Legal

James McDermott: Law and disorder, and why waving a magic legislative wand spells trouble

The Harry Potter approach to law making can do more harm than good, a new book by New Zealand judge David Goddard reveals

David Goddard: in his new book, Making Laws That Work, the New Zealand judge has no difficulty finding examples of laws that didn’t just fail but actually caused more harm than good

They say that to a hammer, every problem is a nail. So, perhaps unsurprisingly, to a legislator every problem has a legislative solution.

Legislator Man or Statute Woman are unlikely to be invited to join the Marvel Universe of Superheroes any time soon, but the “sole and exclusive power” that our constitution bestows on the Oireachtas to make laws for the state is hugely important. But what if these laws fail?

That is the question ...