Centre for Commercial Law

The ANU College of Law Centre for Commercial Law is a centre of excellence in private and government commercial law reform, advice and policy evaluation, and a leader in commercial law research and teaching. It also provides a national forum for academics, practitioners and regulators working in private and government commercial law.
Last updated date
Director(s)
Contact us
Research theme
Recently
The Women in Commercial Law Forum presents four ANU Law alumni, each a leader in her field, speaking candidly about the rewards and the challenges of working as women in the area of commercial law.
Photos from the evening can be viewed on Flickr.
Latest news
In the Media
Zimbabwe: new Finance Minister named
Jolyon Ford speaks to ABC The World Today
Microsoft’s Seeing AI app shows how cutting-edge technology can empower the blind
Cameron Roles quoted in Techly
Everything you need to know about changes to the Racial Discrimination Act
Dilan Thampapillai, Margaret Thornton speaks to News.com.au
Business for Peace: Who profits in the long run?
Jolyon Ford interviewed by ABC 666 Breakfast
Upcoming events
No upcoming events found.
Past events
Foreign bribery and corruption: Are we making a difference?
- International lawyer Stephane Brabant
- AFP Commander Peter Crozier
- Dr Kath Hall
Over recent years there has been a flurry of regulatory activity in relation to foreign bribery and corruption. Last year multi-national companies paid over $2.9 billion to resolve cases in the US, and Rolls Royce entered the largest deferred prosecution agreement in the UK for over $1.1 billion.
40th Anniversary of the Federal Court of Australia
The ANU Centre for Commercial Law and Centre for International and Public Law are proud to announce a conference to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Federal Court of Australia.
Data protection regulation in the EU: Impact on Australia and non-European jurisdictions
- Professor Lee A. Bygrave, University of Oslo
The European Union’s regulatory framework for protection of personal data is undergoing major reform. It is a framework which many regard as setting a benchmark for “best practice” globally, significantly shaping the regulatory policy of non-European countries, including Australia.
Wellbeing in the Law Week - Mon 8 to Fri 12 May
The ANU College of Law is committed to health and wellbeing in the law, for all our students and academic and professional staff. This is the inaugural Wellbeing in the Law Week, presented by the ANU College of Law Wellbeing Initiative and the ANU Law Students' Society.
Women in Commercial Law Forum
Careers in commercial law – whether in legal practice, business, government or academia – can be rewarding, intellectually challenging and exciting. Many ANU Law graduates go on to have highly successful commercial law careers. But how many are women?
The ANU College of Law Centre for Commercial Law is a centre of excellence in private and government commercial law reform, advice and policy evaluation, and a leader in commercial law research and teaching. It also provides a national forum for academics, practitioners and regulators working in private and government commercial law.
We host an annual conference as well as regular seminars and workshops. Our members also run consultancies for legal practitioners, government and the business community on commercial law issues, particularly as they affect government commercial practice.
Our researchers specialise in emerging commercial law areas, particularly corporatisation, privatisation, government contracting, globalisation and international aspects of commercial law.
Research and projects undertaken at the Centre also cover 'traditional' areas of commercial practice such as bankruptcy and insolvency, companies, securities, contracts, equity, intellectual property, personal property securities, trade practices and taxation.
The Centre was established in 1998 and its current director is Pauline Ridge.
Directors

Pauline Ridge
Professor
Members
Higher degree research students

Harriet Gray
PhD Candidate

Michelle Worthington
Lecturer
Affiliates


Members of the Centre for Commercial Law are involved in teaching a variety of courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate level at ANU Law.
The ANU Master of Law offers a flexible coursework structure which enables students to undertake a variety of courses. Most courses are taught intensively over periods of two to six days.
Courses may also be studied as a single subject without being part of a full award program or degree. You can take any one of our 80+ Masters courses as a single subject with assessment. This is called ‘non-award study’.
Courses in the Masters Program can also be undertaken on a Professional Development basis where students attend the intensive days but do not complete the assessment nor receive a grade for the course.
Members of the Centre are also available to supervise research students in commercial law topics. For further information, see the Higher Degree Research page.
This article considers fragmented property systems – the phenomenon of contested, separated or overlapping sub-systems within a national property jurisdiction. One example is circumstances of property despite law. Globally, as many as a billion people claim de facto property without recognition by law in urban informal settlements and agro-pastoral or forested areas. Another example is property without transition to law. Many households in the developing world regulate land markets through local mechanisms notwithstanding opportunities or requirements to use law.
The article provides a conceptual frame for the emergence of property system fragmentation based on the private coordination of property relations. The article argues that fragmentation emerges in complex property systems where law attempts to displace property coordination mechanisms, but fails to induce a critical mass of property participants to alter coordination strategies. A focus on coordination provides a means to combine the methodological individualism of economic narratives with collective variables highlighted by other perspectives on property such as anthropology and complex systems theory.
Activities archive
The Women in Commercial Law Forum presents four ANU Law alumni, each a leader in her field, speaking candidly about the rewards and the challenges of working as women in the area of commercial law.
Photos from the evening can be viewed on Flickr.