Where to from here? From law to place and back again

摘要: As many of the chapters in this collection have demonstrated laws ‘work’and assert their influence in a variety of ways, but not always as intended and perverse consequences are often overlooked. One aspect in particular invites our attention and that is the tricky question of efficacy: do laws work as intended and how? And upon whom? And to what end? Do they achieve their aims? What else do they achieve? Which laws achieve what, exactly? Based on past experience, an admittedly uniformitarian assumption, and an assessment of future challenges, an equally ambitious exercise, we attempt to suggest an answer to the question: what are the most appropriate aims and how best might these be achieved? This is to apply a normative evaluative lens, and we wish to look at efficacy and equity in the main, noting that cost-effectiveness is also a common consideration (see Stern 2009, p. 26). Such questions also …