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Richard Ackland
Richard Ackland publishes the law journals Justinian and Gazette of Law and Journalism. He is a Gold Walkley winner and a former host of Media Watch and Radio National's Late Night Live. He has written on law and lawyers for 40 years. He is a graduate in economics and law and has been admitted as a legal practitioner to the supreme court of NSW.
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In defence of wearing wigs, members of the bar appear to believe that fashion began and ended in 1663. What if other professionals wigged up?
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The right of journalists to protect their sources is being assaulted by the courts, where many judges have long held a sniffy antipathy towards the media
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Election 2016 is just as manufactured and banal as the campaigns that came before it. In the race to win the day, voters are the only losers
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Some outrageous police-friendly legislation has just wormed its way through New South Wales parliament, and the prospect of some heavy-handed policing is real
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The closure of Manus Island offers Australia’s hapless politicians the opportunity to work with Indonesia on a sensible solution to boat arrivals
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As the 60 Minutes crew return to Australia, we’re left with a pile of unanswered questions from a TV network looking shabbier than usual
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Despite chest-beating from law and order politicians, bikie laws have failed. The required legislation we needed was already in existence
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Contracting out the punishment of criminals to private companies creates conflict with the way the state is supposed to be responsible for upholding criminal justice
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There is concern such legislation is incompatible with the implied constitutional right to free speech on political or government policy issues
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Balancing genuine public interest journalism with the right to privacy still seems beyond the reach of law reform
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The Sydney Morning Herald columnist’s anti-Muslim beat-up was not the first time he has had the wool pulled over his eyes – and therefore his readers’ too
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Was Margaret Cunneen joking about ‘fake breasts’? What of the ‘secret tapes’? Just when you think the tension is unbearable, the Icac plot twists continue
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Welcome to journalism in the real world, which is riddled with political sensitivities, insurance policies and compromise
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After the high court decision on Nauru, what we’re left with are people who have no remedy, no rights and are at the mercy of someone like Peter Dutton
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When Icac finally reports this year, the unimpressive ducking and weaving by Liberal senator Arthur Sinodinos is sure to draw criticism
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The Victorian supreme court has cleared a path for potential witnesses to give evidence about conditions on Christmas Island without breaking the law
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Strained relationships at top levels, accusations of conflicts of interest, scalp-hunting and subterfuge. The twists and turns of Icac just keep on coming
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The brutalising of an Egyptian asylum seeker and his family is a scandal and, in a country that hails the liberties advertised in the Magna Carta, hypocritical
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‘Balance’ in journalism and reporting is an imperfect beast. The same could be said about politicians
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Turning our backs on Syrian refugees could turn out to be an effective Isis recruitment tool, but why worry about that when being alarmist is so much fun
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Overblown political responses are delivering more and more powers and resources for counter-terrorism, but the pace of threats is also escalating
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A newspaper slugfest against the independent commission against corruption has broken out in recent weeks and Icac’s actual record is not going to be allowed to get in the way
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Whitlam removed them; Fraser restored them. Then Hawke abolished them again. Then Abbott; now Turnbull. When will this colonial panto finally be over?
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You may have missed it, but apparently we have a ‘vigorous, ambitious human rights agenda’. The heads of our human rights agencies may have missed it too
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Peter Dutton claims a Somali refugee was whisked out of Australia to foil a game of legal trickery. But the story doesn’t stack up
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Wealthy business and political figures don’t like being probed. Newcastle property developer and former mayor Jeff McCloy is the latest to take exception
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Over half of all law graduates are women. So is more than 20% of the NSW bar. Yet this year, women make up less than 10% of applicants for senior counsel
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To the commissioner’s way of thinking, his invitation to a Liberal party fundraiser was merely a dinner speech on legal matters to a group of lawyers
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In the end it’s all about character. But when Dyson Heydon decides whether he will continue as royal commissioner, he should remember his own rulings
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Developments at the Manus Island regional processing centre appear to be moving to a disturbing new phase, Guardian Australia has learned
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Dyson Heydon’s conservative worldview was well-known long before the Liberal party invitation scandal blew up. Just ask his fellow judges
Topics
- Australian politics
- Australian immigration and asylum
- Australian law
- New South Wales
- Independent Commission Against Corruption
- Australian media
- George Brandis
- Refugees
- Australian trade unions
- Peter Dutton
- New South Wales politics
- Royal commission into trade union governance and corruption
- Crime - Australia
- Australian election 2016
- Fairfax Media
- Liberal party
- Mark Scott
- Asia Pacific
- United Nations
- Tony Abbott
George Brandis has a history of meddling with independent agencies. He's at it again