Judges and Judging: Today's Challenges

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2009:

Objectives:

A student who has successfully completed this subject should:

• Understand how judges work in the common law tradition, the challenges to carrying out their role and ways in which the work of a judge can be facilitated by counsel, solicitors and parties
• Be aware of the role of judges as part of present-day expectations of litigation
• Be aware of similarities and differences in the work of judges and courts in a range of jurisdictions, including Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and the countries of the Asia-Pacific region
• Be able to apply their learning to critically analyse and develop law reform proposals involving and affecting judges and courts.

Syllabus:

Principal topics will include consideration, analysis, examination and discussion of present-day issues affecting judges and judging, including:

• The role of judges in a representative democracy
• Governance issues in courts
• The relative merit and content of guidelines and codes of conduct for judges
• Comparison of the judicial role in adversarial and civil systems
• Global statements of the objectives of courts and judges
• The ethical implications of impartiality
• Judicial selection methods
• Judicial training requirements pre and post appointment
• The management of justice
• The judicial role in taking expert evidence Judges and self-represented litigants
• Accountability: Complaints and discipline
• Preparing reasons for decision
• Orality in argument and the role of written submissions
• Coping with the media
• Maintaining public confidence
• Cultural issues in litigation: Indigenous litigation
• Judges and the cost of litigation
• The special role of Chief Justices
• Judges and technology
• Ethical impacts beyond the court
• Future developments and proposals for law reform of the role of judges and court.

• Research paper 10,000 words (100%) (19 November) (topic approved by the subject coordinator)

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

Objectives:

A student who has successfully completed this subject should:

• Understand how judges work in the common law tradition, the challenges to carrying out their role and ways in which the work of a judge can be facilitated by counsel, solicitors and parties
• Be aware of the role of judges as part of present-day expectations of litigation
• Be aware of similarities and differences in the work of judges and courts in a range of jurisdictions, including Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and the countries of the Asia-Pacific region
• Be able to apply their learning to critically analyse and develop law reform proposals involving and affecting judges and courts.

Syllabus:

Principal topics will include consideration, analysis, examination and discussion of present-day issues affecting judges and judging, including:

• The role of judges in a representative democracy
• Governance issues in courts
• The relative merit and content of guidelines and codes of conduct for judges
• Comparison of the judicial role in adversarial and civil systems
• Global statements of the objectives of courts and judges
• The ethical implications of impartiality
• Judicial selection methods
• Judicial training requirements pre and post appointment
• The management of justice
• The judicial role in taking expert evidence Judges and self-represented litigants
• Accountability: Complaints and discipline
• Preparing reasons for decision
• Orality in argument and the role of written submissions
• Coping with the media
• Maintaining public confidence
• Cultural issues in litigation: Indigenous litigation
• Judges and the cost of litigation
• The special role of Chief Justices
• Judges and technology
• Ethical impacts beyond the court
• Future developments and proposals for law reform of the role of judges and court.

• Research paper 10,000 words (100%) (19 November) (topic approved by the subject coordinator)