Justice with Jon Faine

Australia has become a defamation hotspot. Are our politicians, whose own attacks in Parliament are protected by privilege, overdoing it? Jason Bosland explains.

Melbourne Law School and host Jon Faine bring you Justice: a biweekly podcast about the law behind the news.  In this episode, Associate Professor Jason Bosland explains what defamation is and why politicians sue over it, updates to Australian defamation law, and why some deserve to succeed in their court cases.  Further reading:  * Melbourne Law School’s Dr Jessica Lake explains what the Higgins v Reynolds ruling tells us about defamation in Australia [https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/what-the-brittany-higgins-ruling-tells-us-about-defamation-in-australia]    Cases mentioned in this episode:  * Reynolds v Higgins (2025) WASC 345  * [2022] FCA 1235 - Burston v Hanson [https://jade.io/summary/mnc/2022/FCA/1235]  * Palmer v McGowan (No 6) [2022] FCA 927 [https://www.judgments.fedcourt.gov.au/judgments/Judgments/fca/single/2022/2022fca0927]  * Greenwich v Latham [2024] FCA 1050 [https://www.judgments.fedcourt.gov.au/judgments/Judgments/fca/single/2024/2024fca1050]  * Hanson-Young v Bauer Media Ltd [2013] NSWSC 1306  Russell v Australian Broadcasting Corporation [2023] FCA 38  * Russell v Australian Broadcasting Corporation [2023] FCA 38  Justice is a podcast of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we record, publish, work, learn and live.

The issue of Aboriginal sovereignty can be heard by the High Court, new research has found. Could this be the next Mabo? Dr Olivia Barr explains.

It has long been a legal truism that the High Court does not have the power to rule on issues of Aboriginal sovereignty, or the right to self-govern. But this idea is based on a legal misunderstanding, argues Associate Professor Olivia Barr.     Further reading from this episode:  * You can read Olivia’s journal article here  [https://www.unsw.edu.au/content/dam/pdfs/law/unsw-law-journal/2020-2029/2026/Issue%2049(1)%2003%20Barr.pdf] * Read more about the soco-economic benefits of modern treaties in Canada here [https://bctreaty.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Deloitte-BCTC-FinalReport.pdf]  * Read more about Victoria’s first statewide treaty here [https://www.treatyvictoria.vic.gov.au/]  * Read the Treaty of Waitangi here [https://www.waitangitribunal.govt.nz/en/about/the-treaty/maori-and-english-versions]  Cases mentioned in this episode:  * Coe v Commonwealth [1979] HCA 68; (1979) 53 ALJR 403; (1979) 24 ALR 118 (5 April 1979) [https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/HCA/1979/68.html]  * * Mabo v Queensland (No 2) ("Mabo case") [1992] HCA 23; (1992) 175 CLR 1 (3 June 1992) [https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/HCA/1992/23.html]  Justice is a podcast of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we record, publish, work, learn and live.

Should doctors be able to refuse care if it offends their conscience? A conversation with Professor Julian Savulescu

This episode contains material some people might find disturbing. Listener discretion is advised. Melbourne Law School and host Jon Faine bring you Justice: a weekly podcast about the law behind the news. Should doctors be obliged provide all services that are ethically approved by their colleges and legal under the law, or should they have the right to refuse terminations, assisted dying or any other forms of care on the basis of personal conscience? Professor Julian Savulescu FAHMS is the Chen Su Lan Centennial Professor in Medical Ethics at the National University of Singapore, where he directs the Centre for Biomedical Ethics. He is an award-winning ethicist and moral philosopher, trained in neuroscience, medicine, and philosophy. He is Distinguished Visiting Professorial Fellow at Murdoch Children's Research Institute and Melbourne Law School.   Read more about medical ethics here:  * Coelho, Ramona, et al. Unravelling Maid in Canada. McGill-Queen’s University Press, 15 Apr. 2025, www.mqup.ca/Books/U/Unravelling-MAiD-in-Canada2 [https://www.mqup.ca/Books/U/Unravelling-MAiD-in-Canada2].  * Grant, Isabel, et al. "A Conversation on Feminism, Ableism, and Medical Assistance in Dying." Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, vol. 35 no. 1, 2024, p. 31-72. Project MUSE, https://muse.jhu.edu/article/947747 [https://muse.jhu.edu/article/947747].  Justice is a podcast of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we record, publish, work, learn and live.

Should renters have to supply a CV for their cat? And other data invasions by real estate agents. Lina Prezhedetsky on the privacy pitfalls.

Melbourne Law School and host Jon Faine bring you Justice: a weekly podcast about the law behind the news. New apps make it all too easy for real estate agents to collectintimate information from people applying to rent homes. Ever been asked for your marriage certificate? Or to do a personality quiz?  Lina Prezhedetsky on the privacy pitfalls. To learn more about the use of digital technologies in the rental application process, take a look at the following links:  * https://www.ahuri.edu.au/sites/default/files/documents/2026-01/AHURI-Final-Report-454-Implications-of-tenant-data-collection-in-housing_protecting-Australian-renters_.pdf [https://www.ahuri.edu.au/sites/default/files/documents/2026-01/AHURI-Final-Report-454-Implications-of-tenant-data-collection-in-housing_protecting-Australian-renters_.pdf] * https://theconversation.com/what-are-rent-tech-platforms-action-on-reining-in-these-exploitative-tools-is-long-overdue-239602 [https://theconversation.com/what-are-rent-tech-platforms-action-on-reining-in-these-exploitative-tools-is-long-overdue-239602] * https://www.choice.com.au/data-protection-and-privacy/data-collection-and-use/how-your-data-is-used/articles/choice-renttech-report-release [https://www.choice.com.au/data-protection-and-privacy/data-collection-and-use/how-your-data-is-used/articles/choice-renttech-report-release] * https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/nov/17/imperfect-match-australian-renters-in-the-dark-over-use-of-data-by-tech-company-snug [https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/nov/17/imperfect-match-australian-renters-in-the-dark-over-use-of-data-by-tech-company-snug] Justice is a podcast of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we record, publish, work, learn and live.

Big Brother in the consulting room: should doctors tell patients when they are using AI to record them? A conversation with Associate Professor Megan Prictor

Melbourne Law School and host Jon Faine bring you Justice: a weekly podcast about the law behind the news. AI is now listening in in the doctor’s clinic, with products known as ‘AI scribes’ increasingly being used to draft patients’ medical records. This might save doctors time and reduce burnout.  But what are the legal implications of this new practice? Are regulators doing enough to make sure AI scribes are safe and fit for purpose?  In this episode we hear from Associate Professor Megan Prictor [https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/profile/1145-megan-prictor], Co-Director of the Health, Law and Emerging Technologies [https://law.unimelb.edu.au/helex](HeLex) research centre at Melbourne Law School. Megan has published widely including on dynamic consent, medical consultation recording, data breach notification laws and privacy and confidentiality in healthcare. Read more on AI scribes in healthcare:  *  https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-07/ai-scribes-gps-and-hospitals-accuracy-data-breach-risk/105490478 [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-07/ai-scribes-gps-and-hospitals-accuracy-data-breach-risk/105490478] * https://theconversation.com/some-clinicians-are-using-ai-to-write-health-records-what-do-you-need-to-know-237762 [https://theconversation.com/some-clinicians-are-using-ai-to-write-health-records-what-do-you-need-to-know-237762] *  https://theconversation.com/can-you-say-no-to-your-doctor-using-an-ai-scribe-264701 [https://theconversation.com/can-you-say-no-to-your-doctor-using-an-ai-scribe-264701] Justice is a podcast of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples as the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we record, publish, work, learn and live.