Our Common Bond
Courts, laws and police: how laws are enforced in Australia
Ten questions on courts, police and offences. The tool under the summary tells you who carries out each step of the justice process.
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Practice questions adapted by Radif Partners from Our Common Bond. Not the official test questions.
Questions adapted from Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond, © Commonwealth of Australia, CC BY 4.0, by Radif Partners.
The last section of Part 3 of Our Common Bond explains how laws are enforced. Courts are independent: they decide whether a person has broken the law and set the penalty, using only the evidence before them. Judges and magistrates are the highest authority in a court; the government appoints them but cannot remove them for decisions it dislikes. People are innocent until found guilty and may be represented by a lawyer. In some cases a jury of ordinary citizens, chosen at random, decides guilt after the judge explains the law; in a criminal trial the judge then sets the penalty. Police keep the peace, protect life and property, are independent of the government and can arrest suspects; each state and the Northern Territory has its own force, and the Australian Federal Police handles federal crimes and policing in the ACT. Offering a bribe to police is a crime, and ignorance of the law is no excuse. Our bank has 13 questions on this topic.
Who does what in the justice system?
Done by
The jury, after hearing the evidence
| Step | Decide guilt in a jury trial |
| Principle | innocent until found guilty; courts and police independent of government |
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Who does what
| Actor | Role according to the booklet |
|---|---|
| Courts | independent; decide if the law was broken and the penalty, on the evidence alone |
| Judges and magistrates | highest authority in a court; appointed by government, cannot be removed for their decisions |
| Jury | ordinary citizens chosen at random; decide innocent or guilty in some cases |
| Police | keep peace and order, protect life and property; independent of government; can arrest |
| Australian Federal Police | federal crimes (drug trafficking, national security, environment); policing in the ACT |
| High Court of Australia | ultimate power to apply and interpret the law |
Principles to remember
- Innocent until proven guilty. A person is considered innocent until a court finds them guilty.
- Right to a lawyer. Everyone may be represented by a lawyer in court.
- Independence. Nobody can tell a judge or magistrate what to decide; police and courts are independent of the government.
- No excuse of ignorance. You can be charged for breaking a law even if you did not know it existed.
- No bribes. Bribing the police is a serious crime, and even offering a bribe is a crime.
Jury trials, step by step
Jury service is listed in Part 2 as a responsibility of citizens aged 18 or over who are on the electoral roll. Part 3 explains what happens in court. The jury is a group of ordinary citizens chosen at random from the general population. The judge explains the law to them. They listen to the evidence and decide whether the accused is innocent or guilty. If they find the person guilty in a criminal trial, the judge, not the jury, decides the penalty. Questions often test that last split.
Family violence
The booklet gives this subject unusual space. Everyone has the right to safe and positive relationships. Violence towards another person is illegal and very serious, including inside the home and within marriage. Domestic and family violence covers behaviour or threats that aim to control a partner through fear or threats to their safety: hitting, cutting a family member off from friends and family, or threatening children or pets. It is not accepted and is against the law, and an offender can go to jail whether a man or a woman. Anyone in danger, or who knows someone in danger, should contact the police.
Road rules
Road and traffic rules are set by state and territory governments, and breaking them can lead to a fine or prison. To drive you need a local driver's licence and a registered car. Everybody in a car must wear a seatbelt, and babies and young children need an approved car seat. Driving after taking drugs or above the blood alcohol limit is illegal, and so is using a hand-held mobile device while driving. These rules are a reminder that the law reaches daily habits, not only serious crime.
Links with the values part
Several of these points return in Part 4: obeying a lawful request from the police, the strict age of consent, violence of any kind being illegal, and reporting suspected serious crimes or child abuse. If you know this page well, a fair number of values questions become straightforward too. For how good character is assessed in a citizenship application, a separate matter from the test, see the character requirement page.
Revising
Read pages 31 and 32 of the testable section, then use the tool below: pick each step of the justice process and say who performs it before revealing the answer. Finish with the practice set above.