scholarly journals CIVIL LIABILITY FOR NEGLIGENCE: AN ANALYSIS OF CYBERBULLYING POLICIES IN SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLS

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peta Spyrou

Cyberbullying is a form of covert bullying that affects the lives of young people and adults alike. Empirical evidence suggesting that the effects of cyberbullying may lead to protracted mental harm highlights the need for schools to take a proactive stance against this form of bullying. This article looks specifically at the effectiveness of the anti-bullying policies implemented by South Australian school authorities in order to comply with their legal duty of care in negligence. Part I introduces the topic of cyberbullying, while Part II explains a school’s legal liability for instances of cyberbullying and identifies the requisite need for anti-bullying polices. In addition, Part III highlights the need for a multifaceted approach to reduce the occurrence of cyberbullying that recognises the important roles played by parents and student bystanders. This section concludes by providing specific recommendations on how anti-bullying policies should be implemented. The article argues that while school authorities may bear legal liability for instances of cyberbullying, schools cannot effectively implement anti-bullying policies without forming a partnership with the whole school community.

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thea Voogt ◽  
Martie-Louise Verreynne

Shareholders’ rights to appoint directors in widely-held companies are effectively held by the incumbent board as ‘agents’. This article advocates for the adoption of an integrated instrument designed to enhance accountability for the composition of the board, which sits at the apex of the board’s autonomous corporate control. Formulated as a focused numbered checklist, the instrument was developed through textual and statistical analytical techniques, drawing on empirical evidence from director skills matrices disclosed by large listed Australian companies. The instrument acts as an expression of the legal duty of care and diligence that the directors discharge in selecting board members, and relies on disclosure to make the market for corporate control more efficient: if the board is more accountable, shareholders are better able to monitor and discipline the directors.


2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 515-526
Author(s):  
Alison McCluskey ◽  
Garth Kendall ◽  
Sharyn Burns

Background Nurses play a significant role in promoting health in schools; however, they are often poorly resourced to do so. Aims The aim of the study was to identify the perceptions of students, parents and teachers regarding the resources school nurses require in order to practise effectively in the secondary school environment in Perth, Western Australia. Methods One-on-one interviews were conducted with parents, teachers, nurses, school principals and school counsellors. Focus groups were conducted at three schools with students in years 10, 11 and 12, parents and teachers. Interviews and focus group data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results It was acknowledged that nurses in all schools were under-resourced, with large student numbers contributing to high workloads. The importance of privacy during a visit to the school nurse was highlighted by students. All stakeholders discussed the advantages of nurses completing extra qualifications, in addition to an undergraduate degree. Appropriate support and supervision were also highlighted. Conclusions School nurses need to thoroughly document and describe the work that they do and collaborate within the school community to advocate for increased resources. There is a great need for further research regarding the school nurse role involving the whole school community, and most importantly the students.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mairead Foody ◽  
Muthanna Samara

Schools have a duty of care to all students and to directly prevent and intervene with bullying amongst children and adolescents. The emergence of cyberbullying escalates this responsibility as the strategies that have become appropriate at national levels for bullying do not always parallel over to online environments. The impact on mental health is the most obvious concern for those responsible for reducing bullying, however, input from psychologists and mental health professionals is scant and often limited on this topic. This paper outlines what bullying is and the devastating impact it can have on the mental health of those involved. It will outline the most common anti-bullying initiatives as well as the current psychological and educational techniques, which could also be used to alleviate distress associated with bullying involvement. We will focus specifically on the role of mindfulness techniques and argue for more of such exercises to be included in whole-school bullying programmes. We conclude by arguing the need to investigate components relevant to both mindfulness and anti-bullying programmes (e.g., empathy, perspective-taking) as active ingredients for reducing the impact of bullying on mental health.


2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Griffin ◽  
Gemma Briffa

In 2017 Victoria became the first Australian jurisdiction to initiate substantive reforms to its civil liability laws, to address barriers faced by plaintiffs seeking to hold institutions liable for child abuse. The new law, based on recommendations arising from a Victorian inquiry, establishes a statutory duty of care owed by organisations to take reasonable precautions against abuse of children under their care or supervision. On its face, the Wrongs Amendment (Organisational Child Abuse) Act 2017 (Vic) looks like a helpful clarification of this complex area of law. However, when viewed within the context of the work of the Royal Commission on Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, as well as common law principles – particularly strict liability in the areas of non- delegable duty and vicarious liability, and the High Court decision of Prince Alfred College Inc v ADC – we see that barriers and uncertainties remain.


2007 ◽  
pp. 114-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynne Hillier ◽  
Anne Mitchell ◽  
Shelley Mallett
Keyword(s):  

Author(s):  
Anna Hickey-Moody ◽  
Marissa Willcox

Materiality communicates complex information, often about the perspectives of people whose voices are silenced, or left off historical records. Material cultures provide indirect archives of such social histories, values and feelings. Examining the expressive qualities of material culture, we draw on data from the trans-national research project ‘Interfaith Childhoods’. This project generates and documents community perspectives on faith, identity and belonging. In response to our data generated through arts workshops with children and focus group discussions with parents, we develop a theoretical framework which observes how the materiality of religion can shape the ways young people and their parents build relationships with those from different religions. Here, we theorise how our empirical evidence makes a case for thinking through visual and material cultures of religion.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janina Dill

AbstractDoes International Humanitarian Law (IHL) impose a duty of care on the attacker? From a moral point of view, should it? This article argues that the legal situation is contestable, and the moral value of a legal duty of care in attack is ambivalent. This is because a duty of care is both a condition for and an obstacle to the ‘individualization of war’. The individualization of war denotes an observable multi-dimensional norm shift in international relations. Norms for the regulation of war that focus on the interests, rights, and duties of the individual have gained in importance compared to those that focus on the interests, rights, and duties of the state. As the individual, not the state, is the ultimate locus of moral value, this norm shift in international relations, and the corresponding developments in international law, are morally desirable. When it comes to IHL, the goal of protecting the interests of the individual creates strong reasons both for and against imposing a legal duty of care on the attacker. The enquiry into whether IHL does and should impose a legal duty of care therefore reveals that the extent to which war can be individualized is limited.


2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 311-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Conrad Nyamutata

Abstract In 2019, the UK government issued an ambitious White Paper as a precursor to the regulation of ‘online harms’. This article adopts a socio-cultural and legal approach to analysing the proposed law in the context of children. How childhood is conceptualized influences public policy and legal interventions, including on the digital space. This remains a contested terrain with different conclusion on the effects of the cyberspace. The biggest challenge with legal interventions on the digital realm is the need to achieve a balance between protection and participation rights of children. The dominant conception of childhood as a period of vulnerability has meant ‘protection’ often overrides participation rights. However, such focus is the subject of challenge, with some suggesting that regulation is the product of moral panic. A further strand is the potential of disproportionate punitive measures against Internet companies against the backdrop of human rights obligations. The UK proposition is discussed within this socio-cultural and legal contexts with the objective of highlighting challenges and legal pitfalls. This article argues that Internet governance ought to give serious consideration to the new sociology of childhood.


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