First SAC on Tuesday!! have a few questions ! :) please help! :D

[12345luke]

So I just have a few questions on a few topics, and I was hoping you's could tell me how you would answer the question, structure the question etc. (how should you answer questions in legal studies)

- Why the law may need to change (using contemporary examples).
- Explaining individuals options to influence change - formal (explain the VLRC) and informal (explain petitions, demonstrations and the media).
- Effectiveness of Parliament as a law maker (4 strengths and 4 weaknesses).
- Stages of a Bill (primarily the purpose of the second reading).
and - explaining representative and responsible government and also separation of powers



Everything else we have covered in the topic I am quite comfortable with apart from those few things as stated above.

Please help thanks!

[JCurmi]

Hey

I'm doing Legal 3/4 too! I have my 2nd SAC tomorrow!
I would answer the questions depending on how many marks were allocated for them. My teacher said to do 2 minutes per mark so that basically sets out the level of detail needed in every question.

I would start by addressing the question as a whole, so for instance if the question was "Describe one reason why laws may need to change".

I would very briefly mention all of the reasons (shift in values, technological advance, economic policy, political circumstance and enhance the legal system.)

Next I would pick one of them that I am most comfortable in, and describe it, mention its effectiveness and give an example.

[Iniquity]

I'm not too certain about the structure (still working on it myself), but I hope this helps a bit:

Explaining individuals' options to influence change - formal (explain the VLRC) and informal (explain petitions, demonstrations and the media)
Formal pressure is from within the law-making body through ministers, cabinet, parliamentary committees, and law-reform bodies like the VLRC, whose job it is to research areas of law that may require change and to make recommendations to the government for changes.
Informal pressure comes from those outside the formal structure of the law-making process. Individuals and groups may utilise petitions (a written request to the government for action in relation to legislation that may be considered outdated or unjust), demonstrations (a group of individuals expressing public desire for change, usually in a prominent place like the steps of parliament, and usually disruptive), lobbying MPs, social media (like videos, links to ePetitions - an example of a group which uses social media effectively is GetUp!) and traditional media (letters to the editor and opinion pieces in the newspaper, talk-back radio, advertisements on TV, etc) to persuade parliament to make changes to the law.

The purpose of the second reading
The second reading is where the Minister or Private Member gives their Second Reading speech, and copies of the Bill (complete with explanatory notes) are given to all the members. It is also debated in principle, but it is not debated clause-by-clause (this comes in the "consideration in detail" stage).
In the Victorian Parliament, the bill is compared against the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006, and any inconsistences are amended.

Representative government
Representative government is a government that makes laws pertaining to the views and values of the majority, and is elected to represent the people. It is acquired through regular elections, as any government which does not uphold the wishes of the majority is likely to be voted out of office at the next election.

Responsible government
Responsible government is concerned with the ministers. Ministers are considered accountable for their actions, and are also answerable to parliament (and therefore the people) for both their actions and the actions of their department. They are questioned in parliament by other members during question time. If ministers do not act with honesty and integrity, they will be forced to resign.

For the separation of powers, you basically need to mention that it prevents abuse of power, and describe what legislative, executive, and judicial powers are, as well as who enforces them. Remember to mention that they are all kept separate from each other in theory and that there should not be any interference, but that in Australia, there is an overlap between executive and legislative powers (due to the ministers). The only power that is kept entirely separate is the judicial.

Not sure about effectiveness of parliament, since we're not up to that bit yet. I don't really get how a bill is made either...so I left most of that. JCurmi's response pretty much sums up what I would write for the "reasons for change" part. If it was worth more marks, you could provide an example like how the Summary Offences & Control of Weapons Act Amendment Act (2009) gave police the power to publicly search individuals for weapons.

[destain]

Different stages of a bill would be
First Reading - Title of the bill is read by relevant minister and papers handed out about the bill.
Second Reading - Compatibility statement is given out which outlines if the bill is within the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities and it gives reasons why.
Then papers handed out about the purpose of the bill.
Then debate is adjourned for 2-4 weeks before coming back and then the big debate occurs and the vote is taken at the end of ths
Committee Stage (Consideration in detail) - This can be skipped if everyone agrees and it's something like a technical issue. This is when the speaker or president goes out of the house and it is in committee. Also could be referred to committees of the house .
Third Reading