Introductory Note to the United States Supreme Court: Graham v. Florida & the Federal Court of Australia: Habib v. Australia

Abstract

This introductory note considers two different and completely unrelated cases: Graham, a U.S. Supreme Court criminal case on the cruel and unusual punishment clause of the U.S. Constitution and Habib, an Australian civil case involving a former Guantanamo Bay detainee. This note focuses on one aspect of the disparate nature of the cases, starkly contrasting judicial attitudes towards the role of “foreign law” in domestic jurisprudence. Juxtaposed, the two cases offer an interesting view of not only the obvious differences between the U.S. inward and the Australian outward looking judicial philosophies, but perhaps a broader sense of how the two legal systems view their role in and contribution to the international rule of law.

Keywords: Graham, Habib, United States, Supreme Court, Australia, international law, foreign law