A Joint Initiative of the Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law at UNSW, the Sydney Public Law Group at USYD, UTS, WSU and MQ.
This hybrid seminar will be held in Adrian Cameron Room, Level 2, UNSW Faculty of Law & Justice and online via Teams.
What can we learn from arguments about failure? In The Failures of Others: Justifying Institutional Expansion in Comparative Public and International Law (CUP, 2025) Professor Michaela Hailbronner (Münster) notes that is commonplace for institutions to justify their expansion of their own power on the basis of failures by other institutions. She argues, however, that such arguments are poorly understood and require further interrogation. This book puts forward the claim that we should recognise arguments from failure as a distinct concept in public law, and draw on the tools offered to us by comparative constitutional theory to evaluate those
In this book discussion, the UNSW Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law, as part of the Greater Sydney Public Law Book Series, hosts Professor Hailbronner in conversation with Anthony Mason and Scientia Professor Rosalind Dixon (UNSW) and Dr Eddie Clark (Te Herenga Waka | Victoria University of Wellington).. The session will be chaired by Dr Elisabeth Perham (UNSW).
Following the discussion, there will be a small drinks event from 5:00 – 5:30 pm for those attending in person.
The Great Sydney Public Law Book Series brings together public law academics from across greater Sydney to discuss global books in the field of public law. It is convened by colleagues at UNSW, USYD, UTS, WSU, and Macquarie.