EVIDENCE OF A DIFFERENT NATURE: THE CHILD‐ RESPONSIVE AND LESS ADVERSARIAL INITIATIVES OF THE FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA

This article charts the constellation of vision and research that underpin a new era in the Family Court of Australia, focusing on the development and outcomes of two programs that have attempted to meaningfully reinforce the centrality of children's rights and needs in family court proceedings. The Less Adversarial Trial and its front‐end Child Responsive Program (CRP) both aim to minimise the potentially negative effects on parents of a litigation process by application of a more intensive case management model adopted with the intention of altering the parents’ experience of the journey. Key features of this approach include the adoption of inquisitorial techniques, which include direct consultation with children through the CRP, modified application of the rules of evidence, and strong judicial management rather than being party driven. Findings from two studies into the pilot Children's Cases Program (now the Less Adversarial Trial) and the CRP are discussed. Significantly, evidence is outlined around the capacity of the new processes to impact on both the co‐parenting and parent–child relationships and to influence short‐term adjustment of complex families in high‐conflict dispute. In encouraging a more active focus on children's needs and views and by facilitating a stronger voice for children in proceedings that affect them, both initiatives advance Australia's commitments under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.     

CHOOSE TO HUG,NOT HIT*

This article discusses reasonable chastisement of children as a defense by parents to assault charges. It suggests that its continued retention contravenes the rights of children and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. It compares developments in various countries, such as the Scandinavian countries and New Zealand, where the defense has been abolished, as compared with the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, where it has been retained. It suggests that its continued retention encourages bullying and violence in schools and in later adult life.     

论中国对《登记公约》的适用——以《空间物体登记管理办法》为中心

随着越来越多的空间物体射入外层空间,登记制度和《登记公约》也日益得到各国的重视。中国作为《登记公约》的缔约国,为了更好地履行公约的义务,并维护我国作为发射国的利益,发布实施了《空间物体登记管理办法》。目前我国的空间立法研究还很滞后,而《空间物体登记管理办法》是中国在航天领域唯一存在的两部规章制度之一,它的存在证明了我国空间立法能力,而且为以后的立法工作奠定了一定的基础。     

论《联合国反腐败条约》与我国刑事法之协调

2003年12月9日,中国政府签署了《联合国反腐败公约》。国际反腐败趋势及我国反腐败刑事立法与《联合国反腐败公 约》存在一些差异,我国刑事法应与《联合国反腐败公约》进一步协调。     

内阁集体负责制及其例外——英国宪政习惯研究

研究英国的内阁制度 ,离不开研究英国的宪政习惯 ,因为规制着英国内阁行为的政治规则不是一般意义上的法律 ,而是宪政习惯。内阁集体负责制是英国宪政的核心制度之一 ,通过考察和分析英国内阁集体负责制的特点和实际运作机制 ,可以清楚地看到宪政习惯是如何在英国的现实政治生活中发挥作用的     

The genie in the bottle: The international regulation of genetically modified organisms

Abstract

This paper describes the circumstances surrounding charges laid against a retail vendor of Traditional Asian Medicinals under Canada's Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRI‐ITA). The vendor was charged with selling a product containing species listed as Appendix I under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES).     

Police investigations in Internet open sources: Procedural-law issues

Analysing large amounts of data goes to the heart of the challenges confronting intelligence and law enforcement professionals today. Increasingly, this involves Internet data that are ‘open source’ or ‘publicly available’. Projects such as the European FP7 VIRTUOSO are developing platforms for open-source intelligence by law enforcement and public security, which open up opportunities for large-scale, automated data gathering and analysis. However, the mere fact that data are publicly available does not imply an absence of restrictions to researching them. This paper investigates one area of legal constraints, namely criminal-procedure law in relation to open-source data gathering by the police. What is the legal basis for this activity? And under what conditions can domestic and foreign open sources be investigated?