Arghhh!

[sxcalexc]

The last three dot-points in the course outline.. are they new? It doesn't seem to be covered by my textbook. How do you guys think I should approach these areas of knowledge?


So, they only want the problems in one of the criterion of an effective legal system right? Effective access?

As for
Recent changes in the operation of the legal system to enhance its effectiveness
& Proposed changes in the operation of the legal system to enhance its effectiveness

Are they only changes in the actual legal system? Or would you be able to mention new laws and the like? Thanks guys

[hard]

we didn't even study them in class, i had to do them by my self but they are straight foward i guess.

difficulty in gaining access that's common sense stuff anyway. You could talk about cultural, social, language and socio-economic barriers that limit an individual to gaining access to the law.


recent changes include increasing jurisdiction of the Magistrates court from 40,000 to 100,000 in its original civil jurisdiction. Also adding the koorie court as a magistrate division in 2002.
You can then talk about why these have occurred and what have they done to improve our legal system.

recommendations for further change well we assume it's about our legal system so lay your foundations on the elements on an affective legal system and talk about ways to improve these such as timely resolution of disputes, in order to better maximize the notion of prevailing human and democratic rights, we should provide more legal aid and support to rural and disadvantage areas, so that each individual is given the right to uphold their rights and liberties. Just an example.

[sxcalexc]

Thanks hard, do you suggest we talk about changes for all 4 areas of an effective legal system?

[hard]

no worries, amm depends if it says discuss 2 recommendations for further change in our legal system then you would obviously discuss two changes that could occur for either two of the elements or just one. It all depends on the question and the marks allocated.

[costargh]

I was told that a recent change shouldn't be too historic ( I hope that makes sense)
ie mentioning something that happend in 2002 is NOT recent. I think its sposed to be within the last 2 years.

I think in one of the assessment reports it talks about the use of 'recent changes' and how recent they should be and what is acceptable (maybe 2005? or 2006)

[hard]

michelle humphreys and a couple other lecturers have said and write in their notes that it should be within 10 years.

[costargh]

lol oh ok. well thats crap cause its not recent, they are just too lazy to update their notes. We had a lecturer last year specifically talk to us about the recent changes in the law for 1/3 of the lecture time at VCTA. I think they had the same thing going this year.

[hard]

yer 10 years isn't recent imo. But you know, lazy people all round.

[sxcalexc]

Do changes include new laws, is what i'd like to know? Or is it strictly reformations and additions to the legal system?

[costargh]

ASSESSMENT REPORT 2006 (note the date of this assessment report)

This question asked students to identify two recent changes to the legal system and then link that information to the legal system’s effective operation. Although many students made this connection, some only identified the changes without providing the link to an effective legal system.

Some students suggested that committal proceedings, tribunals and the provision of legal aid were ‘recent’; however, these processes have been a part of the legal system for many years. Better answers provided some recent examples as required by the question. Many of these answers mentioned the Koori Court, increased jurisdictions of courts and the introduction of pro bono schemes. Others suggested that judges play a more active role in judicial proceedings and some recommended that juries be required to provide reasons for their verdicts. These students showed a good awareness of the dynamic nature of the legal system and explained how these changes contributed to fair and unbiased hearings, timely resolution of disputes, access to dispute resolution and recognition of values. A small number of students identified changes to the law, such as changes to speed laws; however, this limited their answers because it was difficult to draw a connection to an effective legal system.

Following is an excerpt from a good answer.
One recent change that has been made to the legal system is the introduction of the Koori Court at both Magistrates and Children’s Court level. The Koori Court is a sentencing court that has a more informal atmosphere compared with a traditional court. For indigenous offenders the Koori Court offers a sentencing court (it is not a trial court) that recognises the cultural differences between indigenous Australians and the remainder of the population. By recognising these cultural differences the Koori Court aims to reduce the statistics of indigenous Australians in jail. This should increase the effectiveness of the legal system as it tries to recognise the human rights of this cultural group and ensure that the sentencing process is fair.

I'd be very careful about talking about things that were introduced quite a while ago.

I'd be inclined to think that if they said that 2 years ago, that it has some relevance for things that are no longer considred 'recent'
I'll see if I can find any info.

[sxcalexc]

A small number of students identified changes to the law, such as changes to speed laws; however, this limited their answers because it was difficult to draw a connection to an effective legal system.

Ah.. So it appears it is okay to do changes in the law, although it would be unwise to use changes to the law exclusively.

[costargh]

Yep I think that's the general gist.