Dr Robert Cavanagh
BA, LittB, LLB, LLM, PhD
Areas of Interest
- Coronial Law
- Anti-terrorism Law
- Human RIghts
- Criminal Law
- Fundamental Legal RIghts
Biography
Dr Cavanagh has practiced as a barrister since 1985 and worked predominantly in the areas of coronial and criminal law in Australia. He has completed post graduate research in coronial law and practice, anti-terrorism laws, human rights, and fundamental legal rights.
His career interests have focussed on the importance of human rights and assisting both people and systems in areas of need. These interests have seen him carry on a wide array of activities including instructing for veterans at the Royal Commission into British Nuclear Tests in Australia, appearing for the Committee to Defend Black Rights and families at the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, Senior Public Defender Solomon Island, advising for aid agencies on legal issues in East Timor, Papua New Guinea and Zimbabwe, senior lecturer in law.
Growth of Restrictions on Fundamental Legal Rights since 2001
September 11 heralded many changes across the world. In Australia, one of those changes was a move toward greater restrictions on fundamental legal rights. This article explores some of those changes.
The Use of Fear to Achieve Compliance and the Acceptance of Injustice
We are physiologically ‘designed’ to feel and respond to fear. Almost universally, we use fear in our interactions with others. However, it is also a tool for politicians to ensure the population remains complaint and accepts injustice.
Dead or Alive
In colonial times the emphasis was on controlling convicts, eliminating bushrangers, and expropriating Aboriginal land by force frequently involving murder. These activities paid little, if any, attention to due legal processes or fundamental legal rights.
Legal Rights Designed to Protect Against Miscarriage of Justice and Limitations
The legal rights outlined are particularly important in providing safeguards against abuses by governments and their agents. The fundamental rights, developed over hundreds of years, have been adopted in international treaties. Some of the rights along with the reasons for their existence are detailed to provide an understanding of their importance and fragility.
The Mark Basa Story
Justice is not a not a simple concept that is only employed by those sitting in judgement on others in courts. Its application can be
Miscarriage of Justice Cases in Australia & the Corruption That Provides the Foundation
This article provides an historical review of injustice in the Australian legal system.
Turner contends that there was a complex relationship between the government, the judiciary and the police that involved ‘an unacknowledged agreement’ where ‘law enforcement is based on violence [that] almost necessarily involves malpractice’ and ‘[y]et none of this can be admitted by Government or Bench, because to do so would be to undermine an institution on which the power of judges and politicians depends’. In the end, corruption provides the foundation for injustice to occur.
Education & Court Admissions
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Serious Results
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Attorneys
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