News and resources

It is an offence to carry out “controlled activities” on waterfront land without an approval. This refers to construction work and also to clearing or depositing rocks, sand or plants. What is considered waterfront land? Waterfront land is defined as the bed of a waterway and the land 40 metres from the mean high bank. […]

Illegal building works create obstacles in property transactions Property prices have soared in recent years, making real estate one of the most significant investments that most Australians will ever make. Whether buying or selling a property, the last thing anyone wants is to encounter unexpected legal or financial hurdles due to illegal building works. Unapproved […]

For the first time, 16-year-olds in Europe were allowed to vote in the June 2024 election for the European parliament, and they turned out in droves. Where can 16-year-olds vote? Sixteen-year-olds can vote in a number of countries, including Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Germany, Malta, Nicaragua and Scotland. Now there is a […]

The recent Victorian Supreme Court case of Ned Kelly Centre Ltd v Australian Rail Track Corporation [2023] VSC 421 asks the question of whether a familial connection to land is enough to trigger Victoria’s human rights laws to stop the development of a tourist facility. A second question arises: does Australia’s patchwork human rights legislation […]

Many drivers are being caught by little-known NSW Road Rule 198, which makes it illegal to park in front of your own garage. NSW Road Rule 198 concerns blocking a footpath Under NSW Road Rule 198, motorists have been fined $283 if their car blocks or partially blocks a footpath, even when it is parked […]

The recent discovery of asbestos-contaminated mulch across Sydney has highlighted the fact that NSW’s existing environmental laws do little to protect our surroundings from environmental crime and fail to deter would-be offenders and polluters. New legislation increases penalties for environmental crime Put simply, the existing penalties for committing an environmental crime in NSW were shamefully […]

The Federal Court has ruled a major fund management corporation misled investors about its $1 billion ethical fund, which the company claimed was screened to ensure investments went into environmentally and socially beneficial projects. Fund manager accused of misleading investors over ethical fund It was the first major victory for the Australian Securities & Investments […]

The electric scooter is growing in popularity in Europe as a means of urban transport, and there has been pressure in Australia to allow them to be used on cycleways and selected public roads. In many European cities, a person can rent an e-scooter on the spot, ride it wherever they want to go, and […]

In a significant legal blow to environmentalists, in 2023 the Federal Court ruled that the federal environment minister does not have to consider climate change when approving coal mines. Environmental group claims minister did not consider climate change The Environment Council of Central Queensland (ECoCeQ) mounted a legal challenge to minister Tanya Plibersek’s assessment of […]

A recent Supreme Court judgment may open the way for businesses to claim damages from the government if they lose income due to business disruption as a result of major road works. Construction of light rail causes significant business disruption Two Sydney small business owners took Transport for NSW to court after they lost income […]

Water security challenges loom as groundwater and river systems under threat Australia is a dry continent, and it is only getting drier. The country’s largest river and groundwater systems are under threat. As competing interests assert their right to water access, it is important to understand the laws governing water use. Regional towns and industries […]

Coalition government claimed dump site had support of local community When the previous coalition government announced a national nuclear waste dump would be built on a 211-hectare farm near Kimba in South Australia, it proclaimed it had the support of local people. The dump would take low-level radioactive medical waste and temporarily store intermediate-level nuclear […]

Indigenous people in New South Wales continue to be targeted and prosecuted under the Fisheries Management Act for participating in traditional Aboriginal fishing practices, leading to disconnection from Country, loss of intergenerational knowledge and adverse health outcomes. Indigenous environmental management practices and cultural traditions Indigenous Australians have managed their lands and waters for millennia, ensuring […]

In 2022 the High Court upheld the NSW farm trespass laws, also known as the “ag-gag laws” that make it a criminal offence for animal welfare advocates and others to publish covert video footage taken as a result of trespassing on private agricultural property. Challenge to constitutionality of farm trespass laws Animal protection group Farm […]

Weighing up the pros and cons of a case, discarding irrelevancies, assessing the likelihood of statements being the truth or a lie… it’s all in a day’s work for a judge in a court. But could computers replace judges, if programmed correctly? Could a computer weigh the evidence and decide whether the defendant is guilty […]

The looming climate catastrophe has engendered the “Rights of Nature” movement, which strives to redefine the relationship between humanity and the world we inhabit. The natural world is arguably recognised as a living entity with legal “personhood” and the same rights as humans to be protected, survive and thrive. Climate change and ecological deterioration Chances […]

Smoking on balconies is the cause of many apartment block disputes. Recently a non-smoking couple took their downstairs neighbours to court to prevent them from smoking on the balcony below. After a protracted dispute, the non-smokers won. Complaint that smoking on balconies affects health and wellbeing A Kingscliff couple took their smoking neighbours who lived […]

Police and security services are making ever more use of facial recognition technology, which can identify individuals via CCTV by scanning an individual’s face and matching it to images held in a database. No dedicated laws in Australia for facial recognition technology Facial recognition technology (FRT) can be useful, but Australia does not have clear […]