2006 Handbooks

This unit covers the basic concepts of Westminster constitutionalism and the foundation principles of Australian federalism. The first set of topics deals with the role of the Crown in the Australian constitutional order and the relationship between imperial authority and constitutional independence. The idea of the Constitution as a means of limiting governmental power is then examined in relation to the principle of parliamentary sovereignty, the role of constitutional conventions, the separation of powers, and the idea of fundamental law. The unit also examines the ways in which the expansion of the administrative process and the changing role of the judiciary have transformed older concepts of constitutionalism and changed the character of Australian federalism.

Because Public Law I and Public Law II provide an introduction to administrative law, taken together they satisfy the legal profession's requirements in both constitutional and administrative law.