Introduction

The Papua New Guinea judiciary was designed to have a uniquely liberal, social policing and interventionist function in the society. This was a fundamental feature of the ingenuity ascribed to the indigenous constitutional designers who were committed to establishing the Papua New Guinea Constitution as ‘home-grown’. The role of the judiciary was intended to go beyond the traditional expectations of a judiciary evident in other post-colonial constitutions, including its former coloniser Australia. However, the distinctive character of the Papua New Guinea judiciary is often suppressed and unrealised. The expectations for judges to have a broader role in shaping society is rivalled by a legal culture developed under the domineering influence of legal positivism that espouses a limited role for judges.