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In this article, we argue that building a stronger empirical understanding of the politics of domestic refugee law and policy making is essential for refugee law scholars to better advocate for protection-orientated reforms. While much of the legal scholarship is aimed at promoting policy change, the best way to achieve this goal has rarely been examined. We identify three key areas of interdisciplinary empirical research that can create a stronger evidence-base for improving domestic policy reform efforts. This includes understanding the institutions and actors involved in policy formulation, measuring the impact of refugee laws and policies in practice, and identifying how to influence public opinion and build support for progressive law and policy change. We showcase existing interdisciplinary research in each of these areas, and highlight topics ripe for further empirical inquiry.

On 28 August 2019, the Full Federal Court of Australia handed down its decision in four test cases selected by the Court as representative of over 50 cases brought on behalf of asylum seekers on Nauru and Papua New Guinea against the Minister for Home Affairs (the test cases). The test cases confirmed that the Federal Court does have the jurisdiction to hear negligence claims brought by immigration transferees offshore, but that the jurisdiction of the Federal Court has limits.