This is directly from the Laws of Australian Football pdf on the AFL website and I'm a little surprised it hasn't been picked up earlier.
http://s.afl.com.au/staticfile/AFL Tenant/AFL/Files/Images/2016 Laws of Australian Football.pdf
Officially there is no rule against making contact above the shoulders or below the knees. Only contact that is "likely to cause an injury" should have a free kick paid against it. (page 49, 15.4.4 a)
Laws of Australian Football 2016 49
48 Laws of Australian Football 2016
A Player makes Prohibited Contact with an opposition Player
if the Player:
(a)
makes contact or attempts to make contact with any part
of their body with an opposition Player in a manner likely to
cause injury;
(i)
above the shoulders (including the top of the shoulders); or
(ii)
below the knees.
All year the umpires have paid free kicks for any contact even the slightest of brushes on the shoulder as high contact or high tackle. There is no definition of a high tackle free kick outside of this definition in that it would be likely to cause injury.
According to the oxford english dictionary
likely
adjective
1Such as well might happen or be true; probable.
An example of contact unlikely to cause injury is when a player raises his arms forcing the tacklers arm or hand to slowly go above his shoulder. We've seen this paid as a free kick multiple times this year with how many injuries resulting from it? enough to suggest that the action is likely to cause an injury? nope
Other examples are where the force of high contact was below that required to likely cause an injury which are paid throughout the year under a made up "high contact" rule.
This means that the umpires all year have been enforcing a law that doesn't exist and that they have just made up themselves.
(disclaimer: if there is another section which mentions that any high contact results in a free kick then ignore everything above)
http://s.afl.com.au/staticfile/AFL Tenant/AFL/Files/Images/2016 Laws of Australian Football.pdf
Officially there is no rule against making contact above the shoulders or below the knees. Only contact that is "likely to cause an injury" should have a free kick paid against it. (page 49, 15.4.4 a)
Laws of Australian Football 2016 49
48 Laws of Australian Football 2016
A Player makes Prohibited Contact with an opposition Player
if the Player:
(a)
makes contact or attempts to make contact with any part
of their body with an opposition Player in a manner likely to
cause injury;
(i)
above the shoulders (including the top of the shoulders); or
(ii)
below the knees.
All year the umpires have paid free kicks for any contact even the slightest of brushes on the shoulder as high contact or high tackle. There is no definition of a high tackle free kick outside of this definition in that it would be likely to cause injury.
According to the oxford english dictionary
likely
adjective
1Such as well might happen or be true; probable.
An example of contact unlikely to cause injury is when a player raises his arms forcing the tacklers arm or hand to slowly go above his shoulder. We've seen this paid as a free kick multiple times this year with how many injuries resulting from it? enough to suggest that the action is likely to cause an injury? nope
Other examples are where the force of high contact was below that required to likely cause an injury which are paid throughout the year under a made up "high contact" rule.
This means that the umpires all year have been enforcing a law that doesn't exist and that they have just made up themselves.
(disclaimer: if there is another section which mentions that any high contact results in a free kick then ignore everything above)