Australian Law Reform Commission. Professor Croucher is also the ALRC Commissioner-in-charge of the Family Violence Inquiry, being conducted jointly with the New South Wales Law Reform Commission. Professor Croucher joined the ALRC after a distinguished period of 25 years in university teaching and management, most recently as Dean of Law at Macquarie University (from 1999)-where she still holds a Chair in Law.

Australian Law Reform Commission. The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) has welcomed today's announcement by the federal Government that it will implement a large portion of the recommendations of the ALRC's review of Australian privacy laws. Senator Ludwig said the first stage response focuses on the foundations: a clear and simple framework for privacy rights and obligations, including a harmonised set of Privacy Principles a redrafting of the Privacy Act to make it more accessible a new comprehensive credit reporting framework improvements in health sector information flows and enhanced powers for the Privacy Commissioner.

Australian Law Reform Commission. The Foundation Members of the ALRC's Indigenous Advisory Committee are:. The ALRC also has been keen to ensure that Indigenous perspectives, interests and concerns are incorporated into every relevant inquiry.

Australian Law Reform Commission. The ALRC is reviewing the operation of the Royal Commissions Act 1902 (Cth) and related issues, and also has been asked to consider whether less formal and more flexible statutory alternatives to Royal Commissions may be appropriate in some circumstances. Prof McCrimmon said that the ALRC has also proposed a number of measures for the use and protection of national security information by Royal Commissions and Official Inquiries.

Australian Law Reform Commission. 'The protection of women and children is predominantly dealt with under state and territory family and domestic violence laws and child protection laws. Professor Weisbrot noted that this inquiry follows on from the excellent recent work of the National Council to Reduce Violence Against Women and Their Children, which released its National Action Plan in March, and will also build upon previous work by the ALRC.

Australian Law Reform Commission. 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 secrecy and confidentiality of some Commonwealth information. ALRC Commissioner in charge of the Inquiry, Professor Rosalind Croucher, commented 'In trying to shift the system towards a more open and `pro-disclosure culture', the ALRC proposes a substantial decrease in the use of criminal sanctions-limiting prosecutions to those unauthorised disclosures in which it is alleged that harm has been caused, or was likely to be caused, to a compelling public interest.

Australian Law Reform Commission. The ALRC also launches its inaugural Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) today, aimed at ensuring that Indigenous people are effectively engaged in the work of the ALRC and the processes of law reform, so that Australia's laws have proper regard to Indigenous interests, protect and promote Indigenous culture and improve social and economic outcomes for Indigenous people. As the national law reform body, the ALRC has the opportunity to contribute to social justice, equity and inclusion in Australia.

Australian Law Reform Commission. Royal Commission powers are another issue under the spotlight. The Review of Royal Commissions Issues Paper and are available from the ALRC website www.alrc.gov.au .

Australian Law Reform Commission. The ALRC made 27 recommendations for reform of the law in this area, and the Government has accepted 25 of these unconditionally and two of them `in principle'. The ALRC Report recognised that free speech and robust political debate are the cornerstones of our democratic society.

Australian Law Reform Commission. ALRC President, Professor David Weisbrot stated 'The federal statute book has become riddled with secrecy provisions, which make unauthorised disclosure of government information a criminal offence. A wrong call could lead to heavy fines and severe penalties, including a jail term.