Selected Issues in Criminal Law and Procedure

This course will explore a series of topics in criminal law in greater depth than is possible in the compulsory course. Comparisons among the law of the Australian States and with other countries, both within and outside the common-law world, will be made. Topics will be chosen for their contemporary relevance, practical importance and suitability for in-depth academic analysis. The topics may include: whether the criminal law should be codified; sexual offences and the concept of consent; the law of intoxication; the law of complicity; child exploitation material and related offences; the impact of technology on the substantive criminal law (e.g. revenge porn) and on criminal procedure (e.g. juries and social media); double jeopardy and D.N.A. evidence; identity fraud; the role of the Director of Public Prosecutions and defence counsel, both generally and in relation to victims; propensity issues in criminal evidence : the rape shield law and similar fact evidence; the right to silence; the interaction between constitutional and criminal law; sentencing; and other issues as selected by the teaching staff. On completion of this course students will be able to analyse at an advanced level important current topics in the criminal law (including the law of evidence) from a variety of perspectives. Students will also have the ability to apply criminal law to complex issues and critique the operation of criminal law from a variety of perspectives.