

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

Jul 5, 2022 • 29min
Victoria's Nazi swastika law prompts call for national ban
An in-depth look at Victoria's law to ban the public display of the Nazi swastika amid calls for the Federal Government to legislate a national ban on the symbol. And the case of a West Australian man who spent more than a decade in prison for a crime he didn't commit has led to new legal avenues for appeal for others who may have been wrongfully convicted.

Jun 28, 2022 • 29min
Attorney General Mark Dreyfus speaks to the Law Report
Reforming the Public Interest Disclosure Act "is a significant matter because it is linked to the national anti-corruption commission that we hope to legislate this year," the federal Attorney General Mark Dreyfus has told the Law Report. In a wide-ranging interview, Mr Dreyfus outlines his legislative priorities, including reforming the Privacy Act, media freedoms, and a review of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Jun 21, 2022 • 29min
Can machines invent, and animals create?
Should we grant patents to Artificial Intelligence algorithms? Should machines have copyright over the art works they generate? What about animals?

Jun 14, 2022 • 29min
High Court curbs minister's citizenship powers, and landmark ruling on unpaid wages
The High Court has ruled that a decision by the former Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews to rescind the citizenship of an Australian man suspected of joining the Islamic State group was unconstitutional. And, for the first time, unpaid workers can pursue the director of a collapsed company in the small claims tribunal of the Federal Circuit and Family Court.

Jun 7, 2022 • 29min
Judge v jury trials
Why did actor Johnny Depp's defamation case against his former wife Amber Heard succeed in the US after failing at a similar trial in the UK? And a man ordered to face trial before a judge alone under the ACT’s pandemic emergency law says he was denied the right for his case to be heard by a jury. But does such a legal right exist in Australia?

May 31, 2022 • 29min
Fiji environmental crime verdict 'sets precedent'
Freesoul Real Estate has days to appeal a ground-breaking fine imposed by Fiji's High Court after the Chinese resort developer carried out unauthorised works on a remote island. And environmental law in the Pacific.

May 24, 2022 • 29min
Radio on the inside
The world's only nationwide in-house prison network broadcasts 24 hours a day and is produced by and for inmates.

May 17, 2022 • 29min
When is a de facto relationship over?
A High Court decision raises questions about how a de facto relationship is defined, and what happens when a person’s mental capacities decline with old age. And, if a person granted humanitarian protection by Australia commits a serious crime, can they be deported to a conflict zone?

May 10, 2022 • 29min
Fears US Supreme Court will overturn Roe v Wade after draft opinion leaked
The publication of a leaked draft opinion by conservative judge Samuel Alito has sparked fears the United States Supreme Court could overturn a landmark decision that enshrines abortion rights for women.

May 3, 2022 • 29min
Russia accuses NATO of 'proxy war' in Ukraine, and juror misconduct
Does NATO’s increasing military support for Ukraine amount to waging “a proxy war against Russia”? And the High Court has overturned a number of sex offence convictions of a tutor due to juror misconduct.


