Sacred Rules, Secular Revelations: The Conceptions of Rights in Pre-Modern Europe. This project provides a deeper understanding of the origins of and background to contemporary debates on the role of religion in law, and vice-versa. This is particularly relevant at a time when law and human rights face questions about their moral and normative qualities. It will contribute to debates about the origins of the humanities in higher learning by reminding us that such studies had their origins in re ....Sacred Rules, Secular Revelations: The Conceptions of Rights in Pre-Modern Europe. This project provides a deeper understanding of the origins of and background to contemporary debates on the role of religion in law, and vice-versa. This is particularly relevant at a time when law and human rights face questions about their moral and normative qualities. It will contribute to debates about the origins of the humanities in higher learning by reminding us that such studies had their origins in resolving practical problems and conflicts, rather than esoteric ends. This project will further reinforce Australia's reputation for integrating sound scholarship with innovative methodology and inter-disciplinarity in pre-modern European studies. Read moreRead less
A new history of law in eighteenth-century England. The century after 1689 witnessed momentous changes in English traditions of law and governance. This project will result in a new history of English law during the period, centred upon prestigious publications that will become standards and starting-points for future study by historians, lawyers, other scholars, and legal professionals.
Understanding forms of violence and their regulation in Australian history. In contemporary Australia inter-personal violence (such as domestic violence, the abuse of children, Aboriginal deaths in custody, the Cronulla riots) occupies intense media and public interest. Governmental responses to violence (through policing or the courts) themselves rest on the exercise of authorised and regulated control which itself may be considered a form of violence. In examining the historical changes in vio ....Understanding forms of violence and their regulation in Australian history. In contemporary Australia inter-personal violence (such as domestic violence, the abuse of children, Aboriginal deaths in custody, the Cronulla riots) occupies intense media and public interest. Governmental responses to violence (through policing or the courts) themselves rest on the exercise of authorised and regulated control which itself may be considered a form of violence. In examining the historical changes in violence, its social impact and media resonances, and the public policy responses to it, this research seeks to contribute to contemporary understanding of these important questions on the basis of a greater appreciation of the specifically Australian history of these phenomena.Read moreRead less
John Vincent Barry: law, social reform and institutional innovation in mid-twentieth century Australia. The capacity of governing institutions to adapt to changing social conditions was a critical component of Australian post-war history. As jurist, social reformer, sponsor and mentor of an emerging Australian criminology, criminal justice practitioner, intellectual and internationalist, John Barry was an exemplar of an activist in this cause. This study explores the dimensions of this activity ....John Vincent Barry: law, social reform and institutional innovation in mid-twentieth century Australia. The capacity of governing institutions to adapt to changing social conditions was a critical component of Australian post-war history. As jurist, social reformer, sponsor and mentor of an emerging Australian criminology, criminal justice practitioner, intellectual and internationalist, John Barry was an exemplar of an activist in this cause. This study explores the dimensions of this activity of institution-building and intellectual engagement through the record of Barry's life in its political and social context. Outcomes will include a published biography and articles dealing with the conditions of intellectual and political engagement in social reform in post-war Australia.Read moreRead less
The Social History of Punishment in Modern China. The project will investigate the cultural and historical roots of the political and social practices of punishment in modern Chinese history in order to answer the question of why harsh punitive measures have been so readily used and accepted. The subject has never been adequately researched. Extensive use will be made of interviewing, archival materials, and a wide range of other documentation. It is important to comprehend from an historical pe ....The Social History of Punishment in Modern China. The project will investigate the cultural and historical roots of the political and social practices of punishment in modern Chinese history in order to answer the question of why harsh punitive measures have been so readily used and accepted. The subject has never been adequately researched. Extensive use will be made of interviewing, archival materials, and a wide range of other documentation. It is important to comprehend from an historical perspective the past and present Chinese mentality regarding punitiveness and law-and-order in order to come to grips with human rights issues and China's legal system.Read moreRead less
Moral Panics and the Law in Eighteenth-Century England. This project will reveal the origins of a phenomenon that is ubiquitous in modern western society. By doing so it will attract international attention from academic historians and sociologists. It will also contribute to Australia's reputation for producing high-quality intellectual products, and further enhance its standing as a leading centre for the study of Britain in the eighteenth century. Because of its contemporary relevance the stu ....Moral Panics and the Law in Eighteenth-Century England. This project will reveal the origins of a phenomenon that is ubiquitous in modern western society. By doing so it will attract international attention from academic historians and sociologists. It will also contribute to Australia's reputation for producing high-quality intellectual products, and further enhance its standing as a leading centre for the study of Britain in the eighteenth century. Because of its contemporary relevance the study will provide a critical perspective on modern politics, especially the perception that governments legitimise their authority by helping to constitute popular anxiety about threats to moral and personal security.Read moreRead less
Sexual Offences, Legal Responses and Public Perceptions: 1880s-1980s. Testimony of sexual abuse before the current Royal Commission has exposed the historic neglect and cover-up of institutional offences. Yet, to unearth the deeper and wider dimensions of sexual offending requires scholarly historical analysis. This project aims to use qualitative and quantitative analysis to track how and why certain forms of sexual behaviour sparked public concern and provoked legal responses and public inquir ....Sexual Offences, Legal Responses and Public Perceptions: 1880s-1980s. Testimony of sexual abuse before the current Royal Commission has exposed the historic neglect and cover-up of institutional offences. Yet, to unearth the deeper and wider dimensions of sexual offending requires scholarly historical analysis. This project aims to use qualitative and quantitative analysis to track how and why certain forms of sexual behaviour sparked public concern and provoked legal responses and public inquiries from the 1880s to the 1980s. The systematic examination of these patterns through archival and published documents is intended to test the relation between shifting community and political concerns and the conduct of criminal trials.Read moreRead less
Medieval Irish law texts: scholarly, legal and social development. This interdisciplinary project focuses on a vast collection of Irish law texts. Those texts reflect developments in the Gaelic culture of Ireland over the entire medieval period. This project will bring a clearer understanding of the development of Celtic culture, which has been a strong factor in the creation of an Australian cultural identity.
The rule of law in history and memory: Australian and Canadian settler frontiers. This study is inspired by current 'History Wars' debates in Australia and Canada, which in raising questions about 'what happened' in the colonial past have demonstrated that the shape of the nation's historical memory is of vital present day importance. These debates have shown that more detailed historical research is required into how the frontiers of European settlement evolved in practice, and how Indigenous p ....The rule of law in history and memory: Australian and Canadian settler frontiers. This study is inspired by current 'History Wars' debates in Australia and Canada, which in raising questions about 'what happened' in the colonial past have demonstrated that the shape of the nation's historical memory is of vital present day importance. These debates have shown that more detailed historical research is required into how the frontiers of European settlement evolved in practice, and how Indigenous populations were made subject to colonial legal authority. As a project of comparative history, the study is of international as well as national significance. It has the potential to generate improved understanding of current conditions by highlighting differences and similarities between Australian and Canadian experiences.Read moreRead less
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