History
There has been a history of law reform in common law countries such as Australia. Prior to the establishment of the commission, various parliamentary inquiries, ad-hoc commissions (such as Commissioner’s Bigg report into the New South Wales legal system in 1820), or panels had advised on law reform. The commission was the first permanent body established in Australia to continually conduct and investigate law reform. It’s establishment is important as it was an independent body that could devote its deliberations full-time to examining law reform in the state The first real law reform commission in the state was one set up in 1870 by the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and set up by letters patent of 14 July 1870. The commission consisted of the five lawyers and the Chief Justice of New South Wales, Sir Alfred Stephen. This Commission prepared a draft bill to simplify equity procedure and indicated the need for consolidation and reform of lunacy, insolvency and jury laws. Its only success came long after the body lapsed with the eventual enactment of part of its proposed Criminal Law Consolidation and Amendment Bill in the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1883.
Read more about this topic: Law Reform Commission Of New South Wales
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“We are told that men protect us; that they are generous, even chivalric in their protection. Gentlemen, if your protectors were women, and they took all your property and your children, and paid you half as much for your work, though as well or better done than your own, would you think much of the chivalry which permitted you to sit in street-cars and picked up your pocket- handkerchief?”
—Mary B. Clay, U.S. suffragist. As quoted in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 4, ch. 3, by Susan B. Anthony and Ida Husted Harper (1902)
“I believe my ardour for invention springs from his loins. I can’t say that the brassiere will ever take as great a place in history as the steamboat, but I did invent it.”
—Caresse Crosby (1892–1970)
“It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature.”
—Henry James (1843–1916)