Professional Documents
Culture Documents
What is law?
Law is a set of rules that are seen as binding on the whole community. It is a set of rules
that can be enforced and is officially recognised.
Characteristics:
Laws are binding on the whole community.
Laws can be enforced eg. it is backed by punishments
Laws are officially recognised.
Law is discoverable.
Laws relate to the public interest.
Laws reflect rights and duties,
Every society makes certain rules or laws that must be followed by people if they
are to live together.
If there are no laws, there is a condition of anarchy, (a state of lawlessness)
Social Society has developed certain attitudes to antisocial behaviour, recent changes
have been made to the law in the areas of drink-driving, terrorism, gang rape, asylum
Cultural Within a society there may be many cultures, the dominant culture usually
has a strong bearing on the types of laws that are enacted by its law-makers.
Moral Morality is right and wrong conduct, every person has a set of beliefs known as
a personal moral code. Individuals may feel that on some issues the law may conflict
with their own moral views.
Political Australia has a democratic system of government, political parties have their
own beliefs and philosophies about how society should run. This can cause political
parties to change or introduce laws to further their causes.
Economic Groups or individuals that posses economic power seek to use their power
to influence the legal system for their own benefit by donations to political parties,
lobby politicians etc.
Types of law
Public law is law that a affects everyone. It deals with disputes between the state and
the individual and with the law-making powers of government.
Administrative law, how government departments work and their rights and
duties towards private citizens.
Constitutional law, the powers that different levels of government have to make
laws eg. taxes.
Criminal law, behaviour that is seen as damaging to the community.
Industrial law, the relationship between employers and employees eg. wages.
Private law or civil law is law that deals with disputes between private citizens.
Contract law.
Torts, the behaviour of people that injures other people or their property.
Family law, divorce and parents and children.
Ethics are a set of moral beliefs governing behaviour, are concerned with choosing
between values, (what we ought to do, what is right, in a particular situation).
Some areas where the law reflects the values and ethics of society are:
Politics: eg. all people over the age of 18 must vote, this reflects the value of
democracy (right and obligation).
Sexuality: it is illegal to force another person to engage in sexual intercourse.
Economics: people who earn over a income must pay taxes, everyone should
contribute to the society as a whole.
Medicine: society has developed the technology to prolong and end life,
including birth technology.
In some areas the law does not intervene eg. adultery, abortion etc.
The idea of justice relates to the idea of equality and fairness, it is closely related
to values and ethics that people hold. The legal system can only be as just as the
society, it is difficult for law to be just as different people have different values
and different ethical beliefs.
A custom is a type of behaviour that has emerged over time and is followed by a group
by mutual consent.
Culture means the shared knowledge and way of thinking that give a group its distinctive
way of life, it is shown by the beliefs, customs, values, arts, technology and history of a
particular group.
Law grew out of customary behaviour and today law often embodies the custom of a
society.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander customary law was based on tradition, ritual
and acceptable modes of conduct.
Features:
Law was part of life, most laws related to marriage, child rearing, religion
and kinship.
Laws were tribal.
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Ownership of land was by the tribal group.
Oral tradition, laws were passed down by word of mouth.
Secrecy, some laws were secret and only known by a few.
The Dreaming was the bases of laws about spirits of the land, animals,
plants and sky.
Kinship is a complex system of blood ties, which extends beyond one tribe.
Maintenance of order, if disputes occurred they were solved by all tribal
members or by relatives of the parties involved, through mediation and
conciliation.
Mediation and conciliation, Elders and influential members of the tribe
were involved in settling disputes.
Mediation usually involved the Elders who would meet and make decisions
on how to resolve a dispute.
Punishment could take the form of ridicule, to ostracism, to spearing and death by
sorcery.
Some of the areas of law that have been recognised in part in NSW are:
(a) Land rights The Native Title (NSW) Act 1994 recognised in a limited way the
peoples rights to land and water.
(b) Child custody: laws recognise the importance of Aboriginal culture and tradition in
nurturing of children.
Under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) act 1998 (NSW) it
is compulsory to place Aboriginal children who are in need of care with
Aboriginal people.
The Family Court will take Aboriginality into account when deciding on the care
of children after a relationship breakdown.
(c) Aboriginal marriages are treated by law in NSW largely as de facto relationships.
Some Aboriginals have been punished under tribal law if their crime relates to
tribal custom.
Killing for tribal reasons may be allowed as a partial defence to murder, reducing
it to manslaughter.