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Performers play a crucial role in the creative process by bringing various copyrightable subject matters, such as songs, dances, dramatic performances, and films (cinematographic works), to life. However, unlike other stakeholders, including lyricists, music composers, and production companies, performers often do not receive equivalent property rights. This paper contends that despite certain protections granted to performers under copyright laws in many countries, including India and Australia, there remain gaps and limitations that hinder the full recognition and protection of performers’ rights. This situation leads to questions regarding the nature of performers’ rights and how the law distinguishes neighbouring rights within the copyright law framework. The primary aim of this paper is to assess whether the existing framework of performers’ rights principally benefits the performers themselves or leans more towards a market-centred approach favouring producers. This analysis, particularly focused on the contexts of India and Australia, builds a case for the recognition of coauthorship rights for performers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the two most significant decisions of the High Court in 2017, which led to the disqualification of several members of the Commonwealth Parliament. Firstly, Re Canavan which applied the terms of s 44(i) strictly to disqualify dual citizens even when their foreign citizenship is acquired unknowingly. Secondly. Re Day (No 2) which revives the government contractor ground in s 44(v) by overturning the narrow approach in In re Webster. Both decisions affirm the important role of the grounds of disqualification to reinforce the obligation of members of parliament to act only in the interests of the nation, and not for their own personal interest. Yet, the disproportionate impact of Re Canavan on members who had no awareness of their foreign citizenship by descent indicates that at least the second limb of s 44(i) should be repealed. Not so s 44(v), the full implications of which have yet to be identified. This paper also urges the amendment of the Common Informers (Parliamentary Disqualifications) Act 1975 (Cth) to give the Court of Disputed Returns the jurisdiction to determine the qualification of members in any common informer action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates one element of the decision in Mabo v Queensland [No 2] (1992) 175 CLR 1, namely Indigenous languages, and whether there has been a transformational shift in the treatment and recognition of Indigenous languages and language rights post-Mabo. The paper considers how central language was to the success and content of the Mabo decision. It then critically analyses language rights and laws in Australia, and how these rights are met, or otherwise, in Australia. Native title has opened a window for language recognition in some circumstances for some native title holders, which has been transformational in practice for some native title holders and symbolically transformational for Australia. Otherwise the Report card for Australia on respectful treatments and recognition of Indigenous languages is very poor. Case-studies in modern-day discrimination against Indigenous language speakers are presented, in the education system, in consultation about Indigenous-specific government initiates, in voting and in the criminal justice system. This is in contrast to comparable nations such as New Zealand and Canada, and requirements under International treaties that Australia has ratified or committed to. The way forward is not technically elusive given successful precedents world-wide. Overcoming hurdles for recognition partly rest with exposing and firmly rejecting socio-political views that Indigenous languages are problems, and naturally becoming extinct. A first step is to improve the Overcoming Disadvantage framework, which is supported by all governments, so that it includes indicators that monitor progress in overcoming discrimination, including overcoming discrimination against Indigenous language speakers. Such indicators need to be informed by a view that Indigenous languages are precious and empowering resources for Indigenous peoples, and indeed all Australians and all of earth's citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea that north Queensland should be a separate State was strongly argued in the Queensland eolonial parliament and during the course of the Constitutional Conventions of the 1890s. Post federation, there have been several petitions calling for areas of existing States, and for the Northern Territory (NT), to become a new State in the federation. One of the issues that has surfaced repeatedly, in the call for creation of new State from an existing State, is what the Constitutional requirements arc for the creation of a new State, and then flowing from that, what process needs to be followed for the change to occur. This paper identifies the Constitutional provisions relevant to the creation of a new State in the Australian federation, and then examines the key issue of the locus of power to 'initiate' the creation of a new State by separation of territory from an existing State. The paper then reviews the history of the failed referenda held in New South Wales (NSW) and the NT for the creation of a new State, and, in light of the those experiences, sketches a possible political and legislative pathway towards the establishment of a new State of North Queensland. Finally, two key points in favour of separation arc argued: (i) that North Queensland has been particularly disenfranchised since federation through centralist power shifting at both the State and Federal levels; and (ii) a failed commitment to the North for it to have its own senators as evidenced in s.7 of the Constitution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the nature of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), its prevalence among offender populations, and its consequent impact on the Australian criminal justice system. To that end, it will be divided into two major sections. The first encompasses an extensive review of what is currently known about ADHD, including the historical development of the diagnosis, its known aetiology, ADHD and correlates, estimates of its prevalence, its successful treatment, high-level adverse trajectories for sufferers, and associated costs. The second will examine the significant overrepresentation of ADHD sufferers in youth and adult criminal justice populations and highlight the concerning lack of acknowledgment in major Australian criminal justice reviews of the prevalence and impact of ADHD. Finally, a call for action in relation to its strategic diagnosis, early intervention and treatment as a crucial part of an optimal criminal justice crime prevention strategy will be made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the question of whether Australia would be better served by the inclusion of an entrenched Bill of Rights in the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia. In particular, attention will focus on the abuses of minorities that are all but certain to arise in any society that is based on majoritarian rule. This paper will also examine the question of whether an entrenched Bill of Rights would serve as an effective safeguard against such abuses, especially where the rights of unpopular minorities are involved. The analysis to follow is undertaken against the backdrop of the efficacy, or the lack thereof, of the Constitution of the United States in preventing such abuses, and particularly that portion of the American Constitution that is known as the Bill of Rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land administration and land use planning in Australia are public functions. Each State and Territory has its own unique laws for administering land tenures and regulating the use and enjoyment of land for present and future generations. The extent to which planning systems around Australia take account of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights and interests is woefully inadequate. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are continuing to assert their ongoing presence, connection to and responsibilities for their traditional country. It is inherent in their culture and an integral part of who they are and their wellbeing for present and future generations. The problem is, these realities have barely penetrated the conventional planning systems in Australia.3 However, two significant developments occurred in 2016 that are likely to have longer term implications for integrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights and interests in conventional land use planning. Firstly, the Queensland Parliament passed a new planning statute which includes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge, culture and tradition as being an integral part of advancing the purpose of the Act. Secondly, the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) amended its education accreditation policy to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ knowledges as an integral Supporting Knowledge Area for the recognition of Australian planning qualifications. This paper explores what these developments mean for land use planning and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights and interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australia's legal relationship with religious institutions and their corporate enterprises is one of mixed blessings. The High Court unanimously affirmed in Scientology that despite no evidence for the supernatural, there should be no legal impediment to religious leaders obtaining 'the financial and other privileges which come with religious status', even suggesting 'charlatanism is a necessary price of religious freedom'. But is the price too high? Religious trade -- the art of converting public worship into private wealth -- has become a billion-dollar secret cottage industry, falling between the gaps of charitable and corporate legal governance. To achieve greater equity and accountability regarding religious charities and especially their trading entciprises compared to the rest of the corporate and charitable sector, this paper prosecutes the need for a suite of simple blit audacious governance reforms. These legislative reforms establish a nexus between s 116 Religious Freedom and s 51 (xx) constitutional trading corporations as intended by the Australian Constitution and now afforded in the Work Choices ruling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As online traders have been poor at developing consumer trust in e-commerce, the law plays a crucial role in creating such trust. At the start of 2010, we published a paper outlining a model to serve as an international best practice standard for the protection of e-comm erce consumers. In this article, which was written with the assistance of a generous grant from the auDA Foundation, we have applied that best practice standard to assess how effectively protected Australian e-consumers are under Australia's recently reformed consumer law landscape. We focus on two areas of central importance to the effective protection of e-consumers in which Australian law fails to provide adequate protection. First, the law must ensure that consumers are afforded access to appropriate information. Second, it is of fundamental importance that the law caters for access to appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every dollar that Australian governments spend on keeping people in the criminal justice system is potentially a dollar that could have been spent on initiatives that have been shown to stem the flow of potential offenders and re-offenders. These initiatives include employment incentives, community capacity-building, drug treatments, post-release services, therapeutic courts and intervention for 'at risk' individuals and their families. Intriguingly, governments do spend significant amounts of money on these sorts of programs, but they seem reluctant to advertise the fact that they are assisting those whom many would class as 'the undeserving'. This is an odd and expensive political disconnect. This paper explores a number of fallacies that persist in popular thinking that have the effect of widening this disconnect. It offers a number of paths forward for justice policy-makers and social planners in order to address the malaise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The common law rule in Browne v Dunn essentially is a rule of fairness. It ensures that witnesses have the opportunity to explain if the opposing party intends to later contradict or discredit them. Recently in Australia, doubt has been cast as to whether the rule applies in criminal proceedings. However, in MWJ v R, the High Court confirmed that the rule, with significant qualifications, applied to criminal cases. Possibly the most important qualifications are that the court must consider the nature and course of proceedings in evaluating the consequences of a failure to cross-examine on a point on which the party relies and that application of the rule must not displace the prosecution's burden of proof. This paper examines the High Court's interpretation of Browne v Dunn in MWJ v R and outlines some of the reasoning behind the doubt as to the rule's application. To demonstrate the manner in which MWJ v R has been followed in Queensland, the recent decesion of R v MAP is examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian Football League (AFL) and its forerunner, the Victorian Football League (VFL), have implemented a number of labour market controls including metropolitan zoning, country zoning, a transfer system and more recently, a salary cap and draft system. The restraint of trade doctrine requires that any party implementing labour market controls be able to show that such restraints help to achieve the stated objectives of such controls, namely the creation of more even competition. This paper therefore examines how the evenness of a competition such as the AFL may be measured. The author's study involves measuring the number of different teams that have won premierships in the various decades of the VFL-AFL, whether all teams have made the finals at least once in these decades, and how many teams have fulfilled their ‘finals quota’ in a given decade. It is suggested that the figures obtained from this study indicate that the AFL has been successful in creating a more even competition during the 1990's, one that is continuing into the present decade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]