Australia: Overview of the Australian Legal System

This chapter introduces the fundamental aspects of the Australian legal system as a background to the discussion of legal education and the legal profession in subsequent chapters. The discussion in Sect. 1 begins from a brief historical review of the development of the current Australian legal system from its colonial past. It proceeds with the main features of the Australian political and legal framework, as governed by the Australian Constitution, in Sect. 2. Finally, Sect. 3 briefly examines the three branches of the Australian government and their functions under the rule of law: the legislative branch, the executive government, and the court system.