The 2005 CLEA conference, entitled “Comparing Commonwealth Laws: Challenges for Law” Teachers was held between 9-10 September 2005 at the University of Greenwich. It was opened by the university Vice-Chancellor, Baroness Tessa Blackstone.
The conference was organised by Selina Goulbourne, the CLEA EC member for Europe.
The Conference was divided into six themes:
1. Common Law: Diversity in Unity
This section included papers on “Non-Contractual Liability for Legislative Errors” by Leslie Blake, Tim Sinnamon (both University of Surrey) and John Ponting; “Reform of the Civil Justice System – Implications for the Legal Profession and for Law Teachers” by Bobette Wolski (Bond University) and “Product Liability in the Commonwealth: A Comparative Survey with particular reference to the prospects for legislative reform in South Africa” by M. Loubster (University of Stellenbosch).
2. Comparative Commonwealth Laws: Civil Law, Roman-Dutch Law and Customary Law
This section included papers on “Exploring the interfaces between contract law and property law: A UK comparative perspective” by David Cabrelli (University of Dundee); “Property Rights in Customary Law: A Comparative Perspective” by Siva Sivakumar (Hidayatullah National Law University) and “The Multiple Legal System of Sri Lanka: Development, Problems and Challenges” by HJF Silva (Sri Lanka Law College).
3. Comparative Commonwealth and Human Rights Issues
This section included papers on “Using reasonableness as a tool for the enforcement of social and economic rights in Commonwealth countries” by Anashri Pillay (University of Cape Town); “The comparative evaluation of disability rights mechanisms: Piloting applied legal clinical education in human rights” by Angela Laycock (University of Greenwich) and “The protection of human rights in Uganda and South Africa: A comparative survey of public awareness and perceptions” by John Mubangizi (University of KwaZulu-Natal).
4. Family Rights and Human Rights
This section included papers on “The application of the Hague Convention on the civil aspects of integration of child abduction in South Africa” by Marita Carnelly (University of KwaZulu-Natal-Pietermaritzburg) and “Same sex marriages – An issue for the courts or the legislature?” by Lucy Yeatman (University of Greenwich).
5. Developing the Teaching of Islamic Law
This section included papers on “Incorporating Islamic law into Family Law” by Shaheen Ali (University of Warwick); “Developing the teaching of Islamic law at the University of Western Cape” by Nateira Abdulla (University of Western Cape) and “The operation of the Shariah Law of inheritance in a Roman-Dutch legal system informed by constitutional values” by Mohamed Palekar (University of Cape Town).
6. Legal Education, E-Learning, Legal Services and Law Clinics
This section included papers on “Comparative sports law” by Elizabeth Toomey (University of Canterbury); “The UTS indigenous law degree: The Sydney experience in diversifying the LLB” by David Barker (University of Technology, Sydney), “E-learning, legal education and ideology: Diversity and identities” by Maureen Spencer (Middlesex University), and “The value of an LLB: Comparative perspectives between New Zealand and England and Wales” by Chris Gallavin (University of Canterbury).