I had a rather exciting day in court last Wednesday. As part of the assessment in Evidence, one of the activities was a mock argument in court, effectively a mooting exercise. My partner and I, who played the role of Crown prosecutors, had to make submissions asking for certain evidence to be included and excluded. There was also a 1-person defence team comprised of the magnificent and near-invincible Kate Maloney (the nominal student head of the JD program) who stepped in at the last minute as we would otherwise have had no defence team against us.
I made my arguments first, submitting that the victim's criminal record and tattoos should be excluded. Then Kate made her counterarguments and then submitted that the accused's statements should be excluded. My partner, Roland, then made his submissions that the accused's statements should be admitted. All the while our professor-assessor, Molly, interjected with questions challenging our positions. At then end, she said she was very impressed with our performances, in particular that we had good presence and were able to effectively address the judge on a personal level. I remember her saying that there was no question that she could ask that would phase us, which I take as high praise indeed. I had also made a particular argument that admitting the victim's criminal record and tattoos would render the trial unfair for the accused which is a violation of their rights under the ACT Human Rights Act. S. 21 of that act states, paraphrasing it, that everyone has the right to a fair trial, the operative word being "everyone" not "every accused". I submitted that in this case "everyone" includes the victim. I had actually gotten the argument from my Criminal Justice class but it seemed appropriate. I was told it was a very good and creative argument and that if I'd been able to find some sort of supporting precedent, it would have been "killer". At all odds anyway, my partner and I left the moot in high spirits as it seems we did very well.
After 10 weeks of back-breaking labour we have entered the 2-week break. This will be the last 2-week break after 10 weeks as ANU is switching to a new system next year following mounds of unfavourable feedback from students and staff. I am taking this opportunity to visit friends in Melbourne from next Wednesday to the following Tuesday, so there won't be a post next Saturday. I haven't been out of Canberra for quite some time and I think I should take my leave for a little bit.
While in Melbourne I may get a chance to see Game 2 of the AFL Grand Final. They played Game 1 today and it ended in a tie. In AFL, for some ungodly reason, if the Grand Final ends in a tie, they play another full game the next week. I much prefer the ACTAFL's approach involving extra time. I was working at ACTTAB today and I watched the game when I could. The St. Kilda Saints were playing the Collingwood Magpies in front of 100 016 people at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It was an exciting game with St. Kilda pulling out in front just minutes before the game ended but Collingwood managed to tie it up although they blew a few chances to put the game away. At full time the final score was 68-68 and it's only the 3rd time in history that this has happened. Each team is trying to win their first premiership in many years; Collingwood last won in 1990 and St. Kilda last won (its only win) in 1966. If there are any tickets available I'll definitely try to go down for the game. This doesn't happen very often and if I can I want to see the thrilling conclusion.
To end off, here's a joke for the lawyers. I'll post the answer the next time I blog. See if you can guess the answer.
Why was the dolphin allowed in adduce hearsay evidence against the credibility of a witness?
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
A Day at the Footy
Saturday was a very long but fun day filled with aussie rules football. It was the last day of the season and as such the U-18, Division 2 and Division 1 Grand Finals were all played on that day. Although I wasn't officiating in any match I headed down to Manuka Oval for 2 reasons: to support my fellow umpires and entry is free for officials. Every year the umpires present a cohort for the final day and we sit as a group.
The games were of high quality though without the added excitement of a close result. The matches were handily won by the victors. I did have something of a small victory myself. During one of the intermissions I received detailed feedback on my performance in the latter part of the year. Because of manpower issues, the umpire coaches cannot see everyone throughout the year and only do these detailed assessments towards the end when deciding who will get a finals appointment. According to the assessor, I had progressed "in leaps and bounds" this year and of 20 or 30 assessment points, there were only 2 "mistakes", if you can call them that. The first was that I was wearing a gray shirt underneath my orange uniform when it should be black or skin-coloured; I think I mentioned this previously. The second was that for one decision I may have straddled the line a little late, but the assessor wasn't sure. In other words, it was not clearly a mistake on my part. As it is almost certain that I will be in Canberra for another year, this bodes very well for me. The assessor informed me that my progress had impressed the coaching staff and if I continue to perform very well, there may be good things indeed in store for me.
After the games, the lot of us proceeded to the nearby Kingston Hotel for a repast. We watched part of the St. Kilda Saints-Western Bulldogs Preliminary Final and toasted another successful year. The Umpires' Association Annual Dinner will be held in mid-October but until then, we're free of obligations.
Free of obligations is perhaps being a tad generous as fitness has no off-season. Although there will be no games until February or March, it is still necessary to maintain a certain level of fitness so I've resumed running 4km every few days. I may increase that to 8km later on but for now, I have to ease into it. I want to be as fit as is humanly possible for me when next season rolls around.
The weather has turned quite pleasant with spring in the air. The days are warming up to 20C which means t-shirts and shorts. Temperatures will hover around this mark for a month before rising again.
One final bit of good news, I received a Distinction for my Equity and Trusts take-home exam. This is not an easy course and I am very happy that I have grasped at least the basic concepts. We'll see how I do when the final exam rolls around but this has given me a much needed boost of confidence. Now let's hope my other courses follow suit.
The games were of high quality though without the added excitement of a close result. The matches were handily won by the victors. I did have something of a small victory myself. During one of the intermissions I received detailed feedback on my performance in the latter part of the year. Because of manpower issues, the umpire coaches cannot see everyone throughout the year and only do these detailed assessments towards the end when deciding who will get a finals appointment. According to the assessor, I had progressed "in leaps and bounds" this year and of 20 or 30 assessment points, there were only 2 "mistakes", if you can call them that. The first was that I was wearing a gray shirt underneath my orange uniform when it should be black or skin-coloured; I think I mentioned this previously. The second was that for one decision I may have straddled the line a little late, but the assessor wasn't sure. In other words, it was not clearly a mistake on my part. As it is almost certain that I will be in Canberra for another year, this bodes very well for me. The assessor informed me that my progress had impressed the coaching staff and if I continue to perform very well, there may be good things indeed in store for me.
After the games, the lot of us proceeded to the nearby Kingston Hotel for a repast. We watched part of the St. Kilda Saints-Western Bulldogs Preliminary Final and toasted another successful year. The Umpires' Association Annual Dinner will be held in mid-October but until then, we're free of obligations.
Free of obligations is perhaps being a tad generous as fitness has no off-season. Although there will be no games until February or March, it is still necessary to maintain a certain level of fitness so I've resumed running 4km every few days. I may increase that to 8km later on but for now, I have to ease into it. I want to be as fit as is humanly possible for me when next season rolls around.
The weather has turned quite pleasant with spring in the air. The days are warming up to 20C which means t-shirts and shorts. Temperatures will hover around this mark for a month before rising again.
One final bit of good news, I received a Distinction for my Equity and Trusts take-home exam. This is not an easy course and I am very happy that I have grasped at least the basic concepts. We'll see how I do when the final exam rolls around but this has given me a much needed boost of confidence. Now let's hope my other courses follow suit.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Finales
It's been a fairly eventful week. There have been some extraordinary occurrences in Australia and the world throughout. Some are more mundane than others, but each have there own characteristics of interest.
In Canberra last weekend there were some damaging winds, accompanied by some rain. With the reservoirs now at 75% and looking to reach 80% soon, Canberrans are eagerly awaiting the easing of certain water use restrictions. The winds, however, knocked down several trees including some along the boulevard of Northbourne Avenue. Luckily, the damage wasn't too significant and there was no disruption to general city life.
Less can be said for Christchurch. New Zealand's South Island's largest city (sometimes mistakenly referred to as New Zealand's second largest city) was shaken by a powerful earthquake that measured 7.1 on the Moment Magnitude Scale (MMS). I'll spare you the boring details but the MMS is what scientists use although it is more commonly called the Richter Scale. It seems that there was significant damage to the city, although no deaths. The South Island is considerably less tectonically vibrant than its northern neighbour but is clearly not immune. The earthquake building code probably prevented more significant damage although at a certain point there's nothing that can be done. It will take some time to clean up after the quake but New Zealand has experience with this type of thing so I wouldn't be too worried.
And keeping with the disaster stream, it seems northern Victoria is in the midst of floods. The Australian Defence Force has been called out to assist. While this will go some way to relieving the drought, especially considering the low levels the Murray River has suffered recently, it's still a great inconvenience.
On another topic, Australia finally has a government. After some political trading, the final 2 independent members, Windsor and Oakeshott, sided with the Labor Party. This gives them the 76 seats required for a majority and Julia Gillard remains PM. I understand that Kevin Rudd, the former PM, will be Minister of Foreign Affairs which is where he made a name for himself before. I had a chance to watch Windsor and Oakeshott announce their decision in a press conference. Windsor was fairly brief but Oakeshott took forever to announce his decision. He droned on and on and listed the reasons for the decision. I think the consensus is that this was his moment in the sun and he wanted to get as much out of it as he could. This new government, technically a minority one, will be interesting if not only to see how long it lasts. All parties, though, are talking as though the government will be allowed to complete its full 3-year mandate barring anything surprising.
I had a great opportunity yesterday to be a goal umpire for the ACTAFL Division 4 Grand Final at Manuka Oval between Goulburn and ANU, and what a game it turned out to be. The day was sunny and warm with only a hint of wind. The game was close throughout and when full time came around, it was a tie. This necessitated the use of a special procedure for tie-breaking wherein 2 additional 5-minute periods are played and at the end, whoever is in front wins. In the end, the result was 1 point in favour of ANU; final score Goulburn-84, ANU-85. I think that not only was this the best game I've officiated this season, I think it was the best game I've ever officiated. I haven't seen that full game assessment from the umpire assessor but the half-time report was quite positive. It's always an honour to be asked to officiate a grand final, it means you are one of the better umpires throughout the year. Barring anything unusual happening, though, or being asked to be an emergency on-call replacement, I think this is the end of my season. Next week the Under-18s, the Division 2 and the Division 1 grand finals will be played and that will end of the season officially. I think I've ended on a very positive note and I can't wait for next year.
In Canberra last weekend there were some damaging winds, accompanied by some rain. With the reservoirs now at 75% and looking to reach 80% soon, Canberrans are eagerly awaiting the easing of certain water use restrictions. The winds, however, knocked down several trees including some along the boulevard of Northbourne Avenue. Luckily, the damage wasn't too significant and there was no disruption to general city life.
Less can be said for Christchurch. New Zealand's South Island's largest city (sometimes mistakenly referred to as New Zealand's second largest city) was shaken by a powerful earthquake that measured 7.1 on the Moment Magnitude Scale (MMS). I'll spare you the boring details but the MMS is what scientists use although it is more commonly called the Richter Scale. It seems that there was significant damage to the city, although no deaths. The South Island is considerably less tectonically vibrant than its northern neighbour but is clearly not immune. The earthquake building code probably prevented more significant damage although at a certain point there's nothing that can be done. It will take some time to clean up after the quake but New Zealand has experience with this type of thing so I wouldn't be too worried.
And keeping with the disaster stream, it seems northern Victoria is in the midst of floods. The Australian Defence Force has been called out to assist. While this will go some way to relieving the drought, especially considering the low levels the Murray River has suffered recently, it's still a great inconvenience.
On another topic, Australia finally has a government. After some political trading, the final 2 independent members, Windsor and Oakeshott, sided with the Labor Party. This gives them the 76 seats required for a majority and Julia Gillard remains PM. I understand that Kevin Rudd, the former PM, will be Minister of Foreign Affairs which is where he made a name for himself before. I had a chance to watch Windsor and Oakeshott announce their decision in a press conference. Windsor was fairly brief but Oakeshott took forever to announce his decision. He droned on and on and listed the reasons for the decision. I think the consensus is that this was his moment in the sun and he wanted to get as much out of it as he could. This new government, technically a minority one, will be interesting if not only to see how long it lasts. All parties, though, are talking as though the government will be allowed to complete its full 3-year mandate barring anything surprising.
I had a great opportunity yesterday to be a goal umpire for the ACTAFL Division 4 Grand Final at Manuka Oval between Goulburn and ANU, and what a game it turned out to be. The day was sunny and warm with only a hint of wind. The game was close throughout and when full time came around, it was a tie. This necessitated the use of a special procedure for tie-breaking wherein 2 additional 5-minute periods are played and at the end, whoever is in front wins. In the end, the result was 1 point in favour of ANU; final score Goulburn-84, ANU-85. I think that not only was this the best game I've officiated this season, I think it was the best game I've ever officiated. I haven't seen that full game assessment from the umpire assessor but the half-time report was quite positive. It's always an honour to be asked to officiate a grand final, it means you are one of the better umpires throughout the year. Barring anything unusual happening, though, or being asked to be an emergency on-call replacement, I think this is the end of my season. Next week the Under-18s, the Division 2 and the Division 1 grand finals will be played and that will end of the season officially. I think I've ended on a very positive note and I can't wait for next year.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
La Niña
Australia has come under the influence of the little girl, the La Niña event that affects the Pacific every so often. And I must say that it's not a moment too soon. La Niña almost always brings with her above average rainfall and Australia could certainly use as much as it could given the dryness of the last 15 years. Lately, though, there has been a period of prolonged wet weather which has elevated the levels of the all-important reservoirs and changed the red interior a healthy shade of green. However, this chica loca is a wild girl.
Let's take today as an example. A large and powerful low pressure system has moved over southeastern Australia bringing several centimeters worth of rain to Adelaide and Canberra with additional appreciable amounts to most other capital cities. In Adelaide the rain was accompanied by wind gusts up to 100km/hr while Canberra will tomorrow face a slightly drier day but gusts approaching 75 km/hr, although it's howling outside right now. Unfortunately as it is the playoff season for the local Australian rules football league, I have to umpire in these conditions tomorrow. Actually I dodged a bullet as I was originally scheduled for today but was made to switch with someone when their unavailability unexpectedly changed. Today's rain was fierce and persistent but it is supposed to ease up tomorrow so these clouds do have silver linings.
I also had the opportunity to participate in an interesting exercise in evidence class --- a trivia contest dealing with hearsay. The game was spread out over the two days we would have had lectures and was designed to familiarize us with relevant provisions of the Evidence Act relating to hearsay evidence. I was with a team of some old friends and some new ones. For those who aren't familiar with the intricacies of evidence, hearsay is (roughly) non-first-hand evidence and there are rules about when you can and can't use it. I, and others including the lecturer, think this is the hardest concepts in evidence law. The problem I find is that while I can usually recognize admissible and inadmissible hearsay evidence the Evidence Act is not a well-drafted bit of legislation which makes hearsay rather tricky. One of my dad's stories from law school was that he, rather unexpectedly, received a very good mark for evidence. I'm hoping that history repeats itself.
I'll close by saying that recently I've rediscovered one of my favourite Canadian singers --- Amanda Marshall. She was very active in the blues/adult contemporary genre from the mid-90s until about 2001, when she suddenly went quiet. Apparently she has continued to sing at concerts and the like and has an album planned for this year, which will be her 4th (excluding "best of" compilations) and her first since 2001. She had some of the most memorable songs in that period and I'm sorry she sequestered herself. The thing about her is that while she might not have the vocal range of some singers, her voice has more power behind it. In my opinion, one of the most underrated and overlooked singers of the period even though she was quite well-known and successful during her time. Let's hope she receives the recognition she deserves.
Let's take today as an example. A large and powerful low pressure system has moved over southeastern Australia bringing several centimeters worth of rain to Adelaide and Canberra with additional appreciable amounts to most other capital cities. In Adelaide the rain was accompanied by wind gusts up to 100km/hr while Canberra will tomorrow face a slightly drier day but gusts approaching 75 km/hr, although it's howling outside right now. Unfortunately as it is the playoff season for the local Australian rules football league, I have to umpire in these conditions tomorrow. Actually I dodged a bullet as I was originally scheduled for today but was made to switch with someone when their unavailability unexpectedly changed. Today's rain was fierce and persistent but it is supposed to ease up tomorrow so these clouds do have silver linings.
I also had the opportunity to participate in an interesting exercise in evidence class --- a trivia contest dealing with hearsay. The game was spread out over the two days we would have had lectures and was designed to familiarize us with relevant provisions of the Evidence Act relating to hearsay evidence. I was with a team of some old friends and some new ones. For those who aren't familiar with the intricacies of evidence, hearsay is (roughly) non-first-hand evidence and there are rules about when you can and can't use it. I, and others including the lecturer, think this is the hardest concepts in evidence law. The problem I find is that while I can usually recognize admissible and inadmissible hearsay evidence the Evidence Act is not a well-drafted bit of legislation which makes hearsay rather tricky. One of my dad's stories from law school was that he, rather unexpectedly, received a very good mark for evidence. I'm hoping that history repeats itself.
I'll close by saying that recently I've rediscovered one of my favourite Canadian singers --- Amanda Marshall. She was very active in the blues/adult contemporary genre from the mid-90s until about 2001, when she suddenly went quiet. Apparently she has continued to sing at concerts and the like and has an album planned for this year, which will be her 4th (excluding "best of" compilations) and her first since 2001. She had some of the most memorable songs in that period and I'm sorry she sequestered herself. The thing about her is that while she might not have the vocal range of some singers, her voice has more power behind it. In my opinion, one of the most underrated and overlooked singers of the period even though she was quite well-known and successful during her time. Let's hope she receives the recognition she deserves.
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