Ancestors' words: Noongar writing in WA government archives (1860-1960s). This project aims to produce the first account of Noongar letter writing in Western Australian archives from 1860 to 1960. The project’s significance lies in revealing this hidden activism in the archive, restoring silenced Noongar stories to the documents, advancing scholarly understanding, and promoting decolonisation of the Western Australian archive. Expected outcomes include an ethical Noongar research model and commu ....Ancestors' words: Noongar writing in WA government archives (1860-1960s). This project aims to produce the first account of Noongar letter writing in Western Australian archives from 1860 to 1960. The project’s significance lies in revealing this hidden activism in the archive, restoring silenced Noongar stories to the documents, advancing scholarly understanding, and promoting decolonisation of the Western Australian archive. Expected outcomes include an ethical Noongar research model and community research knowledge space developed with Noongar leaders. This new evidence of Noongar political agency could benefit sustainability for the emerging Noongar nation and advance equity and reconciliation for all citizens of the Australian settler nation and advocacy for Indigenous rights internationally.Read moreRead less
Benefiting from injustice. This project argues that people can acquire duties to compensate victims of injustice when they benefit from these injustices, even when they neither caused the injustices nor could have prevented them. We explore the implications of this argument for the treatment of colonised peoples, and for policies on climate change and international trade.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100062
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$330,000.00
Summary
The Australasian Legal History Library: Creating historical depth in legal data on AustLII, to improve all legal research. The Australasian Legal History Library, to be located for free access on AustLII, will provide comprehensive legislation and case law from all colonies (subsequently Australian States, Territories or New Zealand) up to 1950. Its citator will show how these historical materials are used in current legal decisions. It will be a revolution for legal history research.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140100283
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$356,247.00
Summary
From War Crimes Investigator to War Crimes Jurist: Sir William Flood Webb KBE and his impact on international criminal law in the twentieth century. Sir William Flood Webb KBE (1887-1972) is little known but was Australia's most prominent jurist on war crimes in the mid-twentieth century. This project is a legal-historical study that investigates and examines Webb's extraordinary impact on the development and transformation of international criminal law through his roles as a war crimes investig ....From War Crimes Investigator to War Crimes Jurist: Sir William Flood Webb KBE and his impact on international criminal law in the twentieth century. Sir William Flood Webb KBE (1887-1972) is little known but was Australia's most prominent jurist on war crimes in the mid-twentieth century. This project is a legal-historical study that investigates and examines Webb's extraordinary impact on the development and transformation of international criminal law through his roles as a war crimes investigator, consultant and jurist and, in particular, as President of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East. The project will shed light on historical views of war crimes, the legal actions taken and institutions created in response and the judicial and procedural precedents that were established, not only within Australia but internationally.Read moreRead less
Optimising access to the Law Reports Series of Australia's war crimes trials, 1945-51. The forthcoming Law Reports Series on Australia’s war crimes trials held in 1945-51 will be, in effect, the official history of the trials. It is vital, therefore, that all users, particularly the Australian public, are provided with the necessary tools to optimally access the Series and thus obtain a comprehensive understanding of the trials.
The potential and limits of international adjudication. This project aims to analyse the place of adjudication in international affairs, using a case study of Australia’s extensive engagement with the International Court of Justice. The project will provide a detailed account of the context and impact of the cases in which Australia has been involved before the Court, and will assess the complex roles that adjudication and advisory opinions can play in the resolution of international disputes mo ....The potential and limits of international adjudication. This project aims to analyse the place of adjudication in international affairs, using a case study of Australia’s extensive engagement with the International Court of Justice. The project will provide a detailed account of the context and impact of the cases in which Australia has been involved before the Court, and will assess the complex roles that adjudication and advisory opinions can play in the resolution of international disputes more generally. This project will document an historic set of engagements spanning 70 years and provide guidance on when international adjudication may be productive for Australia, the Asia-Pacific region and the international legal order. This will provide deeper knowledge of the capacities of international judicial institutions to resolve disputes relating to economic, health, social, cultural and environmental issues.Read moreRead less
The last outlaw: Making a nation from the crimes of Jimmy Governor. This project aims to produce a legal history of the murderer Jimmy Governor to discover the extent to which law-making was generated by acts of law-breaking. The Australian Federation laid the foundations for the nation’s legal institutions under the rule of law. The Aboriginal serial killer, Jimmy Governor, was outlawed and convicted on the threshold of Federation, in 1900. Through Governor’s legal history, the project will pro ....The last outlaw: Making a nation from the crimes of Jimmy Governor. This project aims to produce a legal history of the murderer Jimmy Governor to discover the extent to which law-making was generated by acts of law-breaking. The Australian Federation laid the foundations for the nation’s legal institutions under the rule of law. The Aboriginal serial killer, Jimmy Governor, was outlawed and convicted on the threshold of Federation, in 1900. Through Governor’s legal history, the project will produce an account of the law and its outsiders at an important historical moment. This project expects to provide knowledge about punishment, surveillance and imprisonment in the emerging nation, and a history of the rules of evidence and criminal procedure.Read moreRead less
The foundations of civil justice in Australia. This project aims to provide an in-depth historical account of the origins of our civil justice system in Australia. Judicial institutions and their practices were key to the founding of civil society in the Australian colonies. This project will produce new knowledge about the origins of our civil justice system. The project will trace legal reformist ideas in England, their dissemination across Britain's Empire and the impact these had on how judg ....The foundations of civil justice in Australia. This project aims to provide an in-depth historical account of the origins of our civil justice system in Australia. Judicial institutions and their practices were key to the founding of civil society in the Australian colonies. This project will produce new knowledge about the origins of our civil justice system. The project will trace legal reformist ideas in England, their dissemination across Britain's Empire and the impact these had on how judges and administrators in the Australian colonies crafted their judicial practices to provide speedy and effective access to civil justice. As well as scholarly writing, this project will provide a podcast and multi-media website that explains how civil trials worked in the mid-nineteenth century.Read moreRead less
The sight of justice: images and the rule of law. The rule of law is a key issue in global and national governance, which this project will study in a novel way: through the images and art that have helped us make sense of it. This will give new insights into its history, evolution and current challenges, and new ways of encouraging public understanding and engagement with the law.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100051
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$410,000.00
Summary
The Australasian Legal History Libraries: Stage II. The Australasian legal history libraries stage II: Australia's leading legal historians will partner with the Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII) to create a massive expansion of free online access to Australasian legal history through digitisation and data aggregation. The Legal History Libraries on AustLII will become a comprehensive trans-Tasman collection from 1788-1999, including all reported case series and those from colon ....The Australasian Legal History Libraries: Stage II. The Australasian legal history libraries stage II: Australia's leading legal historians will partner with the Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII) to create a massive expansion of free online access to Australasian legal history through digitisation and data aggregation. The Legal History Libraries on AustLII will become a comprehensive trans-Tasman collection from 1788-1999, including all reported case series and those from colonial newspaper reports, and all Acts enacted, plus key collections of historical Bills, Gazettes, legal commentaries, and Parliamentary reports. The Libraries are expected to double in size from their current 50,000 items of cases and legislation. The Libraries will enable previously impractical access, comparative research, and international collaborations.Read moreRead less