REFLECTING ON THE ‘GENERAL PART’ WHEN THERE IS SYSTEMIC INJUSTICE: Do We Inadvertently Facilitate Overcriminalisation of First Peoples in Australia?

Williams, MS

REFLECTING ON THE ‘GENERAL PART’ WHEN THERE IS SYSTEMIC INJUSTICE: Do We Inadvertently Facilitate Overcriminalisation of First Peoples in Australia?

Williams, MS

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Publication Type:: Chapter
Citation:: Legal Education Through an Indigenous Lens Decolonising the Law School, 2025, pp. 207-229
Issue Date:: 2025-01-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Williams, MS
dc.date.accessioned	2025-09-03T03:45:57Z
dc.date.available	2025-09-03T03:45:57Z
dc.date.issued	2025-01-01
dc.identifier.citation	Legal Education Through an Indigenous Lens Decolonising the Law School, 2025, pp. 207-229
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189541
dc.description.abstract	This chapter examines how the theory and method of the ‘general part’ of criminal law might contribute to systemic bias against First Peoples. Australian legal practitioner admission rules mandate teaching this theory, leading criminal law courses to emphasise doctrinal analysis and students to prioritise mastering analysis of the elements of offences and defences. Informed by the author’s experiences in legal education and criminal law practice, the chapter explores how such training impacts the criminal justice system’s capacity to address serious social issues and potentially fosters discrimination. The author proposes that lawyers develop reflexive practices and question the principles taught to them. Ultimately, the chapter calls for new tools to address structural injustice to prepare the next generation of lawyers to undertake essential systemic reform.
dc.language	en
dc.relation.ispartof	Legal Education Through an Indigenous Lens Decolonising the Law School
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.4324/9781003473404-16
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.title	REFLECTING ON THE ‘GENERAL PART’ WHEN THERE IS SYSTEMIC INJUSTICE: Do We Inadvertently Facilitate Overcriminalisation of First Peoples in Australia?
dc.type	Chapter
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Law
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2025-09-03T03:45:55Z
pubs.publication-status	Published

Abstract:

This chapter examines how the theory and method of the ‘general part’ of criminal law might contribute to systemic bias against First Peoples. Australian legal practitioner admission rules mandate teaching this theory, leading criminal law courses to emphasise doctrinal analysis and students to prioritise mastering analysis of the elements of offences and defences. Informed by the author’s experiences in legal education and criminal law practice, the chapter explores how such training impacts the criminal justice system’s capacity to address serious social issues and potentially fosters discrimination. The author proposes that lawyers develop reflexive practices and question the principles taught to them. Ultimately, the chapter calls for new tools to address structural injustice to prepare the next generation of lawyers to undertake essential systemic reform.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189541