Article
Religious Freedom, Section 109 of the Constitution, and Anti-discrimination Laws
Australian Journal of Law and Religion
(2022)
Abstract
Many Australian anti-discrimination statutes contain special provisions to
balance equality with religious freedom. However, if these religious freedom
provisions in state anti-discrimination laws are narrowed too much, the laws
may become inoperative by virtue of s 109 of the Australian Constitution, which
says that an inconsistency between State and Commonwealth law shall be
resolved in favour of the latter. This article explores the relationship between
religious freedom, s 109 of the Australian Constitution, and anti-discrimination
laws. It concludes that, to avoid constitutional difficulty, states should ensure
religious freedom provisions in their anti-discrimination statutes are at least as
wide in scope and effect as that provided by the Commonwealth in its antidiscrimination
statutes.
Keywords
- religious freedom,
- Constitution s 109,
- Discrimination exceptions
Disciplines
Publication Date
August 29, 2022
Citation Information
Neil J Foster. "Religious Freedom, Section 109 of the Constitution, and Anti-discrimination Laws" Australian Journal of Law and Religion Vol. 1 Iss. 1 (2022) p. 36 - 56 ISSN: 2653-5122 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/neil_foster/144/