LAW IN CONTEXT PODCast
WELCOME TO THE LAW IN CONTEXT PODCAST
LAW IN CONTEXT began as a book in 1991 and is now also a podcast series designed to introduce law in a critical way to the general public, current students and those thinking of taking up the subject.
Season 1 in 2024 contained 15 episodes designed as a primer for those interested in the fundamentals of common law systems and how they differ from other legal systems.
Season 2 in 2025 takes a deeper dive into the fascinations of Law in Context.
latest episodes
episode 20 – PUNISHMENT
Everyone agrees that Crime and Punishment go together. But that’s where the agreement ends. There are multiple aims of punishment: to inflict retribution (an eye for an eye); to deter others; to incapacitate the offender so the public is protected in the meantime; and to rehabilitate the offender so they do not re-offend after the sentence is over.
Juggling with these aims requires the judge to exercise discretion and to weigh up the aims of sentencing against the circumstances of the exact offence.
Sometimes, legislatures try to tie the hands of judges with some kind of mandatory sentence, and the whole area becomes politicised.
In this episode we discuss the aims, forms and difficulties of punishing crimes in today’s world.
episode 19 – IT’S A CRIME! CRIMINAL LAW IN CONTEXT
Most people are fascinated by crime, at least if they are at a safe distance from it. It is the stuff of popular culture and serious scholarship. Theories abound. Might a certain amount of it be good for society if it reminds everyone of how they should behave? Or is criminalising certain behaviour a way of oppressive governments maintaining control?
In this episode we discuss how criminal law differs from other branches of law. It is public. It leads to punishment. It has separate procedures and a higher standard of proof.
We take two crimes – murder and theft – and discuss each of their elements, as examples of how the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the actus reus – the guilty act(s) – and the men rea – the guilty mind.
We look at defences, such as insanity, duress, necessity and automatism.
If you read, watch or listen to crime dramas, this episode gives you the foundations of the law that applies to them.
episode 18 – FEDERAL/STATE – HOW IT ALL WORKS
Like many countries in the world, Australia is a federation; it has more than one tier of government. In this nail-biting episode, the Two Steves explain how our system came about, with the former colonies being given all legislative powers except to the extent that those powers were given and exercised by the Commonwealth. The territories and local government are further tiers, which seems quite enough for a country of 25 million people.
What can be a baffling year-long unit in a law degree, is explained succinctly by your hosts in 10 minutes! We move from the defence of the realm to the collection of our garbage.