Across undergraduate, postgraduate and research degrees, ANU College of Law provides students with a unique understanding of current law and policy. Our capital city location links us with the nation’s key law-making and legislative bodies. We work with government departments, research agencies, NFPs/NGOs, other universities and the wider legal community to support and enhance legal education, research and policy in Australia and around the world.
Nishadee Perera (BA/LLB (Hons) ’16, GDLP ‘17) completed her Master of Laws at Columbia University as a Fulbright Scholar. As a legal officer in the Office of International Law at the Attorney-General’s Department, her work covers trade and investment, law of the sea, human rights, refugee law, environmental law and more.
Watch as Nishadee reflects on her experience studying at law at Columbia University - including learning from Professors Amal Clooney and Sarah Cleveland - and her undergraduate studies at ANU, where her passion for law was nurtured. As a Sri Lankan-Australian raised in Canberra, Nishadee also discusses how, despite being "very much a STEM kid", she was motivated to study law to help marginalised people navigate systems that don't always work for them.
At a time when social injustice and race relations are at the forefront of global movements, how can Australia move forward in a post-pandemic world? On 25 June 2020, our alumni panel 'Being Asian-Australian in a pandemic world' examined the underlying issues of race relations with panellists sharing their perspectives of the Asian-Australian experience.
Hosted and moderated by 2020 ANU Student Volunteer of the Year (Undergraduate) Yasmin Poole (B IntR/LLB (Hons)), our alumni panel comprises Jean Sum (BComm/BActSt ‘04), Creative Strategist and Asian-Australian advocate; Helen Zhang (BAsSt (Chinese)/LLB (Hons) ’10, GDLP ’12), Diplomat and Foreign Policy Specialist; and Jieh-Yung Lo, Director, ANU Centre for Asian-Australian Leadership.
Meet alumnus Romulo Nayacalevu (LLM '10), a Fijian international relations and human rights consultant based in Vanuatu with the Melanesian Spearhead Group. He is proud to use his legal knowledge to help governments in the region implement policies and laws that uphold their international human rights obligations, especially in regards to family law and domestic violence.
ANU College of Law hosted a panel event to discuss findings from the International Bar Association's (IBA) report 'Us Too? Bullying and Sexual Harassment in the Legal Profession' on 5 August 2019. Kieran Pender (BA (Hons) '16, LLB (Hons) '18), senior legal adviser at the IBA, discusses the significance of the report and why the ANU event was particularly special to him as an alumnus and visiting fellow.
The panel at the event comprised of The Honourable Helen Murrell, Chief Justice of the ACT Supreme Court; John Wilson, managing director at Bradley Allen Love Lawyers; Prue Bindon (BA '02, LLB (Hons) '02), barrister at Key Chambers; and Kate Eastman SC, barrister at New Chambers.
On 17-18 June 2019, the ANU College of Law hosted the global research workshop 'Navigating the Backlash against Global Law and Institutions: Australian Perspectives'. As part of the ANU Global Research Partnerships Scheme, the workshop attracted a dynamic blend of scholars and policymakers who analysed the limits of the global legal order, the scale of threats that order currently faces, and the potential responses to those threats. Academics from ANU, Indiana University, the University of Maryland, the University of New South Wales and the University of Canberra were joined by experts from government and civil society. The workshop considered how Australia and other states should respond to the 'backlash' against global norms and institutions fuelled by recent de-stabilising global political developments.
Presented by the ANU Centre for International and Public Law, 'Citizenship stripping and the ICCPR' is a seminar featuring citizenship law experts Professor Kim Rubenstein FAAL, FASSA and Dr Paul Taylor. Both scholars will examine the framework for citizenship deprivation (and the new proposed amendments) in the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 (Cth) against the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
In an ideal world, referendums (like all other democratic exercises) should be grounded in discussion. But as Professor Matt Qvortrup argues, the impression is that referendums, rather than being exercises in deliberation, are the very opposite. On 4 April 2019, Professor Qvortrup delivered his seminar 'Brexit, referendums and deliberative democracy" at the ANU College of Law. In this interview, he talks about what Australia can learn from the UK's referendum experience and the motivation for his newest book, The Referendum and Other Essays on Constitutional Politics (2019).
Professor Donald Rothwell FAAL previews his essay, 'International law and cruise ships: Sailing into stormy waters', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
As technological capability advances, so too does the threat of cybercrime. To mark Law Week 2019, Dr Dominique Dalla-Pozza, a senior lecturer at the ANU College of Law, and Dr Adam Henschke, a cybersecurity ethics expert at the National Security College under the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, discuss the significant risks to cyber insecurity and challenges facing lawmakers. Both ANU experts participated in a forum discussion, 'Cyber security, data protection and privacy: Exploring the intersections between law, technology and policy', hosted at ANU on 15 May 2019.
To celebrate World Environment Day (5 June), Dr Peter Burnett shares his research into ecologically sustainable development and looks back on his 'full-circle' experience at the ANU College of Law. Dr Burnett formerly held senior leadership positions in the Federal Department of Environment, where he worked on a diverse range of policy and regulatory issues including development of national pollution standards. Determined to explore deep policy questions in academia, Dr Burnett undertook his PhD at the ANU College of Law where, decades earlier, he completed his Bachelors and Masters degrees. Now an Honorary Associate Professor, Dr Burnett continues to contribute to environmental public policy and develop solutions to pressing problems.
Senior lecturer Dr Imogen Saunders previews her essay, 'Recalibrating international trade in the COVID-19 age', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
Senior lecturer Dr Kate Ogg previews her essay, 'COVID-19 travel restrictions: A violation of non-refoulement obligations?', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
Senior lecturer Dr Jonathan Liljeblad previews his essay, 'Promoting international human rights in a time of pandemic', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
Associate Professor David Letts AM, CSM previews his essay, 'Can the law of the sea stay afloat during COVID-19?', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
Postdoctoral fellow Dr Jessica Hambly previews her essay, 'Islands, detention and refugee rights in "crisis"', for the ANU College of Law essay series International law and COVID-19.
In our inaugural episode of Open Mike, we speak with alumnus Nic Hoban (GDLP '14, LLM '16) who has co-founded startups including Studychatr, Wicked Sites and most recently Crisis Heroes, an online community platform that connects volunteers with those left vulnerable by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Professor David Dyzenhaus FRSC of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law speaks to Professor Desmond Manderson FAAL, FASSA, FRSC over Zoom for our visitors seminar. Watch as Professor Dyzenhaus explores the politics of legal space during a far-reaching discussion that relates to our understanding of history, with vital connections to the present moment.
Andrew Ray is a final-year Bachelor of Laws (Hons)/Science student at ANU and a finalist for Law Student of the Year in the Australian Law Awards 2020 presented by Lawyers Weekly. Throughout his double degree, Andrew has excelled as a student, researcher and mooter both in traditional and digital competitions.
In 2019, his essay won the top prize in the Law category at the Global Undergraduate Awards. Additionally, he has made significant contributions as a researcher with Law Reform and Social Justice, GreenLaw and the National Judicial College of Australia, and as a student editor with the ANU College of Law journals Federal Law Review and the Journal of Law and Technology. Read Andrew's commendation as a Law Student of the Year finalist here.
In our fifth episode of Law and Crisis, Professor Desmond Manderson FAAL, FASSA, FRSC explores the ideas and legacy of German legal theorist Carl Schmitt with Professor David Dyzenhaus from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.
