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Criminal Law Noticeboard October 2021 - Summary Offences Queensland Author Spotlight James Benjamin

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Thomson Reuters is pleased to introduce the newest Summary Offences Queensland Author, James Benjamin, and speaks to him in an Author Spotlight to find out more about him.

James Benjamin is a barrister based in Brisbane practicing primarily in criminal law with much experience in child protection including at an appellate level. He was called to the bar in 2006 and worked as in-house counsel at Legal Aid Queensland before moving to the private bar at the beginning of 2016.

James has a particular interest in the interaction that children have with the legal system.  This includes the youth justice system, the child protection system and children appearing as witnesses. He contributes regularly to submissions on proposed legislation and policy initiatives relating to children’s participation in the criminal justice system.

Following the recent changes to the Youth Justice Act and the modification of the bail laws relating to children, Legal Insight has published an interview with James, Youth Justice Act Reforms: Tough on Crime or a War on Kids?, regarding the implications and potential issues that could arise as a result of those changes.

What brought you to the legal profession?

I was good at English in high school and didn’t know what else I wanted to do. After graduating, I was still at something of a loss until I stumbled into criminal law by accident and discovered I loved it. I knew very quickly that I really enjoyed the challenges of advocacy and that the bar was calling.

What are your professional interests?

I maintain a strong interest in all areas in which children come into contact with the legal system. I have represented the Bar Association of Queensland on the Childrens Court Committee and regularly contribute to the Association’s submissions on law reform and legislative amendments in these areas, but particularly the Youth Justice system.

What are your personal interests?

I enjoy music and coaching and volunteering with my local Junior AFL Club and having fun with my wife and two boys.

Why did you decide to write for Summary Offences Queensland?

My predecessor was a colleague in chambers and suggested me as her replacement. I realised it was a great opportunity to contribute to the publishing community and to make me keep up-to-date on legislative and caselaw developments.

James Benjamin, Barrister, Halsbury Chambers
The Criminal Law Practice Area on Westlaw has many services that are designed to complement each other to provide the breadth of coverage of a single compendium but with the in-depth analysis that specific focus areas will allow. In addition, the Alert and the reports series will also enable practitioners to keep up to date with pertinent caselaw. When taken in its entirety, the Criminal Law Practice Area will furnish subscribers with a full picture of Criminal Law in the respective jurisdictions without the necessary restrictions of single services. The Criminal Law Noticeboard is specifically geared for specialists in the area and will deliver news items of interest and significance written and curated by in-house editors. To subscribe to the Criminal Law Practice Area on Westlaw, contact Thomson Reuters.
Headshort of Wyn Diong
By Wyn Diong
Senior Content Manager

Wyn is an experienced Senior Content Manager in the Analytical Law Team at Thomson Reuters with a long history of working in the information services industry. She holds a Bachelor of Media and a Postgraduate Certificate in TESOL from Macquarie University. In her years with Thomson Reuters, she has worked on multifarious publications in both Primary Law and Secondary Sources and is at present, nurturing multiple subscription services including Uniform Evidence Law, Indictable Offences Queensland and Victorian Courts. She is the (co)author of numerous articles on Legal Insight covering a diverse range of topics. Prior to joining Thomson Reuters, she worked for Pan Macmillan Australia at the Macquarie Dictionary and taught English as a Second Language and Academic English at Macquarie University.

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