Home is where the heart of legal need is

AbstractPreliminary findings from the Legal Australia - Wide (LAW) Survey indicate that homeless people are an especially disadvantaged group who have increased vulnerability to a wide range of legal problems. The findings suggest that addressing the legal and non-legal needs of homeless people should be a priority and may require a holistic or client-focused approach, involving an integrated response from legal and broader human services

Reshaping Legal Services: Building on the Evidence Base

This report draws on more than a decade of empirical research evidence - together with current experience of service providers - to inform the design and delivery of efficient and effective legal assistance services. Written as a tool for policy makers, practitioners, service managers and researchers, the report highlights the key directions for reform suggested by research evidence, and identifies the benefits and challenges of different service options. Acknowledging current arrangements and resources, the report provides a basis for considering how to move from the theory to the practice of client-centred service delivery

Watched over or over-watched? Open street CCTV in Australia

Most developed countries, Australia included, are witnessing increased government and public concerns about crime and security. Amid these anxieties, closed circuit television (CCTV) systems to monitor public spaces are increasingly being touted as a solution to problems of crime and disorder. The city of Perth established Australia’s first open street closed circuit television system in July 1991. Subsequently, there has been significant expansion. At the end of 2002 Australia had 33 “open street” CCTV schemes. Based on site inspections, extensive reviews of documentation and interviews with 22 Australian administrators, this article discusses issues relating to system implementation, management and accountability.We also suggest ways relevant authorities might ensure that current and future schemes are appropriately audited and evaluated. We argue that rigorous independent assessment of both the intended and unintended consequences of open street CCTV is essential to ensure this measure is not deployed inappropriately. Finally, this article suggests any potential crime prevention benefits must be carefully weighed against the potential of CCTV to exacerbate social division and exclusion

Justice: Greater Access, Lower Costs

Litigation imposes large costs on society; this justifies settlement considerations. In any case, access to justice is critical to socioeconomic development; as such, it needs to be balanced with litigation minimization. This study examines the tradeoff between litigation and access to justice and explicitly elucidates their relationship. In considering access issues, this study finds that the outcomes of policies that affect parties’ litigation decisions partially depart from those in the standard literature. For instance, increasing parties’ litigation costs does not necessarily promote settlement in the shadow of the court. Rather, effects depend on the elasticity of the demand for legal remedies. Furthermore, even while pushing litigation, enhancing access to justice is efficient as long as the claimant’s marginal propensity to litigate is smaller than the social opportunity-cost of access to justice. This finding offers further insight into the suitability of litigation subsidization through legal aid

Targeting intervention strategies to reduce juvenile recidivism. by Christine Coumarelos and Don Weatherburn

Under the influence of labelling theory, juvenile justice policy has tended to emphasise the importance of diverting young offenders away from court. This emphasis has been reinforce by recent claims that community-based restorative sanctions, such as Community Aid Panels and Family Group Conferences are more effective in reducing juvenile recidivism than sending young offenders to court

ii Policing Pubs: Evaluation of Licensing Enforcement Strategy PREFACE

Increasing attention is being paid by law enforcement authorities to the role of licensed premises in the management of street offences such as assault, malicious damage to property and offensive conduct. In part this is due to the results of studies which have consistently shown that a high proportion of these offences occur either in or around licensed premises. It is also partly due to a realization that police efforts to reduce the incidence of street offences are only likely to be successful if members of the community play an active role in limiting the opportunities and incentives for such offences. A landmark study by Jeffs and Saunders in the United Kingdom in 1983 has given particular impetus to police efforts to try to limit excessive consumption of alcohol on licensed premises as a means of reducing the level of assault, malicious damage to property and offensive conduct. Jeffs and Saunders examined the impact of a policing strategy undertaken in Torquay, England, designed to enhance the enforcement of licensing legislation in that town. They found a significant drop in assault, malicious damage to property and offensive conduct after police officers began an enforcement regime involving regular but unpredictable visits to licensed premises to check for breaches of licensing laws