Preliminary Law in Practice: Investigating a Contemporary Issue
Contemporary issue: Same Sex Marriage
Marriage is both universal and central. All across our country, in every town and city, every social class, every race and ethnicity, every religion or non-religion, people get married. To be told “You cannot get married” is thus to be excluded from one of the defining rituals of civilised Australian society. Homosexuality and the laws regarding same-sex marriage are issues that previous generations have refused to acknowledge in regards to religious contentions of the church to prevent such laws. Although there have been many efforts at the international level to protect the rights of homosexuals, individual countries have often been slow to introduce domestic legislation that reflects international agreements. In Australia, same-sex marriage is not yet legal. For law to be considered effective, it must be universal, which means it changes constantly and consistently. Justice is achieved through equality, access and fairness. Not allowing same-sex marriage sparks debate within society, particularly as it challenges the law in its attempt to achieve justice. Effectiveness of the law and achieving justice can be sufficiently evaluated and achieved through; the laws enforceability and responsiveness, the protection of the individual rights, meeting of society's needs, the application of the rule of law, resource efficiency, accessibility, and ensuring the law is universal.
In order for the law to be truly effective, it must be both universal and just. Though in regards to same-sex marriage, this is not the case, as it doesn't apply equally to homosexual couples due to past legal responses to this issue. In current, Australian society, we derive our definition of marriage from the 'Hyde v. Hyde and Woodmansee (1866) Wilde JO (later Lord Panzance)'. Mr Hyde was accused of polygamy as he married two different