

Law Report
ABC Australia
From courtroom dramas to miscarriages of justice, to how the law affects you — and so much more. The Law Report is your accessible guide to the big legal stories unfolding in Australia and across the world.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 3, 2023 • 30min
Can machines invent and animals create?
Should patents be granted to Artificial Intelligence algorithms? Should machines have copyright over the art works they generate? What about animals? This episode first aired in June 2022.

Dec 27, 2022 • 30min
Gender diversity on the bench
In the second of a two-part series, the Law Report speaks with members of the International Association of Women Judges in several countries. They explain the obstacles women judges face and what gender diversity brings to legal decision making.

Dec 20, 2022 • 30min
How Afghan women judges found safety in Australia
In the first of a two-part series on women judges, the Law Report focuses on the experience of judge Shakila Abawi Shigarf, who was forced to flee Afghanistan when the Taliban retook power in August 2021.

Dec 13, 2022 • 30min
Singing to the sea
The Federal Court has confirmed native title over more than 40,000 square kilometres of sea country in the Torres Strait region. For the first time the claim brings together Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to achieve joint native title outcomes.

Dec 7, 2022 • 10min
BAD NEIGHBOURS S1 E4 | overshadowing solar panels
In the final part of a special for the Law Report we dig through recent cases with legal experts to find out what you can do when the neighbours want to build up and block the sunlight from hitting solar panels on your roof.

Dec 6, 2022 • 30min
Data breaches and the Privacy Act; what are your rights when it comes to your home's access to sunlight?
Medibank is the second high-profile company to be investigated by the Commonwealth privacy regulator over large-scale data breaches in recent months. Where does the government's legislative response fit within the broader review of the Privacy Act? And in the final part of a special for The Law Report, we dig through recent cases with legal experts to find out your right when the neighbour plans to build up and block the sunlight from hitting solar panels on your home.

Nov 30, 2022 • 12min
BAD NEIGHBOURS S1 E3 | Pesky pets
When you are fighting with your neighbour over things like noise, trees or pets, whose side is the law on?In the third of a four-part special for the Law Report we dig through recent cases with legal experts to find out your rights when it comes to keeping pets in apartments.

Nov 29, 2022 • 30min
Youth in detention; what are your rights when it comes to pets in apartments?
Five years on, has the NT royal commission into youth detention achieved what it set out to do? Why do some children commit crime? Research reveals calls for more government support for Indigenous kinship carers in WA. Also, when you are fighting with your neighbour over things like noise, trees or pets, whose side is the law on? In the third part of a special for The Law Report, we dig through recent cases with legal experts to find out your rights when it comes to keeping pets in apartments.

Nov 23, 2022 • 10min
BAD NEIGHBOURS S1 E2 | Troublesome trees
When you are fighting with your neighbour over things like noise, trees or pets, whose side is the law on?

Nov 22, 2022 • 30min
Big banks settle insurance class actions; what are your rights in neighbour disputes over trees?
Hundreds of thousands of customers could be eligible to claim compensation after three of Australia's biggest banks – the Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and Westpac – settled class actions worth $126m over the sale of 'junk' insurance policies. Also, when you are fighting with your neighbour over things like noise, trees or pets, whose side is the law on? In the second of a four-part special for The Law Report, we dig through some recent cases with legal experts to find out who's in the right when a neighbour's tree is damaging your property.


