Entering the Australian Judiciary: Gender and Court Hierarchy

There is considerable attention to increasing judicial diversity along a range of dimensions, in particular, gender. Women remain underrepresented in many courts, especially at the higher levels of the judiciary. A comprehensive socio‐legal study of the Australian judiciary compares experiences and attitudes of women who have become judicial officers at different levels of the court hierarchy. Understanding their personal and professional backgrounds and the features that attracted them to the judiciary has important implications for addressing gender disparity. Effective recruitment and selection must focus on the expectations and experiences of women in relation to particular judicial contexts.     

Money on the Mainland

My arrival here in July marked a symbolic one-that of a fired, yet true emissary from a drifting America to a newly empowered People's Republic of China. My move emanated from a great job offer, of course, and, to a lesser degree, a lack of ways to make a decent living given the eco-nomic cauldron bubbling over back home.     

The Chinese and the Philippine Political Process

Philippine Chinese contributed liberally to politics but without asking anything openly for themselves. They habitually concealed their wealth, having been taught what comes of envy on the part of a government which they cannot control¹     

Why Interpret?

Abstract. My article is about legal interpretation, but not about the question: how to interpret the law. Rather its aim is to make us consider seriously the question: Why is interpretation central to legal practices? After all not all normative practices assign interpretation such a central role. In this regard the law contrasts with morality. The reason for the contrast has to do with the status of sources in the law. There are no “moral sources” while legal sources are central to the law. Legal interpretation is primarily—I will suggest—the interpretation not of the law, but of its sources. To understand why interpretation is central to legal practices requires understanding the role of sources in the law: the reasons for having them, and hence also the ways in which they should be treated. I will show how reflections about these topics connect with some traditional jurisprudential puzzles, such as the relations between law and morality. Are there gaps in the law? Is the law or its interpretation objective or subjective?