by Chris Merritt | Oct 24, 2025 | Anti-Semitism, Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Freedom of Speech, Media Article
The next time someone criticises the NSW government for failing to do enough to fight anti-semitism, consider who is really to blame. Last week a court struck down a key part of that state’s efforts to protect the right of Jews to practise their religion free from...
by Chris Merritt | Jun 20, 2025 | Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Media Article, Rule of Law Issue
It’s early days in Michelle Rowland’s tenure as Attorney-General and much depends on what she eventually does, not what she says. But if she delivers on her rhetoric, the first law officer looks set to secure her place as a reformer by embarking on a long-overdue...
by Chris Merritt | May 16, 2025 | All Posts, Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Media Article, Rule of Law Issue
After her appointment this week as Attorney-General, Michelle Rowland made a brilliant move: she undertook to uphold the rule of law. That means she has set herself key performance indicators that go beyond the criteria for success that applied to her previous role as...
by Chris Merritt | Sep 13, 2024 | 18C, Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Freedom of Speech, Media Article
Mark Dreyfus has taken a big step in the right direction with federal hate-speech laws that target the most serious threat confronting the Jewish community. And he has done so while avoiding over-reach and eliminating a get-out-of-jail card for hate preachers that...
by Chris Merritt | Aug 9, 2024 | Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Media Article, Rule of Law Issue
As the peak national body of the legal profession, the Law Council faces a mighty challenge: distilling the views of 104,000 lawyers, sixteeen constituent bodies and the nation’s largest law firms. On some issues this must be difficult. But when it comes to the core...
by Chris Merritt | Jan 26, 2024 | Attorney General, Chris Merritt, Commentary, Media Article, Rule of Law Issue
When Mark Dreyfus unveiled his terms of reference for an inquiry into sexual assault law, he knew what he wanted. The Attorney-General specifically required the Australian Law Reform Commission to consider what happened at a meeting he convened on August 23 last...
