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« Previous EntriesMy star turn
Friday, July 16th, 2010The new TVNZ 7 show “The Court Report”, filmed at VUW law school, debuted yesterday. Criminal barrister Greg King hosts; I’m the roving reporter. Check it out here.
Illegal shepherding
Friday, July 9th, 2010Dear Sea Shepherd anti-whalers:
I see that you were happy to lie to the public about banning Peter Bethune from future voyages - as part of your litigation strategy.
I’m afraid I now assume that you’d be equally prepared to lie to the public as part of your PR strategy.
The case against Michael Reed
Friday, July 9th, 2010Michael Reed QC, Morning Report on Wednesday:
The jury were completely convinced that David hadn’t done it.
This betrays either a gob-smacking ignorance of fundamental principles of criminal law, or an intention to mislead the public about the significance of a not-guilty verdict.
Fortunately, one of the Bain jurors seems to understand the law better than Reed, as […]
Stormin’ Norman
Monday, June 21st, 2010So police have investigated the incident in which Greens leader Russel Norman claimed to have been assaulted by members of the Chinese delegation who wrenched a Tibetan flag from his grasp on the grounds of Parliament… and concluded that there is “insufficient evidence to substantiate any assault charges at this time”.
Police say the “available footage” […]
Siemer wins reduction in sentence for contempt
Tuesday, May 18th, 2010Vince Siemer has reshaped the law of contempt in New Zealand. The Supreme Court has ruled 3-2 that the Bill of Rights right to a jury trial applies to those charged with contempt, since they face potential jail terms of more than 3 months. But since it’s unfeasible to give all contempt respondents jury trials, […]
Hate speech
Monday, May 10th, 2010In recent issues of the Listener, Deborah Hill Cone has been upping the frequency of her snarky swipes at the left. Last week, she highlighted the irony of liberals who preach tolerance but try to “shut down” Ann Coulter’s speech. She suggested that “[c]onservative speakers can’t visit campuses in the US now without bodyguards”. What, […]
Sir Geoffrey Palmer: the fourth branch of government
Monday, May 10th, 2010A sentence from the Herald on Sunday’s story about Louise Nicolas’s objections to Clint Rickards’ presence of the duty solicitor roster caught my eye:
A lawyer, who did not want to be named for fear of punishment from the Law Commission, said there were many people at the courthouse “who don’t want the guy in the […]
America: Fuck yeah!
Thursday, May 6th, 2010The Onion reports on a US Supreme Court obscenity decision upholding First Amendment rights. Recommended, if only for the accompanying photograph.
Scotland’s Dunne v Canwest
Friday, April 30th, 2010Remember Peter Dunne’s successful legal action forcing his inclusion in TV3’s televised election debate?
The Scottish National party has tried it too. Not so successfully though.
[PS Decision here. A few notable things. First, it’s hard to disagree with the party’s claim that the debates really are extremely significant in determining electoral support. The Liberal Democrats’ bounce seems […]
Back on the block
Friday, April 23rd, 2010I’m back in Wellington after a sojourn in Melbourne for most of six months.
While we’re not talking about media law, I will take the opportunity to post the alternate version of the Australian national anthem I composed for them while I was over there. I have long been impressed by the line “Our home is girt by sea”. It’s pithy. […]