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Full-Text Articles in Law
A Theory Of The Perverse Verdict, Bethel G.A Erastus-Obilo
A Theory Of The Perverse Verdict, Bethel G.A Erastus-Obilo
Bethel G.A Erastus-Obilo
The concept of a perverse verdict is one that pervades the Criminal justice system of nearly all common law jurisdictions. The English Criminal Justice system is no exception and the concept has become institutionalised as if it were a true occurrence. This paper challenges the idea and argues that it is, technically, a legal non-event given the system of trial by jury. The theory is that besides the jury, no one else is invested with the power and authority to declare a verdict and this position is supported both by legal custom and the mechanism of the criminal justice system. …
Bargaining With Double Jeopardy, Saul Levmore, Ariel Porat
Bargaining With Double Jeopardy, Saul Levmore, Ariel Porat
Ariel Porat
Virtually every burden of proof is influenced by a rule regarding relitigation. In criminal law, the prosecutor is prevented from repeatedly drawing from the urn, as it were, by the double jeopardy rule, which reinforces the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard. We suggest that if law were to permit the defendant to waive the double jeopardy protection, private and social benefits might follow. The benefits derive from the likelihood that the prosecutor – like most people who can take a test but once – will overinvest in preparation. Somewhat similarly, though far afield, deficit spending by a legislature might be linked to the …
Imprisoning Rationalities, Eileen Baldry, David Brown, Mark Brown, Chris Cunneen, Melanie Schwartz, Alex Steel
Imprisoning Rationalities, Eileen Baldry, David Brown, Mark Brown, Chris Cunneen, Melanie Schwartz, Alex Steel
Alex Steel
Imprisonment is a growth industry in Australia. Over the past 30-40 years all state and territory jurisdictions have registered massive rises in both the absolute numbers of those imprisoned and the per capita use of imprisonment as a tool of punishment and control. Yet over this period there has been surprisingly little criminological attention to the national picture of imprisonment in Australia and to understanding jurisdictional variation, change and continuity in broader theoretical terms. This article reports initial findings from the Australian Prisons Project, a multi-investigator Australian Research Council funded project intended to trace penal developments in Australia since about …
Both Giving And Taking: Should Misuse Of Atms And Electronic Payment Systems Be Theft, Fraud Or Neither?, Alex Steel
Both Giving And Taking: Should Misuse Of Atms And Electronic Payment Systems Be Theft, Fraud Or Neither?, Alex Steel
Alex Steel
Although transactions via automatic teller machines and other computerised cash payment systems are now very widespread the criminal law relating to their misuse remains confused. Unauthorised withdrawals can be prosecuted as both theft and fraud. By contrast, similar behaviour involving interactions with human tellers is generally not criminal. The result is a deeply flawed and contradictory legal landscape. This article provides an analysis and critique of the case law and legislation that has led to this result and proposes an alternative statutory offence that better reflects the commercial and consumer realities of electronic transactions.
Commercial Fraud: Cases And Commentary (2011 Edition), Alex Steel
Commercial Fraud: Cases And Commentary (2011 Edition), Alex Steel
Alex Steel
This monograph - published online - is a detailed analysis of theft and fraud laws in NSW. It was developed for UNSW Law students because of a lack of any up to date commercially published text on theft and fraud. It contains extracts and commentary on all key offences and caselaw. It has been substantially revised to account the introduction of new fraud offences in NSW in 2010. The law was current as of 2011.