Never Been More Important Time To Defend Rule Of Law
The Law Council of Australia welcomes the swearing in today of new and returning Federal Ministers and looks forward to continuing its positive working relationships with members across the 48th Parliament.
“In particular, the Law Council is looking forward to working with the newly appointed Attorney-General, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP and we congratulate her on that appointment,” Law Council of Australia President, Juliana Warner said.
“The Attorney-General is the First Law Officer of our nation and a vitally important role.
“We commend the new Attorney-General for her public commitment to uphold the rule of law, strengthen integrity and maintain the public’s trust in Australia’s legal systems.
“There has never been a more important time to promote and defend the rule of law and the administration of justice.
“Our system of government is founded on rule of law principles developed for the benefit of us all. It contains core safeguards to protect individuals against injustice at the hands of centralised powers. We chip away at these safeguards at our peril.
“Vigilance is needed to ensure that the principles underpinning a rule of law-based democracy are well-understood and respected.
“These include that the law should be applied equally to all people and should not discriminate on arbitrary or irrational grounds, that all people are entitled to the presumption of innocence and to a fair and public trial, that all Australians should have access to a competent and independent lawyer of their choice in order to establish and defend their rights, and that the Judiciary should be independent of the Executive and the Legislature.
“I would like to thank the former Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP, for his hard work and commitment. Mr Dreyfus has twice served in this role and in his last term oversaw significant reforms and investment including in the area of family violence, the establishment of the National Anti-Corruption Commission and the Administrative Review Tribunal, new resourcing for justice reinvestment, and the introduction of the first wave of privacy reforms.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to build on this work with the Government over the next three years.”
https://www.lawcouncil.asn.au/media/media-releases/never-been-more-important-time-to-defend-the-rule-of-law