Conduct a law reform inquiry

Getting started

• Ensure that students understand these key terms:
  • • Law reform – the process of examining existing laws and advocating for change in order to make the legal system more modern, efficient, simple and/or just.
    • Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) – an independent body that undertakes research and recommends reform on topics selected by the Attorney-General of Australia.
    • Attorney-General of Australia – a minister in the Australian Government and the chief law officer of the Commonwealth of Australia.
• Use the Active and engaged citizens discussion starters to prompt debate about how citizens can influence law reform.
• Brainstorm examples of changes to Australian laws:  
  • • What significant changes have students seen in their lifetime?
    • What historical changes do they know of?
    • You may wish to discuss Carly’s Law, marriage equality or gun law reform as historic examples. Discuss why these changes came about and what factors drive law reform.
• Ensure the class has a shared understanding of what law reform is and the role of the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) in the process. Emphasise to students the influence that submissions lodged by members of the public and organisations can have on the law reform process.
• Visit the Australian Law Reform Commission’s website to explore past and present inquiries they have conducted. As a class, discuss the following questions:
  • • Which individuals and organisations might prepare a submission for these inquiries?
    • Why it is important to receive submissions from a broad range of stakeholders?
    • Why might individuals and groups want to contribute to an inquiry?

Activity (60 minutes)

1. As a class, brainstorm current issues in Australia that could be the subject of a law reform inquiry. Remind students law reform usually responds to an identified problem or need. In their opinion, what are some laws or features of the legal system they feel are unfair, out-dated or difficult to access? What are some issues in society that could be better regulated by the law?
2. Divide students into teams of 3–4. Each team must decide on a law reform issue to investigate further. Alternatively, you may wish to act as the Attorney-General and assign topics to teams that are relevant to your unit of study. Below are some broad topics students may wish to use as a starting point:
   • • Homelessness
     • Cyber-bullying
     • Incarceration of children
     • Truth in political advertising
     • Data privacy
     • E-scooters
     • Anti-discrimination 
     • Environmental protection
3. Students research their chosen topic in their groups. You may wish to use the Law reform graphic organiser to help them structure their research. Remind students that while they may have already formed views on the issue, their aim is to research a range of perspectives and viewpoints.
4. To shape their research, students should:
   • • brainstorm inquiry questions in their teams.
     • investigate existing laws that relate to their topic.
     • investigate stakeholder perspectives.
5. Optional step: groups invite submissions from peers, parents, teachers and other community members. Groups will need to decide how to collect this data (for example, a survey or inviting respondents to write a short paragraph). Doing this will bring an element of authenticity to the inquiry process.
6. Groups will need to review their research and submissions and consider potential recommendations. Each group should be able to answer the following questions:
   • • Are there recurring points of view?
     • Do some perspectives conflict?
     • Will it be possible to make recommendations that satisfy all stakeholders? If not, whose interests will you prioritise and why?
7. Each group prepares a list of recommendations about what specifically should be done to better address the issue.
8. The groups present their recommendations to the class.

Discussion questions

• Did you already have an opinion on the issue you investigated before you began researching? What was the basis for this opinion?
• Where do you think your viewpoints on political and social issues come from?
• What is the value of having an independent law reform commission which is not part of the government or Australian Parliament?

Extension

Students can present their findings to a citizens’ jury. Explain that the function of citizens’ juries is to deliberate and collaboratively decide on changes to law and/or policy after listening to and discussing expert evidence. Citizens’ juries make these recommendations to lawmakers and other decision makers. Today, your class will be the jury.

Decide as a class how your citizens’ jury will make decisions. Will all members need to agree to a recommendation? Or will you require a ‘super majority’ (80% in agreement) or be satisfied with an absolute majority (more than 50%)?

Invite groups to present the findings of their law reform inquiry to the citizens’ jury. The presenting group are experts on their issue and the rest of the class is the citizen jury. The presenting group should not try to persuade the jury to accept a point of view but should educate them on the range of viewpoints they have gathered. Each group will present 3 of their recommendations.

After each presentation, the citizens’ jury discusses the arguments for and against the recommendations before taking a vote on each one.

• Bills and laws
• Years 9+10
• Senior secondary