Evaluation of providing interpreter services
1. The Military Court operated as part of the executive as the military ‘judges’ were not independent of government – they were responsible for conducting thebusiness of government.
2. The Military Court operated as part of the judiciary as the military ‘judges’ wereresponsible for judgingoffences in relation to members of the Defence Force – they were interpreting and applying laws.
3. The separation of powers is when the power to govern the country is split into three separate arms or branches ofgovernment: the legislature, the executive and the judicature.There should be no interference between the threebranches. The overlap between the executive and judiciary in relation to the Australian Military Court meant that the judiciary was not independent of the executive.
4. The High Court ruled that the Australian Military Court was unconstitutional because it was responsible for judging the most serious offences in relation to members of the Defence Force, and the tribunal wasn’t constituted by judicial officers. All of its 171 judgments were retrospectively declared invalid, and some offenders serving time were released.
5. The Military Court case illustrates the way that the judiciary should be autonomous and independent of the other branches of government, in particular so that judges can independently apply laws that they have not made. They can also assess the meaning of laws. For example, the High Court can determine what the scope of the Commonwealth Parliament’s specific legislative powers are.