What information should be protected?
6.84 In Chapter 3, the ALRC considers the various categories of information protected by the hundreds of existing secrecy provisions in federal legislation.[86] In this section, the ALRC considers what information should be protected by the new general secrecy offence and the subsequent disclosure offences.6.85 Section 70 of the Crimes Act applies to any current and former …
Publications
Read moreWhich exceptions and defences should be expressly included?
7.12 Chapter 3 identifies a range of exceptions and defences found in existing secrecy provisions, that is, where disclosure is· in the course of a person’s functions and duties;· for the purposes of a particular law;· authorised by specified persons;· to specified persons or entities;· for the purposes of legal proceedings;· for the purposes of law …
Publications
Read moreWhich exceptions and defences should not be expressly included?
Lawful authority7.61 The Criminal Code includes a defence of ‘lawful authority’ where ‘the conduct constituting the offence is justified or excused by or under a law’.[69] The Commonwealth Criminal Code: A Guide for Practitioners states that this provision:Provide[s] a general defence which will excuse or justify conduct which is authorised by law. The law in …
Publications
Read moreGovernment response to ALRC Report 74
Released on 16 February 1999 by IP Australia and Mr Warren Entsch MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry, Science and ResourcesRecommendation No 1. Australian law should continue to provide statutory protection for industrial designs.Response: AcceptedNo 2. Reform of designs law that can be achieved within the current framework of intellectual property law should …
Inquiries
Read more1. Introduction to the Inquiry
BackgroundOn 17 July 2009, the Attorney-General of Australia, the Hon Robert McClelland MP, asked the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) to conduct an Inquiry together with the New South Wales Law Reform Commission (NSWLRC) into particular questions in relation to family violence that had arisen from the March 2009 report, Time for Action, produced by …
Publications
Read moreFamily violence
This Inquiry looked at the complex interaction between state and territory family and domestic violence and child protection laws and the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). The ALRC was to consider what, if any, improvements could be made to relevant legal frameworks to protect the safety of women and children.
Inquiries
Read moreSpecific statutory secrecy provisions
3.20 Secrecy provisions contained in Commonwealth legislation are many and varied. As noted in Chapter 1, the ALRC has conducted a mapping exercise to identify and analyse provisions in Commonwealth legislation that impose secrecy or confidentiality obligations on individuals or bodies in respect of Commonwealth information. The ALRC has identified 506 secrecy provisions in 176 …
Publications
Read moreFreedom of expression
2.37 While open government is central to this Inquiry, another key principle of relevance is freedom of expression. This section of the chapter considers the international and domestic laws that protect this freedom, including the ICCPR and rights enacted in domestic law. It goes on to discuss the relationship between secrecy provisions and freedom of …
Publications
Read moreOccasional Address, University of Southern Queensland Graduation
Professor Rosalind Croucher, President, Australian Law Reform Commission, 21 May 2010 at Sydney Olympic Park Introduction Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, graduands, family and friends, it is a great pleasure to be here tonight. I was last in this precinct for the opening of the Sydney Olympic Games, singing with a thousand (and more) keen choristers from all …
News/Media Release
Read moreNavigating the Maze – Family Violence Inquiry, JD Guest Lecture
Professor Rosalind Croucher, President, Australian Law Reform Commission. University of Melbourne The text below does not include the original footnotes. Download PDF for full version.Introduction In speaking to you today I will be looking at law reform, using the ALRC’s current inquiry into family violence as the illustration, in order to demonstrate the challenges of …
News/Media Release
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