Upcoming event: Holding Redlich Brisbane's 2018 Government Lawyer Day
On 1 March, Holding Redlich's Brisbane office is holding a range of sessions designed exclusively for lawyers in the public sector, that will assist you in gaining CPD points before the end of the CPD year. These sessions will be practical presentations given by industry leaders and will cover the three mandatory core areas: ethics, practice management and professional skills. Register here.
In the media
LIV: Why mandatory sentencing fails
The LIV has long held that independent, qualified and experienced
judicial officers are best placed to impose an appropriate
sentence, taking into account all the circumstances of the case.
Standardised sentencing forces judges to depart from the
"intuitive synthesis" model and take into account a fixed
term that may be inappropriate in the circumstances (01 February
2018).
More...
Extent of donations to Australia's political parties
revealed
The Australian Electoral Commission's annual returns, published
on Thursday morning, reveal the extent of the cash poured into the
political process – more than $207 million in total.
Thursday's returns are likely to put the spotlight back on
foreign donations and come as the Joint Standing Committee on
Electoral Matters examines legislation aimed at banning overseas
cash from the Australian political process (01 February 2018).
More...
Government's over-the-top secrecy laws will create
more problems than they will fix
The Australian Government's proposed legislation to overhaul
Australia's secrecy laws is excessive, poorly designed and does
not heed the Australian Law Reform Commission's
recommendations, the Human Rights Law Centre told a parliamentary
committee today (30 January 2018).
More...
National Integrity Committee welcomes Labor's
federal corruption watchdog policy
The National Integrity Committee, hosted by The Australia
Institute, today welcomed the announcement by Opposition Leader
Bill Shorten that a Labor government will legislate to establish a
federal corruption watchdog (30 January 2018).
More...
Queensland's approach to tackling violence ranked
best in the country
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Yvette D'Ath has
welcomed news that Queensland's approach to tackling
alcohol-fuelled violence has been ranked the best in Australia (30
January 2018).
More...
QLS says youth justice reforms long time coming but
necessary
Queensland's peak legal group has praised the state government
for new youth justice laws that will finally see 17-year-old
offenders treated as children rather than adults. Queensland is the
last Australian state or territory to unfairly dispatch 17-year-old
offenders to be dealt with by the harsher penalties handed out to
adult criminals (30 January 2018).
More...
Update on response to bullying young
Queenslanders
Cabinet approves new measures to boost anti-bullying efforts with
stakeholder roundtable meets for input for national plan Bullying
on the agenda for COAG meeting on 9 February (29 January 2018).
More...
Queensland juvenile justice reforms announced last year
will commence on 12 February
Queensland will treat 17 year-olds under Youth Justice laws instead
of as adults from 12 February, delivering on a Palaszczuk
Government promise and bringing the state into line with
legislation in all other Australian jurisdictions (29 January
2018).
More...
Scam victims to pocket refunds
The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission
(ACIC) has urged people falling victim to a scam
involving money transfers through US company Western Union to check
whether they are eligible for a refund. Chief Executive of ACIC,
Michael Phelan said a successful court action in the United States
included possible payments to victims in other countries around the
world (30 January 2018).
More...
Auditor ticks off Electoral Commission
A report by the Auditor-General into contracting practices at the
Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) in the
lead-up to the 2016 Federal Election has found the Commission
failed to ensure it received value for money (30 January 2018).
More...
Government's over-the-top secrecy laws will create
more problems than they will fix
The Australian Government's proposed legislation to overhaul
Australia's secrecy laws is excessive, poorly designed and does
not heed the Australian Law Reform Commission's
recommendations, the Human Rights Law Centre told a parliamentary
committee today (30 January 2018).
More...
PC Report on Government Services –
Justice
The Productivity Commission's Report on Government Services
(RoGS) also covers Justice – Police, Courts
and Corrective Services. Total government expenditure for the
justice services measured in RoGS was almost $16 billion in
2016-17, around 7.2 percent of total government expenditure on
services (25 January 2018).
More...
Foreign interference laws could see journalists
'jailed for doing their jobs'
Australia's largest media organisations warn the Federal
Government its foreign interference laws could undermine freedom of
the press and see journalists thrown in jail (23 January 2018).
More...
Police sharpen focus on public videos
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has moved to
make it easier for members of the public to provide their
recordings of events to the police for possible use in tracking
down criminals (23 January 2018).
More...
LCA: Secrecy of information, treason, espionage and
sabotage target of new Bill
The Law Council considers many of the offence provisions are
broadly drafted to capture a range of benign conduct that may not
necessarily amount to harm or prejudice Australia's interests
and as such, considers the Bill should not proceed as currently
drafted (23 January 2018).
More...
Inmates facing charges after South Coast CCTV
reviewed
Up to 27 inmates from South Coast Correctional Centre are being
investigated over their involvement in a disturbance at the Nowra
facility on 3 January. Commissioner Peter Severin said this type of
behaviour is unacceptable and our staff are working hard to ensure
the inmates responsible are charged over their involvement in the
incident, which put officers and other inmates at risk (23 January
2018).
More...
In practice and courts
OAIC: Freedom of information regulatory action
policy
The OAIC is seeking public comment on an exposure draft of the
Freedom of information regulatory action policy. The
closing date for comments is 16 February 2018. Below are links to
the draft Freedom of information regulatory action policy
and the consultation information.
Consultation information: Freedom of information regulatory action
policy
Consultation draft: Freedom of information regulatory action
policy
OAIC: Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB)
scheme
Data breach notification will become mandatory as of February 2018
for all Australian entities required to comply with the Privacy
Act 1988. When Federal Parliament passed the Privacy
Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017 last year, it
started a process that means from 22 February 2018, all entities
covered by the Australian Privacy Principles will have clear
obligations to report eligible data breaches within 30 days. More...
OAIC: IC review procedure direction
The Australian Information Commissioner has issued a written
direction under s 55(2)(e)(i) of the Freedom of Information Act
1982 as to certain procedures to be followed in Information
Commissioner (IC) reviews. The Direction applies
to agencies and ministers during IC reviews and preliminary
inquiries prior to the commencement of an IC review. The Direction
has been published on the
OAIC's website and takes effect from 26 February 2018.
LCA Submissions
01 January 2018 - Law Council: 2018-19 Pre-Budget Submission
25 January 2018 - Law Council: Electoral Legislation Amendment (Electoral Funding and Disclosure Reform) Bill 2017
22 January 2018 - Law Council: Home Affairs and Integrity Agencies Legislation Amendment Bill 2017
Human Rights Law Commission Submissions
Submission: Realising the right to
equality
This submission responds to the Modernisation of the
Anti-Discrimination Act Discussion Paper (Discussion Paper) 1
released by the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice in
September 2017 regarding the modernisation of the
Anti-Discrimination Act (the Act) (31
January 2018).
More...
Submission: Secrecy offences: The wrong approach to
necessary reform
The Human Rights Law Centre has told a parliamentary committee
about the serious concerns raised by the new criminal offences for
handling government information, concluding that the proposed
regime has no place in a healthy democracy, in which open
government and the freedom to scrutinise government must be
maintained (23 January 2018).
More...
AAT Bulletin
The AAT Bulletin is a weekly publication containing a list of
recent AAT decisions and information relating to appeals against
AAT decisions:
Issue No. 3/2018, 29 January 2018
Issue No. 2/2018, 22 January 2018
Current Inquiries
Judiciary Amendment (Commonwealth Model Litigant
Obligations) Bill 2017
On 7 December 2017 the Senate referred the Judiciary Amendment
(Commonwealth Model Litigant Obligations) Bill 2017 to the
Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee for inquiry
and report by 8 May 2018. The deadline for submissions to the
inquiry is 28 February 2018. More...
The adequacy of existing offences in the Commonwealth
Criminal Code and of state and territory criminal laws to capture
cyberbullying
On 7 September 2017 the Senate referred the below matter to the
Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee for inquiry
and report by 29 November 2017. On 19 October 2017 the Senate
extended the committee's reporting date to the last sitting day
in March 2018, which is 28 March 2018. More...
Forces of Change – Defining Future Justice
Conference 2018
The Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration is pleased to
announce the Forces of Change – Defining Future Justice
Conference will be held at the Stamford Plaza Brisbane, Queensland
from 24 – 26 May 2018. More...
Queensland
CCC: Communiqué: CCC Chairperson and
Directors-General to collaborate on corruption prevention in
Queensland
On 8 December 2017, Alan MacSporran QC, Chairperson of the Crime
and Corruption Commission (CCC), Directors-General and
Deputy-Directors General from across the Queensland public sector,
and senior executives from the CCC met to discuss integrity and
corruption prevention. The key issues discussed and actions agreed
are outlined here (29 January 2018).
More...
QAO Audits in
Progress – expected tabling date February
2018
Enforcement and recovery of unpaid fines
Fraud risk management
Use of confidentiality provisions in government contracts
Queensland Law Reform Commission releases a consultation
paper inviting submissions on Queensland's laws relating to the
termination of pregnancy
The Queensland Law Reform Commission has been asked to conduct a
review into modernising Queensland's laws relating to the
termination of pregnancy. The Commission has released a
Consultation Paper (WP No 76) inviting written submissions in
response to the questions posed in the paper. Consultation closes
on 13 February 2018.
More...
OAIC Queensland: Have your say about Ipswich City
Council
The Queensland Office of the Information Commissioner is currently
auditing Ipswich City Council to assess its approach to right to
information and information privacy. As part of the audit, we are
interested in your experiences about obtaining information from the
Council (02 February 2018).
More...
Queensland Courts: draft Guidelines for expert evidence
in the Land Court
The draft Guidelines for expert evidence in the Land Court are
available for consultation. The Guidelines outline both current and
proposed procedures for expert evidence in the Land Court of
Queensland. The Court invites constructive feedback on any aspect
of its expert evidence procedures whether current or proposed by 5
February 2018.
More...
QLS: Court of Appeal two-monthly sitting
system
The Court of Appeal has proposed to adopt a system of two-monthly
sittings. Call-overs for the first of these sittings will be held
in November, with the first of the two-monthly sittings in February
and March 2018.
More...
Changes coming to youth justice
A historic and long awaited change to the youth criminal justice
system is to commence. On 12 February 2018, 17-year-olds will be
treated as children in the youth justice system and transition out
of the adult criminal justice system.
Register today to be reminded 10 minutes before we are live on
Facebook. Please note that you will need a Facebook account to join
this session.
Cybercrime and additional caution re EFTs
A number of law practices have been the subject of cybercrime
frauds in recent months. The frauds have resulted in trust funds
being incorrectly disbursed from law practice trust accounts. There
have also been a number of instances in which client funds have
failed to be received by law practices.
More....
Practice Direction 1 of 2018 – Referral to the
Drug and Alcohol Court – Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order
(Treatment Order)
The
Practice Direction was issued by the Chief Magistrate on
Thursday 25 January 2018 and applies to all matters heard after the
commencement of Part 8A Penalties and Sentences Act 1992
on Monday 29 January 2018.
Published – articles, papers, reports
The new Senate voting system and the 2016
election
Damon Muller; Parliamentary Library (Australia): 25 January
2018
This research paper outlines the recent history of Senate electoral
reform in federal elections, including examining the reasons for
the most recent changes to the Senate voting system.
>More...
Freedom of speech and political communication in
Australia
Gideon Rozner; Institute of Public Affairs: 30 January
2018
Freedom of speech is fundamental to a free society. Political
communication is obviously an important mode of speech and
accordingly, the laws and regulations that seek to restrict it are
inherently concerning. More...
Report on government services 2018:
Justice
Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service
Provision; Productivity Commission: 25 January 2018
The justice sector services aim to contribute to a safe and secure
community and promote a law abiding way of life. More...
Australian Electoral Commission's procurement of
services for the conduct of the 2016 federal
election
Australian National Audit Office: 22 January 2018
This audit was conducted to assess whether the Australian Electoral
Commission appropriately established and managed the contracts for
the transportation of completed ballot papers and the Senate
scanning solution for the 2016 federal election. More...
OAICnet 02 February 2018
In this issue: Welcome to 2018; IC review procedure direction; FOI
regulatory action policy – exposure draft; Upcoming events;
Key dates; OAIC careers; IC review decisions; Safer Internet Day;
Notice about a representative complaint.
More...
Cases
'NV' and Department of Human Services (Freedom of
information) [2018] AICmr 14
Freedom of Information — Whether disclosure would have a
substantial adverse effect on the proper and efficient conduct of
the operations of an agency — Whether contrary to the public
interest to release conditionally exempt documents — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982 ss 11A(5) and 47E(d).
Australian Associated Press Pty Ltd and Department of Foreign
Affairs and Trade (Freedom of information) [2018] AICmr
13
Freedom of Information — Charges — Request for waiver
of charge — Whether giving access to documents is in the
general public interest or in the interest of a substantial section
of the public — (CTH) Freedom of Information Act
1982 ss 29, 55D.
'NJ' and Department of Home Affairs (Freedom of
information) [2018] AICmr 12
Freedom of Information — Whether work involved in processing
the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the
resources of the agency from its other operations — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982 ss 24, 24AA, 24AB.
'NT' and Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority
(Freedom of information) [2018] AICmr 11
Freedom of Information — Whether documents subject to legal
professional privilege — Whether disclosure would have a
substantial adverse effect on the proper and efficient conduct of
the operations of an agency — Whether contrary to the public
interest to release conditionally exempt documents — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982, ss 11A(5), 42 and
47E(d).
'NS' and Department of Human Services (Freedom of
information) [2018] AICmr 10
Freedom of Information — Whether reasonable steps taken to
locate documents — (CTH) — Freedom of Information
Act 1982 s 24A.
William Summers and Department of the Prime Minister and
Cabinet (Freedom of information) [2018] AICmr
9
Freedom of Information — Whether disclosure could cause
damage to the international relations of the Commonwealth —
Whether documents contain deliberative matter prepared for a
deliberative process — Whether contrary to the public
interest to release conditionally exempt documents — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982 ss 11A(5), 33(a)(iii) and
47C.
'NR' and Department of Home Affairs (Freedom of
information) [2018] AICmr 8
Freedom of Information — Whether disclosure would prejudice
lawful methods or procedures — Whether disclosure would
disclose commercially valuable information — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982 ss 37(2)(b) and
47(1)(b).
Andrew Leigh and Australian Federal Police (Freedom of
information) [2018] AICmr 7
Freedom of Information — Whether disclosure of personal
information is unreasonable — Whether contrary to public
interest to release conditionally exempt documents — (CTH)
Freedom of Information Act 1982 ss 11A(5) and 47F.
Eisele v Commonwealth of Australia [2018] FCA
15
DISCRIMINATION – disability discrimination – alleged
discrimination against person with associate with disability
– reasonable adjustments – where aggrieved person was
applicant for a Subclass 457 visa under the Migration Act
1958 (Cth) – where associate with a disability had
applied for approval as a business sponsor – whether primary
judge erred in dismissing application – appeal
dismissed.
PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – subpoenas – applicable
principles – where subpoenas addressed to two witnesses were
set aside on basis that the evidence proposed to be adduced would
be irrelevant – whether primary judge erred in setting aside
subpoenas - Constitution, s 75(v).
Bailey v Broadsword Marine Contractors Pty Ltd [2017]
FCAFC 219
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – whether the appellant had suffered an
"injury" under the Seafarers Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1992 (Cth) – distinction between
"disease" and "injury" in its primary sense
considered – effect of "sudden" or
"dramatic" change considered – exclusionary effect
of s 10(7) of the Seafarers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act
1992 (Cth) considered.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – whether the appellant had suffered an
"injury" under the Seafarers Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1992 (Cth) – whether the adjustment
disorders were the same disease – whether the appellant made
a "wilful" and "false" representation.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW – construction of reasons of Tribunal
– whether Tribunal turned its mind to the central issue in
contention – effect of reading reasons as a whole.
Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 (Cth) ss 33, 43,
44; Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (Cth)
s 4; Seafarers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1992
(Cth) ss 3, 10, 10(7), 26, 78; Workers' Compensation Act
1951 (ACT) s 7.
Cain v Seven Network (Operations) Limited [2018] QDC
002
LIMITATION OF ACTIONS – EXTENSION OR POSTPONEMENT OF
LIMITATION PERIODS – OTHER CAUSES OF ACTION AND MATTERS
– where s10AA of the Limitations of Actions Act 1974
(Qld) provides that an action for defamation must not be brought
after the end of one year from the date of publication of the
material complained of – whether it was not reasonable in the
circumstances for the plaintiff to have commenced an action within
one year from the publication date – whether the limitation
period should be extended pursuant to s 32A.
Legislation
Queensland
Subordinate Legislation
SL No 2 of 2018: Proclamation - Child Protection
Reform Amendment Act 2017 – 26/01/2018
As referred to in its explanatory notes, the objective of the
Proclamation is to commence sections 68(3), 69(2), 71 and 72 of the
Child Protection Reform Amendment Act 2017 on 29 January
2018. The Amendment Act implements priority legislative reforms in
response to a comprehensive review of the Child Protection Act
1999, recommended by the Queensland Child Protection
Commission of Inquiry.
More...
SL No 3 of 2018: Youth Justice (Transitional)
Regulation 2018 – 29/01/2018
This regulation commences immediately after the commencement of the
Youth Justice and Other Legislation (Inclusion of 17-year-old
Persons) Amendment Act 2016, section 5. This regulation is a
transitional regulation, relating to proceedings for offences by
17-year-olds.
More...
This publication does not deal with every important topic or change in law and is not intended to be relied upon as a substitute for legal or other advice that may be relevant to the reader's specific circumstances. If you have found this publication of interest and would like to know more or wish to obtain legal advice relevant to your circumstances please contact one of the named individuals listed.