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The Online Safety Act 2021 is introducing a national rule that under 16s must not hold accounts on “age restricted social media platforms.” This a blatant attack on the rights of young Australians and we can’t accept it. Why we say it’s unconstitutional - The High Court has long held that our Australian Constitution implies a freedom to communicate on political and government matters. In this case, the government’s purpose - protecting children from demonstrable online harms - is legitimate and serious. But a measure is only constitutional if, in substance, it burdens political communication no more than reasonably necessary to achieve that purpose. Instead, the SMMA blocks a whole class of Australians - all young people, each and every one of them, no matter their circumstance’s - from the very online spaces where news is consumed, representatives are contacted, campaigns are organised and public debate occurs. That effective exclusion places a heavy burden on political communication and fails proportionality because less restrictive and workable alternatives exist (parental consent pathways for 14-15 year olds, platform duty of care and safe design settings, targeted moderation/takedown, age appropriate feature gating rather than bans, digital literacy programs, and privacy preserving age assurance). These measures are feasible at scale and already reflected in overseas practice.
The Whitlam Dismissal - 11 November 1975 - Anne Twomey - YouTube
This video, which is one in a long series on the Whitlam Dismissal, focusses on the day - 11 November 1975. It was partly filmed in the Governor-General's office, in the room where it happened - thanks to the permission of the Governor-General, Her Excellency the Hon Ms Sam Mostyn AC, who very kindly let me commandeer her office for a few minutes after we had made a separate video together.
Ex-judge admits doubts over landmark ‘pro-trans’ ruling [The Australian paywall]
The former chief justice who led Australia’s Family Court when it green-lit liberalised access of puberty blockers to gender-distressed children in the 2010s reveals she now has doubts about the ruling.
In this episode, Foley's List barrister Rohan Hoult and Lee Formica, Partner at Lander & Rogers, reminisce about the early days, sharing personal stories and experiences from that time. Later, Dr Aaron Lane outlines three key reasons people buy cryptocurrency and explains how digital transactions can sometimes be easier to trace than traditional bank transfers.
Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper and Sarah Krasnostein’s The Mushroom Tapes is sensitive, insightful and even funny.
The issues raised by Father typically would not result in a reported opinion. We report this case, however, to address a problem that is recurring in courts around the country, i.e., the use of AI to draft briefs or other pleadings, resulting in incorrect, inaccurate, or fictitious case citations. Mother’s brief in this case is replete with citation irregularities. These irregularities include citations to multiple fictitious cases, as well as misquoted passages and citations to cases that do not support the proposition for which they are cited. Before addressing the merits of the issues raised, we address this problem. We do so as a warning to others and to determine the court’s appropriate response in this case.
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