Federal Court hearings in Sydney have delivered surprising news for the relatives of victims of the MH 370 airplane disappearance. After refusing for more than 12 months to provide corporate records to assist the families of victims seeking compensation over the disappearance of flight MH 370, Malaysia Airlines has suddenly decided to cooperate. This is… Read more »
write By Blake O’Connor and Ugur Nedim An Illawarra man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is currently on trial in Wollongong District Court for sexual acts performed on a dog and for molesting his granddaughter. The child sexual abuse is alleged to have occurred on multiple occasions in the mid-2000s when the girl… Read more »
Law firm Slater & Gordon (S&G) is well known for taking class action lawsuits against other companies. But in just five months after becoming a public company, the firm is reported to have lost 90% of its share value. Now, the firm is on the other end of two separate class action lawsuits, one of… Read more »
By Blake O’Connor and Ugur Nedim A recent case with a very long history serves as yet another example of DNA profiling being used to solve crime. DNA profiling refers to the examination of biological material obtained from two or more separate sources to determine whether they are likely to have the same origin. DNA evidence… Read more »
By Sonia Hickey and Ugur Nedim Technology is infiltrating every aspect of our lives. Its ever-changing presence is affecting our work, our home life and even the way we keep in touch with friends and family. So it’s no surprise that one of our oldest institutions, our courts, are gradually embracing technology too. Audio visual… Read more »
By Blake O’Connor and Ugur Nedim Radio shock jocks and tabloid newspapers often publish sensationalised reports accusing magistrates and judges of being ‘soft on crime’ by imposing lenient sentences on those who commit serious offences. Those reports are often presented in a misleading fashion, ignoring many of the facts to invoke the emotions of the… Read more »
Smokers will soon be hit in the pocket again, after new legislation has cleared the way for further price hikes on tobacco. The Federal Government has voted to raise the levy on cigarettes by 12.5% over four years, which will fill government coffers with an extra $4.7 billion. Aussies who smoke will pay $40 a… Read more »
As countries around the world grapple with prison overcrowding, the United States has announced it will end privatisation of prisons at a federal level within the next five years. The US was the first country to privatise prisons in the early 1980s, when privatisation seen as a way to reduce government spending. Private companies also… Read more »
Last year, NSW Attorney-General Gabrielle Upton foreshadowed new laws to make it a criminal offence to engage in ‘disrespectful behaviour’ inside the courtroom. The proposal was in response to a number of high-profile cases where defendants refused to stand for judges in court. During his trial, Milad bin Ahmad-Shah al-Ahmadza, accused of shooting a man outside… Read more »
Hamdi Alqudsi, the central figure in Australia’s most successful jihadi recruitment network, has been sentenced to a minimum of six years in prison. In July this year, the 42-year-old western Sydney resident was found guilty in the NSW Supreme Court of seven counts of supporting engagement in armed hostilities in Syria. Alqudsi was found to… Read more »
