In the September edition of the Public Law Report, we updated you on the Commonwealth Government's intention to consult on whether a statutory right to privacy should be introduced in Australia. In this edition we update you on the release of the Commonwealth Government's Issues Paper on Serious Invasions of Privacy.
On 23 September 2011, the Minister for Privacy and Freedom of Information, the Hon. Brendan O'Connor, released an Issues Paper titled 'A Commonwealth statutory cause of action for serious invasion of privacy'.
The Issues Paper discusses the recommendations by the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) in relation to the introduction of a statutory cause of action for serious invasions of privacy. According to the media release, the ALRC proposal 'would allow individuals to seek a remedy from a court where their private life has been seriously invaded in a way that ordinary Australians would consider to be highly offensive'.
The Issues Paper seeks submissions on whether Australia should introduce a statutory cause of action for privacy and, if so, what elements a statutory cause of action might include. the issues paper draws on the analysis of the Australian, Victorian and New South Wales Law Reform Commissions and considers the policy context and current legal positions in Australia and comparable jurisdictions.
Submissions were due by 4 november 2011.
In his media release, Mr O'Connor stated:
The Issues Paper can be found at the following link: www.dpmc.gov.au/ privacy/causeofaction/docs/issues% 20paper_cth_stat_cause_action_ serious_invasion_privacy.pdf.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
