Family 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 moreALRC submission to inquiry into the provisions of the National Security Legislation Amendment Bill 2010 and Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement Bill 2010
Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, 3 May 2010The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Committee’s inquiry. The ALRC will restrict its comments to the National Security Legislation Amendment Bill 2010 (Cth), drawing on its experience from the major inquiry into sedition laws in …
Publications
Read moreALRC reforms strike a blow to the old culture of secrecy
Secrecy laws, and the prosecution of public servants for the unauthorised disclosure of Commonwealth information, can sit uneasily with the Australian Government’s commitment to open and accountable government. The final report of the Australian Law Reform Commission’s comprehensive review of Commonwealth secrecy laws, Secrecy Laws and Open Government in Australia (ALRC Report 112) was tabled …
News/Media Release
Read moreRoyal Commissions and official inquiries
The ALRC considered a number of matters including whether there was any need to develop an alternative form or forms of Commonwealth executive inquiry, with statutory foundations, to provide more flexibility, less formality and greater cost-effectiveness than a Royal Commission.
Inquiries
Read moreMaking Inquiries: A New Statutory Framework (ALRC Report 111)
ALRC Report 111 represents the culmination of a nine month inquiry by the ALRC into the operation of the provisions of the Royal Commissions Act 1902 (Cth), and the question of whether an alternative form or forms of Commonwealth executive inquiry should be established by statute.It consists of 21 chapters and 82 recommendations for reform.View …
Publications
Read moreSecrecy laws and open government
Secrecy laws that impose obligations of confidentiality on individuals handling government information—and the prosecution of public servants for the unauthorised disclosure of such information—can sit uneasily with the Australian Government’s commitment to open and accountable government. Secrecy laws have also drawn sustained criticism on the basis that they unreasonably interfere with the right to freedom …
Inquiries
Read moreReform journal
The Australian Law Reform Commission published the first issue of Reform in January 1976, and then twice a year until 2010. The journal’s aim was to raise public awareness of contemporary legal issues and provides a forum for high-quality debate on issues of law reform in an easy-to-read format. Previous articles contributed by leading Australian …
Publications
Read moreRoyal Commissions and Official Inquiries (DP 75)
This Discussion Paper, the second consultation document produced during this Inquiry, contains a detailed treatment of the issues. It reflects the views of the stakeholders with whom the Commission had so far consulted and indicates the ALRC’s thinking in the form of specific proposals for reform. View DP 75 in HTML on the AustLII website
Publications
Read moreALRC proposals to wind back federal secrecy laws
The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) today released a Discussion Paper for its current inquiry into federal secrecy laws—Review of Secrecy Laws (DP 74, June 2009)—which makes 65 proposals for reform.The ALRC is seeking community feedback about how to balance a growing commitment to increased openness and transparency in government with the legitimate need to maintain the …
News/Media Release
Read moreSentencing of federal offenders
In July 2004, the federal Attorney-General, the Hon Philip Ruddock MP, asked the ALRC to examine the laws and practices governing sentencing of federal offenders, that is, people convicted of criminal offences set out in Commonwealth, rather than state and territory, legislation.The terms of reference directed the ALRC to consider whether Part IB of the …
Inquiries
Read more