Introduction to Law &

Order

Mr Robertson/Steve
Subject structure

Term 1: Government

Features of Australian federal, state and local governments

Parliament

The Constitution

Global comparison

Term 2: Laws and law-making

Types of law
Key words

Acts - laws passed by parliament

common law - law developed by the courts through the application of precedent

constitution - a document that sets out the structure and powers of the
parliament

division of power* - the ways that power is shared between the Commonwealth
and state parliament

federation - the joining together of states to form one nation

*important concept
Key words continued

government - the party (or parties in coalition) that holds a majority of seats in the
lower house

legislation - laws made by parliament

statutes - laws made by parliament

Think, pair, share: discuss and note down any terms that are still unclear.
Search up alternative definitions online and share what you have learned.
What is a government?

Government refers to the political party that has the majority seats in the lower
House.

The leader of the political party that forms government will become the Prime
Minister (at the federal level) or the Premier (at state level).

The government is often subject to scrutiny because its majority in the lower
house means that they have greater power to pass through legislation that
aligns with their views.

Parliament is a term that refers to both the upper AND lower Houses. Dont stress
about this though--we will talk about parliament next week.
Malcolm Turnbull - Prime Daniel Andrews - Premier
Minister of Victoria
The Three Levels of Government
The Three Levels of Government

The constitution sets out the division of power between the federal and state
governments.

State governments recognise that certain areas of law would be more effective
when put in the hands of local communities. This forms the local/council level of
law-making.
The Constitution and the Division of
Powers
The constitution sets out the guidelines and principles of government and
lays down the power and authority of government and parliament.

The formal title is the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900,

however it is commonly referred to as the Australian Constitution

The constitution established a division of power whereby the Commonwealth

Government would look after issues of a national interest, while the state
governments would deal with and administer important state issues
Homework--find out who your local
member in the House of Representatives.
Clue: Torquay falls within the Corangamite electorate.