Australia

Overview

Australia is a stable, culturally diverse and democratic society with a skilled workforce and a strong, competitive economy. With a population of more than 21 million, Australia is the only nation to govern an entire continent. It is the earth’s biggest island and the sixth-largest country in the world in land area.

Australia is one of the world’s oldest landmasses and has been populated by human beings for an estimated 60 000 years. Before the arrival of European settlers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples inhabited most areas of the continent. Australia’s contemporary history is relatively short, with the first European settlement established by Great Britain on 26 January 1788.

Government

Australia’s system of government is founded in the liberal democratic tradition. Based on the values of religious tolerance, freedom of speech and association, and the rule of law, Australia’s institutions and practices of government reflect British and North American models. At the same time, they are uniquely Australian.

The supreme law-making institution in Australia—the federal Parliament—has two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Members of the House of Representatives seek re-election each time there is a federal election. The House of Representatives currently has 150 members elected by preferential voting. Proportional representation is used in the Senate.

Voting is compulsory both at federal elections and at elections for the state and territory legislatures.

Demography

There are more than 21 million people resident in Australia.

They come from a wide range of backgrounds:

• Indigenous peoples who have inhabited Australia for up to 60 000 years
• descendants of the British who set up colonies on the Australian continent in the 1700s
• Europeans and others who migrated to Australia as the colonies grew, formed a federation in 1901 and the new nation evolved
• more recent immigrants from Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Economy

Australia has one of the strongest economies in the world, with almost two consecutive decades of growth and the unemployment rate falling to generational lows. As a result of nearly three decades of structural and policy reforms the economy is flexible, resilient and increasingly integrated with global markets.

Since 1991, Australia’s real economy has grown by an average of 3.3 per cent a year. Australia’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2007 (in value terms) was around $1 trillion. Unemployment has also fallen, from a peak of almost 11 per cent 15 years ago to below 5 per cent in 2008—the lowest level since the 1970s.

Legal System

Court structure and the legal system

The Australian legal system is based on a fundamental belief in the rule of law, justice and the independence of the judiciary. All people—Australians and non-Australians alike—are treated equally before the law and safeguards exist to ensure that people are not treated arbitrarily or unfairly by governments or officials.

The Commonwealth and the States and Territories commonly have three different levels of courts of general jurisdiction to hear matters of varying levels of complexity. For example, in New South Wales, the Supreme Court is at the top of the hierarchy, and so it has jurisdiction to hear the most important and complex matters. The District Court hears matters of medium importance and complexity, and the Local Court hears relatively less serious matters.

There are also three levels of general Federal courts: the High Court, the Federal Court, and the Federal Magistrates Service. These courts were established to hear and determine matters arising under Commonwealth laws. The High Court is at the top of the hierarchy of Federal courts. It is also at the top of the hierarchy of State courts, because decisions of State Supreme Courts may be able to be appealed to the High Court. The High Court is the ultimate court of appeal in Australia.

Judiciary

In Australia, constitutions or statutes provide for appointment of judges by the Executive arm of government. Judges of courts that are established under the Commonwealth Constitution (the High Court, the Federal Court and the Federal Magistrates Court) are appointed by the Commonwealth Government. Judges of courts established by a State are appointed by the State Government.

Although the appointment of a judge is made formally by the Governor-General (for a judge of a Federal court) or a State Governor (for a judge of a State court), the decision about who should be appointed is usually based on the recommendation of the Prime Minister or Premier. There are generally statutory criteria for eligibility to be appointed as a judge (such as legal qualifications and a minimum period of practice as a lawyer). Appointees are generally lawyers with extensive experience as a practising barrister (that is, representing clients in court), but solicitors (lawyers who advise clients but do not generally appear in court) and law academics are sometimes also appointed as judges.