Welcome to the first edition of our web-based monthly MLS News.
MLS has combined its monthly e-Brief and biannual MLS News magazine to bring you news about your law school. We will share our strategic priorities, include articles by our researchers, and feature stories about members of your alumni community. We trust that you will enjoy this new format.
At MLS we often speak of community. At orientation, for example, we welcome students and ask that they accept the responsibility of being community members, valuing and respecting each other as they learn with us. We reference professional standards while also asking students to consider moral and ethical values, including those needed to advance justice and be trusted as fiduciaries. Two weeks ago I wrote to all students and reflected that we must acknowledge the impact of racism, particularly on our Indigenous peoples as well as ethnic minorities, as we also work on legal reform. MLS will contribute to the public debate of these issues, drawing on its diverse expertise and scholarship.
Last week I was in touch with MLS’s Disputes and Ethics teachers, who are reflecting on how they will build on existing curriculum to discuss the right to respectful behaviours within the profession in light of recent events. Staff will also work with key professionals to host a School-wide discussion about sexual harassment in the workplace and highlight and evaluate strategies and support for those impacted. Communities must reflect and act on challenges, as well as celebrating their strengths.
In this edition, I invite you to read the story by MLS Associate Professor Andrew Godwin about MLS alum William Ah Ket, Australia’s first lawyer of Chinese descent, who devoted his life to fighting discrimination and advocating for equality.
I also wish to congratulate our alumni and friends who were recognised in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours (the inspiring journey of one such alum is featured below).
Stay well and be safe.
Professor Pip Nicholson
Dean, Melbourne Law School
Feature Stories
Advocating for equity
The last time we spoke with MLS alum Jenny Taing (LLB(Hons) ’07) she was a senior lawyer at ASIC and about to begin studies at Harvard. Four years and one OAM later, Jenny reflects on her journey and what drives her to give back to the community.
How is it that Australia’s first lawyer of Chinese descent is not more widely known? Associate Professor Andrew Godwin examines the life and times of MLS alum William Ah Ket (LLB 1899).
Australia's constitutional answer to structural racism
The death of George Floyd has triggered an important discussion about the persistence of structural racism in Australia’s governance systems. MLS Associate Professor William Partlett, Dr Shireen Morris and PhD candidate Julian Murphy address the need for constitutional reform.
The National Cabinet emerged at a time of crisis, but its success depends on how it works in practice once the COVID-19 pandemic passes, says Professor Cheryl Saunders.
Could the World Health Organization investigate countries like weapons inspectors do? Professor Alison Duxbury discusses the concept of human security in light of COVID-19.
Diversity in Public Engagement and the Public Process
In our next ‘Disruptive Ideas’ webinar discussion, Melbourne School of Government’s Timothy Kariotis and Maria Katsonis and RMIT University’s Dr Ruth DeSouza will discuss how we can ensure diversity in both policymaking and public engagement.
MLS hosted a three-part webinar series where academics, experts and Indigenous leaders discussed treaty, sovereignty and the role of the legal industry in achieving reconciliation.
How has COVID-19 affected privacy, jobs and democracy? Watch the complete ‘Germs and Justice’ three-part series featuring host Jon Faine and leading MLS experts discussing these important issues.
Director of the Centre for Resources Energy and Environmental Law Professor Lee Godden says legal challenges to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act account for little of the Federal Court’s workload.
What is the role of Aboriginal fire knowledge in preventing future bushfires? MLS Senior Fellow Sam Johnston looks at how this ancient practice can be incorporated into mainstream fire management in Australia and abroad.
As wage theft becomes a crime in Victoria, business owners underpaying workers now risk being prosecuted twice. Professor John Howe says Victorian employers wanting to self-report staff underpayments would probably have to deal with both state and federal agencies.
It's been three years since the tragic cladding fuelled fire at Grenfell Tower. Dr Matthew Bell says a new NSW building law regarding ‘serious defects’ in residential apartment buildings could ensure safer dwellings for future occupants.
Professor Lee Godden comments on the recent Federal Court ruling against VicForest, whose operations could now be assessed under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.