Professor Peter Cane

Published: 5 April 2007

The TC Beirne School of Law at the University of Queensland recently held its Annual McPherson Lecture Series at the Banco Court of the Supreme Court in Brisbane.

Over three nights in March, Professor Peter Cane from the Australian National University presented a series of thought-provoking lectures on the topic of ‘The Political Economy of Personal Injury Law’ to an appreciative audience.

In the first two lectures, Professor Cane examined the political and economic significance of personal injury law.  In his final lecture, he explored the possible future role of tort law as a way of dealing with the social problem of personal injury.  He questioned whether tort law should provide compensation for non-monetary harm resulting from personal injury, while acknowledging that it would continue to feature as one element of a mixed regime for dealing with personal injuries comprising a range of diverse regulatory and compensatory arrangements.

According to Professor Cane, “we should begin by acknowledging that the basic principles of tort law (were) developed in a world very different from our own and move onto thinking about what role tort law might appropriately play in the personal injuries system in the 21st century Australia”.

Professor Cane’s lectures will be published as a monograph later this year by the University of Queensland Press.

Professor Cane is one of Australia’s most distinguished experts in the law of torts.  He was a member of the Ipp Committee, whose controversial review of the law of negligence in 2002 led to significant legislative changes in the field of accident compensation in Australia.

In 2008, the McPherson Lecture Series will be presented by the Honourable Justice Spigelman AC.  For more information visit: www.law.uq.edu.au/mcpherson