You are on page 1of 4

THE$ROLE$OF$THE$CROWN$

The!Crown!is!represented!in!Aus!by!the!GovernorDGeneral!at!Federal!level,!and! respective!Governors!at!State!level.! The!Queen!and!Commonwealth!grant!certain!powers!to!the!Crown,!as!exercised! by!the!GovernorD!General!in!Australia! Roles!of!the!Crown:! o o o Act!as!the!head$of$state! Give!or!withhold!royal$assent! Reserve$powers!to!appoint!a!Prime!Minister!/!Premier!if!there!is!a! hung!Parliament! Officially!opens!and!closes!Parliamentary$sessions$ Can!dissolve$the$lower$house!to!bring!about!an!election! Commission$judges$ The!Crown!is!a!member!of!the!executive$council!and!is!responsible!for! making!delegated$legislation!

o o o o !

Exam$tip:$Often,$exam$questions$relating$to$the$Crown$are$structured$in$the$ following$way:! Except%for%granting%royal%assent,%explain%one%role%of%the%crown.%(2%marks)% It$is$therefore$essential$that$you$are$aware$of$at$least$2$roles$of$the$Crown.$

Copyright!!2012!Connect!Education! !!

11!

CONSTITUTIONAL$PROTECTION$OF$RIGHTS$IN$AUSTRALIA$
! What!is!a!right?!A!right!can!be!defined!as!an!interest!recognised!by!the!law,! respect!for!which!is!a!duty,!and!disregard!for!which!is!wrong! In!Australia,!rights!are!protected,!mainly,!through!legislation!and!common$law.! Examples!of!rights!protected!under!Australian!laws!include:!privacy!laws,!health! laws!and!education!laws! Some!rights,!however,!are!protected!under!the!Constitution:! o o o ! STRUCTURAL%PROTECTION%OF%RIGHTS% The!structural!protection!of!rights!refers!to!the!protection!of!rights!contained!in! the!structure!and!text!of!the!Constitution! Three!structural!protections!the!Constitution!provides!for!include:! o o o ! EXPRESS%RIGHTS% There!are!5!express!rights!in!the!Commonwealth!Constitution! ! RIGHT$GIVEN$BY$ SECTION$ The'acquisition'of' property'by'the' Commonwealth'must' be'on'just'terms! EXPLANATION$OF$RIGHT$ The!separation!of!powers! Responsible!government! Representative!government! Rights!covered!by!structural$protection$ Express$rights!in!the!Constitution! Implied$rights!in!the!Constitution!

These!principles!were!explained!in!Unit!3,!Area!of!Study!1!!

SECTION$OF$ CONSTITUTION$ s.51!

The!Commonwealth!is!only!able!to! acquire!property!for!an!area!on!which! it!can!make!laws! Commonwealth!is!required!to!give! reasonable!and!fair!compensation!

Copyright!!2012!Connect!Education! !!

40!

EVALUATION$OF$DISPUTE$RESOLUTION$METHODS$
% ALTERNATIVE%DISPUTE%RESOLUTION%METHODS% ! STRENGTHS$ ADR!methods!are!much!less$formal! because!they!do!not!follow!the!strict!rules! of!evidence!and!procedure!used!in!courts.! WEAKNESSES$ The!strict!rules!of!evidence!and!procedure! are!vital!in!criminal!cases!and!larger,!civil! disputes.!Therefore,!ADR!methods!are!only! appropriate!for!minor!civil!claims.! The!decision!made!is!not$legally$binding! (except!for!arbitration),!which!means! parties!may!have!to!go!to!court!in!the!end.! This!adds!to!the!costs!faced!by!parties!as! they!now!need!to!cover!more!expenses.! Alternative!dispute!resolution!methods!(ADRs)!include!mediation,!conciliation! and!arbitration!

ADR!methods!are!much!cheaper!than! litigation.!The!absence!of!the!strict!rules!of! evidence!and!procedure!mean!parties!are! able!to!present!a!case!for!themselves! without!the!need!for!legal!representation.! This!makes!ADR!methods!cheaper.! ADR!methods!are!confidential.!Therefore,! parties!are!likely!to!feel!more!comfortable! in!presenting!their!arguments.!! ADR!increases!party$satisfaction!because! parties,!themselves,!have!reached!a! decision!(with!the!exception!of! arbitration).!! ! ! JUDICIAL%DETERMINATION% STRENGTHS$ The!decision!made!is!legally$binding.! Therefore,!a!resolution!is!reached!at!the! end!of!the!process,!which!is!not!always!the! case!with!ADR!methods.! Judicial!officers!are!experienced$legal$ professionals.!They!can!be!regarded!as! experts!in!the!law.!Their!decision!is,!

ADR!methods!are!voluntary!which!means! that!parties!are!not!obliged!to!attend.!!

Where!parties!are!not!of!equal$ bargaining$power,!one!party!may! manipulate!the!other!into!reaching!a! solution!they!prefer.!

WEAKNESSES$ Parties!can!appeal!the!decision!made,! provided!they!have!valid!grounds!on! which!to!do!so.!Therefore,!the!decision! may!not!always!be!final.! The!judicial!officer!makes!the!final! decision.!This!can!leave!parties!feeling!

Copyright!!2012!Connect!Education! !!

65!

SAMPLE$ANSWERS$
! Below!are!sample!answers!to!questions!extracted!from!past!examinations.!They!are! relevant!to!Unit!3,!Area!of!Study!1.!During!the!revision!lecture,!which!will!be!held!in! early!October,!sample!answers!to!questions!from!other!areas!of!study!will!be!provided.!! ! 1. Explain$two$reasons$why$an$individual$may$seek$to$amend$the$law.$(4$ marks)$ The!first!reason!an!individual!may!seek!to!amend!the!law!is!to!generate!a!change!in! societys!views!and!values.!An!individual!may!deem!societys!perception!of!an!idea!or!a! group!of!people!as!unsatisfactory.!They,!thus,!attempt!to!amend!existing!legislation!to! generate!a!change!in!societys!values.!For!example,!following!the!amendment!of!the! Equal!Opportunity!Act!1995!(Vic),!society!became!more!accepting!of!AIDS!victims,!who! had,!previously,!been!ostracised.!! The!second!reason!an!individual!may!seek!to!amend!the!law!is!to!accommodate!for! changes!in!technology.!As!technology!advances,!the!methods!by!which!rights!can!be! exploited!increase.!This!requires!the!law!be!updated!to!prevent!exploitation.!For! example,!the!Crimes!Stalking!Act!2003!(Vic)!was!updated!to!ensure!that!individuals! rights!could!not!be!exploited!by!the!advancements!in!computers.!This!amendment! ensured!rights!were!upheld!in!spite!improvements!in!technology.!! ! 2. Other$than$the$granting$of$royal$assent,$outline$one$role$of$the$Crown.$(1$ mark)$ The!Crown!is!responsible!for!making!delegated!legislation!while!acting!in!council!with! relevant!ministers.!! ! 3. Explain$the$role$of$the$VLRC.$(2$marks)$ The!primary!role!of!the!Victorian!Law!Reform!Commission!(VLRC)!is!to!recommend! changes!in!the!law!to!Parliament.!The!VLRC!cannot!implement!any!changes.!Rather,! their!role!is!restricted!solely!to!making!recommendations!for!change.!The!VLRC!aims!to! reflect!the!publics!opinions!of!the!current!legislation!on!a!matter!through!interviewing! members!of!the!public.!Therefore,!the!VLRC!makes!recommendations!reflective!of!the! public.!! ! 4. Explain$the$process$by$which$the$VLRC$recommends$a$change$in$the$law$to$ Parliament.$(4$marks)$ To!begin!investigations!into!a!certain!area!of!law,!the!VLRC!must,!firstly,!receive!a!terms! of!reference!from!the!AttorneyDGeneral.!For!example,!the!VLRCs!investigation!into! defenses!to!homicide!began!after!their!receipt!of!the!terms!of!reference!from!Rob!Hulls,! the!Victorian!AttorneyDGeneral.!

Copyright!!2012!Connect!Education! !!

101!

You might also like