Practical advice on real-world problems

You are here:

Practical advice on real-world problems

Friday, 21 October 2022

Tags:

As Australians are aware, there are significant differences in legal rights across the world in areas such as freedom of expression, sexual offences, prisoner rights, reproductive rights, the use of social media and the right to information.

A number of SBL Law team members are making a practical contribution to knowledge and practice in these and other areas through comparative law; the comparison of legal systems that is used for theoretical and practical purposes.

Associate Professor Joshua Aston has co-edited ‘Comparative Law: Facets, Nuances and Intricacies’ with Ken Yin, Dr Nikos Koutras, Dr Tanzim Afroz and Associate Professor Prafula Pearce also contributing chapters.

The book considers similarities and differences in areas of law with a focus on India and Australia but also with reference to Canada, USA, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Joshua said that the topics being discussed demonstrate the deep similarities in the legal traditions of the countries of the contributing authors, as well as the differences between them.

“A chapter on modern slavery, for example, will not only have relevance for countries needing updated protections and penalties.

‘It is also valuable for Australian companies that need to ensure that their products are produced free from slavery and other worker exploitation. As we have seen, even when companies believe their supply chains are ‘slave free’, this hasn’t always been the case. Understanding how the country of production manages worker exploitation will help ethical decision making’.

Prafula Pearce has co-authored the chapter on shipbreaking laws with reference to India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. This work is important as it uses international experience, including Australian Law, to help address worker exploitation.

‘This is particularly important’, she explained, ‘where a worker dies or is seriously injured. In many countries families are left without compensation even when the cause is employer negligence’.

Associate Professor Aston’s co-editors are Professor Aditya Tomer and Dr Vaishali Aurora who are both with India’s Amity Law School. Associate Professor Aston said that the book will be used to inform judicial training and will be a valuable resource for research.

The book is published by Thomson Reuters. The Honourable Justice Deepak Mishra, former Chief Justice of India has written the Foreword for this book and the Introductory Chapter is written by The Honourable Justice Indira Banerjee, Judge Supreme Court of India.

School of Business and Law