The Commonwealth of Australia is 75 years old. Professor Zines, in this Article, looks at the record of judicial review of the Constitution over the past quarter century. He examines those areas (a) that have, during that time, illustrated, or provided the basis for, the development of general principles; (b) that seem to have particular political or social significance; or (c) that help in understanding the role and technique of the High Court.

Certainty generally is illusion, Holmes once said, and repose is not the destiny of man. Mr Coper vividly illustrates this in relation to the High Court’s exposition of the meaning of “duty of excise” under section 90 of the Constitution, and argues that the Court’s failure to achieve certainty in this area has not been due to a Barwick-led departure from a so-called settled formula, as alleged by some critics, but has rather been the consequence of the inherent limitations of any legalistic approach. Mr Coper then looks to the purposes of section 90 for guidance, but finds a surprising degree of ambiguity surrounding them. The High Court has also referred to the purposes of section 90, but in attempting to achieve certainty without entirely losing sight of those perceived purposes, it has, Mr Coper argues, compromised both objectives. The author concludes by considering how the Court might escape from the present impasse.

It has long been a general rule of common law that a marriage is valid only if formalized in a manner recognised by the law of the place of celebration. This rule is continued in Australian law by explicit statutory provision.

In this Article Mr Fine suggests that in Australian Law the category of exceptions to the lex loci celebrationis requirement is significantly wider than in the common law of England. He also finds that in situations outside the scope of the requirement, Australian courts should apply the parties’ domiciliary law to decide formal validity—not the law of the forum, though the latter is used in English courts as the law of second resort.

Legal safeguards for individuals of employment or income will be one part of a government’s reaction to fluctuation and change in industries. Mr Arup examines present federal asssurances of security of employment and income and capacities to implement further assurances in line with overall economic rationality. He concludes that there are limitations both in present assurances and capacities which require changes in the law.

When the legal systems of two or more States apply to the same fact situation, they may prescribe, with respect to those facts, inconsistent sets of rights and liabilities. In this Article Mr O'Brien examines the role of full faith and credit in resolving the conflict. He concludes that while it is theoretically possible for full faith and credit to resolve the conflict, either on a substantive law basis or on a jurisdictional basis, the Courts have not been prepared to attribute to full faith and credit an operation which would enable it to perform either function. On the other hand, full faith and credit does perform a preparatory function in resolving this type of conflict by bringing such conflicts into federal jurisdiction wherein a resolution can ultimately be achieved.