the treatment of children in youth detention in Australia over the past five years (2017–2022) as well as examples of pract...
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Defining wellness in legal education: A reply to Kawamata Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-04-07 Jonathan Crowe
This article responds to Oscar Kawamata’s thought-provoking criticisms of the conception of law student well-being that I previously advocated in this journal. Kawamata argues that my objective mod...
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Rethinking prison visitation for children with incarcerated parents: Lessons from the Australian Capital Territory Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-04-04 Joanna Cui, Caroline Doyle, Lukas Carey
Children of incarcerated parents experience a range of vulnerabilities which have led to them being dubbed the ‘invisible victims’ of the criminal justice system. This article discusses the needs o...
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Stepping out of the ivory tower into fire and flood: Climate activism and the academy Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-03-07 Nicole Rogers
In early 2022, an unprecedented flood event in Lismore, New South Wales plunged an entire community into trauma and chaos. I draw upon this event to highlight the imperative for climate activism in...
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Domestic violence as terrorism: Can control orders succeed where DV orders have failed? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-02-22 Brendan Walker-Munro, Catherine Walker-Munro
Scholars have recently begun to explore the similarities between domestic violence and domestic terrorism. Both forms of offending rely on the use and threat of violence in conjunction with control...
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Respect for juries: A rejoinder to Hemming on Pell Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-02-21 Jeremy Patrick
The High Court decision in Pell v The Queen continues to be the subject of extensive academic controversy. In a pair of important articles, evidence and criminal law scholar Andrew Hemming has defe...
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Legislating for human security: Could South Australia lead the way again? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-01-24 Sarah Moulds, Mark Knight
Conventional approaches to legislating to protect individual rights in Australia have utilised the language and discourse of international human rights law, attracting both support and criticism fr...
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Policing by algorithm: NSW Police’s Suspect Target Management Plan Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-01-23 Elizabeth Englezos
This article considers New South Wales Police's Suspect Target Management Plan (STMP) and its disparate impact on young and Indigenous offenders. The article re-casts analyses provided by the Youth...
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Words that hurt: Why mental health stigma is often vilification, and requires legal protection Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-01-20 Simon Katterl
Despite a series of education programs and initiatives, mental health stigma persists across the community. This is due, in part, to the law’s silence on whether mental health stigma should be cons...
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The Scott Johnson Case: Prosecuting anti-homosexual violence in New South Wales Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2023-01-08 Stephen Tomsen, Tyrone Kirchengast
Much interest about the failure of New South Wales criminal justice in relation to anti-gay/anti-homosexual violence has centred on recent developments regarding the 1988 death of Scott Johnson, in...
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Mint, sell, repeat: Non-fungible tokens and resale royalties for Indigenous artists Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-11-24 Elizabeth Harris
This article examines whether the Resale Royalty Right for Visual Artists Act 2009 (Cth) provides adequate protections for artists working with non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Focussing on Indigenous A...
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Family violence and family law property division: How can the system be improved? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-11-21 Miranda Kaye
This article explores how the economic impacts of violence can continue long after a relationship has ended and how the family law system is a generally unhelpful tool for financial recovery from a...
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Same-sex sexual activity and sex work offences in Papua New Guinea: Implications from the repeal of the death penalty Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-11-12 Bal Kama
This article discusses the recent repeal of the death penalty in Papua New Guinea and examines some potential implications for considerations to decriminalise same-sex sexual activity and sex work ...
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Four thresholds of doli incapax in Australia: Inconsistency or uniformity for children’s criminal responsibility? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-11-11 Dominique Moritz, Mac Tuomi
The presumption of doli incapax is a legal safeguard for children who contravene the criminal law. Four distinct thresholds emerge from the application of doli incapax across the Australian jurisdi...
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Legislating consent in sexual relations: How significant is the move to affirmative consent? Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-11-08 Anthony North
There are significant problems with how the justice system responds to sexual violence. This essay discusses some of the Victorian Law Reform Commission’s recent reform recommendations, focusing on...
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It’s my party: The enforceability of political party rules Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-10-11 Graeme Orr
When may a political party’s rules be enforced in an Australian court? This apparently simple question, of the justiciability of disputes involving members of parties and their executives, has rece...
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Legal education, wellness and Buddhism: A student’s response to Crowe Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-10-10 Oscar H Kawamata
In an article published in this journal in 2020, Professor Jonathan Crowe proposed that ‘well-being’ in legal education should be defined according to one’s participation in objectively good human ...
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The fall of Roe v Wade, the US anti-abortion movement and its influence in Australia Alternative Law Journal (IF 0.7) Pub Date : 2022-10-10 Tania Penovic
This article examines the overturning of the landmark US Supreme Court decision of Roe v Wade, the precedent which conferred federal constitutional protection on the right to abortion. It looks at ...