Terms of Reference
Review of Commonwealth Laws for Consistency with Traditional Rights, Freedoms and PrivilegesI, Senator the Hon George Brandis QC, Attorney-General of Australia, having regard to the rights, freedoms and privileges recognised by the common law,REFER to the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) for inquiry and report pursuant to section 20(1) of the Australian Law Reform Commission …
Publications
Read moreJustice and Freedoms in Times of Terror Panel Session
ALRC Freedoms Inquiry, Justice and Freedoms in Times of Terror Panel Session, 19 June 2015, Professor Rosalind Croucher AM, President, Australian law Reform Commission[1] Introduction Thank you for the opportunity to join such an eminent panel today (with David Irvine AO, Professor George Williams AO and Graham Turnbull SC). Coming last made me wonder about contrasts—perhaps ‘specific’ to ‘general’, …
News/Media Release
Read moreThe role of the Crown in native title proceedings
12.16 Crown parties—states, territories and the Commonwealth—have specific roles in native title proceedings. States and territories are typically the first respondents to a native title determination application.[22] This reflects the fact that native title is primarily a matter to be determined between native title applicants and the Crown.[23] The Commonwealth may also be a party …
Publications
Read moreTerms of Reference
Review of the Native Title Act 1993I, Mark Dreyfus QC MP, Attorney-General of Australia, having regard to:the 20 years of operation of the Native Title Act 1993 (the Act)the importance of the recognition and protection of native title to Indigenous Australians and the broader Australian communitythe importance of certainty as to the relationship between native …
Publications
Read moreTerms of Reference
Review of the Native Title Act 1993I, Mark Dreyfus QC MP, Attorney-General of Australia, having regard to:the 20 years of operation of the Native Title Act 1993 (the Act)the importance of the recognition and protection of native title to Indigenous Australians and the broader Australian communitythe importance of certainty as to the relationship between native …
Publications
Read moreA harm-based approach
Duty not to disclose information4.86 In considering how these new secrecy offences should be framed, the ALRC examined a range of existing provisions—including ss 70 and 79(3) of the Crimes Act—particularly those aspects of existing provisions that have drawn consistent criticism. One aspect that has attracted adverse attention is the lack of clarity and certainty around …
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 moreALRC President, Professor Rosalind Croucher, awarded the Order of Australia
Professor Rosalind Croucher, BA(Hons) LLB PhD AMusA ACLM (Hon) FRSA FAAL TEP, President of the Australian Law Reform Commission, has been conferred the award of Member of the Order of Australia for “significant service to the law as an academic, to legal reform and education, to professional development, and to the arts”. The Order of Australia …
News/Media Release
Read moreTerms of Reference
Review of Commonwealth Laws for Consistency with Traditional Rights, Freedoms and PrivilegesI, Senator the Hon George Brandis QC, Attorney-General of Australia, having regard to the rights, freedoms and privileges recognised by the common law,REFER to the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) for inquiry and report pursuant to section 20(1) of the Australian Law Reform Commission …
Publications
Read more