O7540 Justice

Trade backs ALP call on liquor laws

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Original article by Gareth Parker, Daniel Emerson, Gabrielle Knowles
The West Australian – Page: 16 : 29-Jan-15

Western Australian Opposition Leader Mark McGowan wants the views of tourism organisations to be considered in assessing applications for liquor licences. McGowan says outdated regulations affecting the hospitality industry should be scrapped, and he intends to pursue reforms to the Liquor Control Act if the Australian Labor Party wins the next state election

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WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Executives warned to look closely at redundancy clauses

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 29-Jan-15

A Supreme Court of New South Wales ruling has overturned a decision by the District Court that ex-UGL Rail Services executive John Janik was owed a redundancy payment worth $A288,000. The appeal judges found that the company was correct in arguing that the replacement for Janik was carrying out the same duties and the role had therefore not been abolished. Legal experts are advising dismissed managers to carefully consider whether to launch such law suits

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UGL LIMITED – ASX UGL, UGL RAIL SERVICES PTY LTD, HOLDING REDLICH LAWYERS AND CONSULTANTS, DISTRICT COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES

State’s new bail laws leave shooting accused in custody

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Original article by Paul Bibby
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 8 : 29-Jan-15

New bail laws came into effect on 28 January 2015 in New South Wales. One of the first defendants to be covered is a man who is already serving a prison term for making a death threat, but has become eligible for parole. He now faces charges stemming from a separate incident, of shooting with intent to murder, assaulting with intent to rob, and damaging property. The accused has sought conditional release, but this has been denied by District Court judge Gordon Lerve. The latter noted however that he would not have granted bail under the old laws either

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DISTRICT COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Australians think Andrew Chan & Myuran Sukumaran should be executed

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Morgan Poll Update – Page: Online : 27-Jan-15

A special snap SMS Morgan Poll has found that 52 per cent of Australians believe that Australians convicted of drug trafficking in another country and sentenced to death should be executed. The survey, which was carried out from 23-27 January 2015, also shows that 62 per cent of Australians believe that the Federal Government should not do more to stop the execution of Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan in Indonesia. Roy Morgan Research executive chairman Gary Morgan notes that 60 per cent of men are in favour of the death penalty for convicted drug traffickers, compared with only 46% of women

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MORGAN POLL, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Better data needed to track extent of family violence

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Original article by Craig Butt
The Age – Page: 6 : 27-Jan-15

Some improvement has been made in recent years to the collecting of domestic abuse data, raised as an issue by 2015 Australian of the Year and anti-violence campaigner Rosie Batty. Victorian Department of Justice statistics use formats that make exact interpretation very difficult, while Victoria Police is unable to collate its information on cases for release to the media. Personal safety data compiled by the Australian Bureau of Statistics suggest that close to 17% of women have been victims of physical violence perpetrated by a spouse or lover

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF JUSTICE, VICTORIA POLICE, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Last chance to join NAB action

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Original article by Georgia Wilkins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 27-Jan-15

Some 40,000 people so far have agreed to participate in a class action against National Australia (NAB) over exception fees. The deadline for taking part in the class action is 27 January 2015, and NAB indicated in late 2014 that it will seek to negotiate a settlement. Nine other banks are involved in a broader class action lawsuit over their fees. It is estimated that the banks could face a total payout of up to $A240m if they lose the case

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NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, FINANCIAL REDRESS PTY LTD, IMF BENTHAM LIMITED – ASX IMF, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD

Ex-Ausgrid worker ‘fudged the figures’

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Original article by Michaela Whitbourn
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 7 : 23-Jan-15

A former Ausgrid worker has allegedly manipulated some figures to help contractors win tenders from his company. The New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption was told on 22 January 2015 that the man received around $A300,000 in illegal payments from contactors, including Murray Civil Works and Bastow Civil Contractors

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NEW SOUTH WALES. INDEPENDENT COMMISSION AGAINST CORRUPTION, AUSGRID PTY LTD, BASTOW CIVIL CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, MURRAY CIVIL WORKS PTY LTD

Family violence ‘a form of terror’

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Original article by Nicola Berkovic
The Australian – Page: 3 : 23-Jan-15

Federal Circuit Court judge Joe Harman has awarded a mother the sole custody of her three children in a domestic violence case. Judge Harman likened the intimidating behaviour of the children’s father to a form of terrorism, and imposed a restraining order. Judge Harman also suggested that changes to Australia’s family law system may be needed to make it less adversarial

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FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Domestic violence falls with AVOs, survey finds

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Original article by Emma Partridge, Kerrie Armstrong
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 6 : 21-Jan-15

Don Weatherburn, director of the New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics & Research, urges women who are victims of domestic violence to take out apprehended violence orders (AVOs). He notes that a study by his agency shows AVOs are working , with the assaults ceasing in 98% of cases once the court rulings have been obtained. A majority of the 147 respondents in the survey also saw AVOs as effective. The results come after the tragic death of a Sydney woman killed by her husband despite an AVO having been issued

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NEW SOUTH WALES. BUREAU OF CRIME STATISTICS AND RESEARCH, WOMEN’S DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COURT ADVOCACY SERVICE NSW INCORPORATED

Murdered ‘angel with a bright smile’ tried to support husband

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Original article by Amy McNeilage,{SPAC}Kerrie Armstrong
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 6 : 19-Jan-15

A man has been charged with murder by New South Wales police, and will stand trial from 1 April 2015 in the Burwood Local Court. It is being alleged that the 33-year-old, who has been denied bail, killed his 26-year-old wife with a pair of scissors, and that he had a history of abuse behaviour toward her. He was already due to face court on counts of malicious damage and offensive behaviour. The couple were married in 2011

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NEW SOUTH WALES POLICE FORCE,{SPAC}LOCAL COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES