I am presenting a paper on this topic at the November meeting of the Newcastle University Clinical Unit in Ethics and Health Law (CUEHL) this evening. A copy of the paper can be downloaded here:
Freedom of religion
Churches, Same-sex ministries and the law
I am delivering a seminar paper on the topic “Churches, Same-sex ministries and the law: discrimination and religious freedom” on August 20. For those who are interested, there is a copy of the paper here:
Dominic Steele, the organiser for the day, has kindly made this video of the presentation available as well:
Public servant sacked for social media comments
The High Court of Australia today, in Comcare v Banerji [2019] HCA 23 (7 August 2019), upheld as “reasonable”, and not unconstitutional, the decision of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to dismiss an employee who had made anonymous political comments about migration matters and government policies, contrary to various codes of conduct. The case provides interesting insights into the operation of the implied constitutional freedom of political communication. Many will see similarities with the dismissal of footballer Israel Folau for comments he shared about the Bible’s view of morality, but as we will see, while somewhat factually similar, the cases raise quite different issues.
Transgender discrimination law in Australia- uncertainties
It is not uncommon to find popular assertions , in relation to the legal treatment of transgender persons, that the law requires that a person who asserts they are of a different gender to their biological sex, be allowed to use bathrooms set aside for their chosen gender, or that they have a “right” to be addressed by the pronoun corresponding to that gender. In this post I want to point out that it seems quite arguable that the law in most of Australia does not have this effect. (I will comment briefly on recent changes in Tasmania which may have, though even there, the question is debatable.)
When is it appropriate for courts to decide religious doctrine?
I am presenting a paper today at the IVR2019 conference in Lucerne, Switzerland (a law and philosophy conference), entitled “Respecting the Dignity of Religious Organisations: When is it appropriate for Courts to decide Religious Doctrine?” For those who are interested, the paper can be downloaded here:
Further reflections on the Israel Folau affair
In a previous post I commented on the events surrounding celebrity rugby player Israel Folau’s posting on social media of a meme stating that various groups of sinners, including “homosexuals”, were destined for hell unless they repented and put their trust in Jesus Christ. He was immediately threatened with dismissal by his employer, Rugby Australia (“RA”), a threat subsequently implemented through an internal tribunal finding that he was guilty of a high level breach of the RA “code of conduct”.
It seems an appropriate point to comment on recent developments and to clarify what it seems Mr Folau’s legal options are.
Religious Freedom in Australia: SMBC “Hot Topic”
For those who are interested in religious freedom issues, I am speaking this coming Wednesday evening (May 1) at Sydney Missionary and Bible College in Sydney, from 7-9, as part of their “Hot Topics” series. Details (and registration) available at “Talk 9” on this link.
