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 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 moreFrom secrecy to open government
Secrecy and government2.4 The secrecy of government information has a long history. As Professor Enid Campbell has explained, the notion that the activities of government should be secret goes back to a period when monarchs were motivated by a desire to protect themselves against their rivals and official information was considered the property of the …
Publications
Read moreCurrent trends in open government
FOI reforms2.21 At the time of writing, the FOI Act is the subject of a proposed reform package based on a commitment by the Australian Government to ‘undertake the most significant overhaul of the FOI Act since its inception in 1982’.[30] The package includes the Freedom of Information (Removal of Conclusive Certificates and Other Measures) …
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 moreOverview of this Report
1.32 This Report contains 61 recommendations for reform. The focus of the recommendations is to provide a principled basis for a revised general secrecy offence, complemented by criteria for reforming specific secrecy provisions and revised administrative procedures and provisions aimed at fostering effective information handling in the public sector.1.33 In accordance with its general policy, …
Publications
Read moreInquiry into the Tax Amendment (Confidentiality of Taxpayer Information) Bill 2009 (Cth)
The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) makes the following submission to the Senate Standing Committee of Privileges Inquiry into the Tax Laws Amendment (Confidentiality of Taxpayer Information) Bill 2009 (Cth) (the Bill). In making this submission, the ALRC draws on its experience from its inquiry into secrecy laws which culminated in the final report—Secrecy Laws …
Publications
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 …
News/Media Release
Read moreFVI e-newsletter – January 2010
This month in summary With only a short break between Christmas and New Year, the ALRC Family Violence team is now in writing mode, drawing together all the material gathered so far. There are still some initial consultations to do, but for the most part it will be writing, writing, writing, till the end of …
News/Media Release
Read moreALRC submission to inquiry into the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment Bill 2009
16 October 2009, The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) makes the following submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee Inquiry into the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment Bill 2009 (Cth) (the Bill). The ALRC does not intend to provide detailed comments on the issues raised by the Bill. However, the ALRC would like …
Publications
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