Under Australia’s foreign investment review framework all foreign governments and their related entities should notify the federal government and gain approval before making a direct investment in Australia regardless of the value of that investment. Yet can Australia’s current policy settings be maintained in their current form given developments in global capital markets, in particular the rise of state capitalism. This paper sets out the Australian foreign investment legal and policy framework. It focuses closely...

The inherent fragility of banks is as old as the fractional reserve system, and the debt of banks is held by uninformed and dispersed agents who have limited ability to monitor the banks’ activities. All this occurs within the context of a rapidly evolving and highly complex system that at times defies comprehensive understanding.

This research paper describes the merit of developing a text analytics engine to index public submissions to the recent Financial System Inquiry (FSI).

Discusses enforcement under the Corporations Act through the lens of a study of court-based enforcement by ASIC of financial services misconduct.

This research paper offers a jurisdictional comparison of legislation affecting Uber and other TNCs, within Australia and at an international level.

Electronic petitions (e-petitions) have been introduced in Australian legislatures and internationally to improve public engagement with the political process and to make democracy more accessible, participatory and responsive. In Victoria, both houses of Parliament accept only paper petitions in accordance with relevant standing orders, however, several parliamentary committee inquiries have recommended the introduction of e-petitions. On 8 June 2016, the Legislative Council supported a motion by the Hon. Fiona Patten MLC to introduce e-petitions to...

Several events, including state-wide blackouts in South Australia and the closure of the Hazelwood Power Station in Victoria, have re-ignited debate about energy resources and energy economics. The announcement of the Hazelwood Power Station closure on 4 November 2016 prompted debate about the current and future state of energy supply in Victoria. French energy company, ENGIE, the majority owner of the power station, announced power supply operations would most likely cease in March 2017 as...

This report provides a retrospective analysis of past Victorian government responses to the health needs of children in statutory Out-of-Home Care.