The Weekly News Roundup - 11th March 2019

MONDAY 11TH 

US women's national team take legal action over discrimination

All 28 members of the United States women's national team squad have begun legal action against the US Soccer Federation (USSF), just months before defending the Women's World Cup title.

Queensland drivers involved in road rage attacks against other motorists would spend up to five years in jail and be fined thousands of dollars under laws proposed by the Liberal National Party. Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington on Sunday said road rage threatened the lives of drivers, passengers and the public.

Should Michael Jackson, R. Kelly abuse claims be heard on TV, or in a court?

The offences they detail allegedly happened up to 30 years ago, but the TV documentaries 'Leaving Neverland' and 'Surviving R. Kelly' could hardly be more timely. Both give victims a platform to detail sexual abuse they claim was perpetrated on them as minors by two of the world's biggest pop stars, Michael Jackson and Robert (R) Kelly. Both suggest the acquittal of those men on child sexual abuse charges says more about the failings of the legal system than it does about their innocence. And both exist only because the West is now in the midst of a reckoning on such matters. 

Postie awarded almost half a million dollars for being hit on the job

Trevor Steed was a postie with 25 years experience when his career was abruptly derailed in 2014 when he was hit by a car on his delivery route. Now, after years of pain and mental anguish, Mr Steed was awarded almost half a million dollars in the ACT Supreme Court.

TUESDAY 12TH

ASIC accuses big four banks of dragging feet on fees-for-no-service response

The corporate regulator has slammed Australia’s major banks for failing to complete further investigations into fees charged to customers who did not receive the services they paid for. The fees-for-no-service scandal was like “taking money for nothing”, banking royal commissioner Kenneth Hayne said.

Legal advice website for domestic violence survivors launches in 23 languages

Reflecting on her experience, Ms Natoli views the new Family Violence Law Help website by Legal Aid NSW on behalf of National Legal Aid as an important resource.

Australia defends 'foreign agents' law despite few declarations

Australia's attorney-general Monday defended a register meant to track the role of foreign agents in local politics, saying it was already changing behaviour despite only a handful of declarations.

Who is a parent? Sperm donor heads to the High Court to clarify parental rights

A sperm donor and the mother of his biological child are headed to the High Court to determine his parental rights, in a case that has sparked calls for pre-conception agreements in Australia. The Newcastle man, known in court documents as Robert Masson, is seeking to be recognised as a legal parent in a bid to stop the mother and 12-year-old daughter moving to New Zealand.

WEDNESDAY 13TH 

Cardinal Pell being sentenced for sexually abusing two choirboys

County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd has sentenced Cardinal George Pell to six years' jail for sexually abusing two choirboys when he was Catholic archbishop of Melbourne in the 1990s.

Married At First Sight’s first legal battle isn’t a separation

The show, billed as a “social experiment” has polarised Australian viewers in recent weeks, and now an interesting legal suit is now potentially brewing between two of the “married contestants” over the taping of a private phone conversation.

Marc Jacobs attempts to dismiss copyright lawsuit from Nirvana

Lawyers for fashion designer Marc Jacobs have filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit made against him by the estate of the band Nirvana, which accuses him of copyright infringement.

NSW Bar pushes back against Daley’s claim of breaches of public trust and law

The president of the NSW Bar Association has responded to claims made by the state’s Opposition Leader about supposed breaches of public trust and the law in last week’s election debate.

THURSDAY 14TH

NSW Premier warns Labor deal could weaken state's gun laws

Premier Gladys Berejiklian has warned Labor's preference deal with the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party could result in NSW gun laws being weakened. The premier attacked Labor for preferencing the Shooters in several country seats during a trip to the state's northern rivers on Wednesday.

We need a law against risky goods (that's right, we don't have one)

It not against the law to sell unsafe products in Australia. Unlike Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Singapore, and Malaysia, there isn’t legislation preventing the supply of dangerous products on our shelves.

Your funeral rights and how to avoid disputes

Anna Hacker, national manager estate planning at Australian Unity Trustees, says disputes over funeral arrangements, including costs and burial or cremation, are common. Some even end up in court.

FRIDAY 15TH

Christchurch mosques targeted in mass shootings; multiple people dead with one suspect in custody

Multiple people are dead and one person is in custody after mass shootings in two Christchurch mosques, in what Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has labelled "one of New Zealand's darkest days".

This is why we don't leave justice in the hands of victims

As County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd methodically went about sentencing George Pell this week, it occurred to me that he took a position very few have taken, at least in public. In this most polarised of public dramas, Chief Judge Kidd was a meticulously moderate character: a mix of just rage and compassion - not just for Pell's victims, but for the convicted cardinal himself. 

Developer Harry Triguboff sues Gladys Berejiklian over Ryde tower plan

Billionaire developer Harry Triguboff's company has launched legal action against Premier Gladys Berejiklian in an attempt to win approval to build a divisive residential tower in north-west Sydney. 

Illegally obtained audio recordings used to jail New South Wales child abuser

A magistrate in a New South Wales court has taken the unusual step of accepting illegally obtained audio recordings as evidence, saying she would have been unable to proceed if it weren't for the covert recording devices, planted by a victim's family.

Dump truck operator back pay decision highlights mess of 'casual' work

In August 2018, a Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia found that Mr Paul Skene, a "casual" dump truck operator who had been sacked, was entitled to be back-paid annual leave under the Fair Work Act for the two odd years he had worked for the employer. That decision has made employers angry, and there is now legislation before Federal Parliament trying to fix the "mess" of casual employment. But what is all the fuss about?