Dr Inbar Levy and Professor Andrew Higgins, academics from Melbourne Law School and University of Oxford, are currently carrying out empirical research on the law of apprehended bias.

Members are invited to participate in this study.

This study is conducted with the support of the Australian Law Reform Commission and is a part of a wider research project in Australia and the UK comparing the views of judicial officers with those of practitioners and members of the public on matters of recusal. 

This study is examining people’s attitudes as to when they think judges should, or should not, be disqualified from hearing a case on the grounds of possible bias. The questionnaire is completely anonymous; you will not be asked to provide any identifying details. Those conducting the study are only interested in your views.    

The study includes a few case scenarios. The case scenarios are fictional, as is the law set out in the scenarios. The case scenarios may bear some resemblance to real cases, and the legal test may be similar to the law. However, those conducting the study are only interested in your opinion about whether the judge in the case scenarios should be disqualified based on the legal test they ask you to apply. 

The results of the study may be used to inform policy changes on this topic and your input would be extremely valuable. 

Following is the link to the survey: https://melbourneuni.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9RIBqwJQxItwG7I

Attached is a plain language statement with further information about the survey.