Funding boost will help front line legal services

The Australian Government’s additional $63.3 million injection for frontline legal services to support people impacted by COVID-19 is greatly appreciated by the Law Council.

The $20 million earmarked for domestic violence, $29.8 million towards tenancy disputes, insurance, credit and debt related problems, work related claims and the remaining $13.5 million on IT upgrades is a welcome injection of funding that will help meet a rise in demand for legal services. Read more.

Virtual Presidents’ Roundtable - ‘Resilience through COVID-19’
On 27 April 2020, Law Council President Pauline Wright appeared as one of eight speakers in a virtual Presidents’ Roundtable hosted by the Law Society of Hong Kong with the theme ‘Resilience through COVID-19’. Approximately 50 international bar associations and law societies from across the world were represented in the roundtable. Read more.

COVIDSafe tracing app
The Law Council has been working tirelessly with government, the opposition and the crossbench on the drafting of legislation due to replace the determination that underpins the legality of the COVIDSafe app. Read more.

PJCIS inquiry into Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (International Production Orders) Bill 2020
Law Council President, Pauline Wright, together with Dr David Neal SC (Co-Chair, National Criminal Law Committee), Dr Sarah Pritchard SC (Chair, National Human Rights Committee) and Dr Natasha Molt (Director of Policy) appeared before the committee on behalf of the Law Council of Australia. Read more.

Covid-19 Fact sheet – Essential Services
In partnership with the Australian Medical Association, the Law Council of Australia has produced a fact sheet with information about what defines an ‘essential service’ and who classifies as an ‘essential worker’? Read more.

National Press Club address by the Federal Treasurer
Malcolm Brennan, Chair of the Business Law Section’s Foreign Investment Committee represented the Law Council of Australia at the National Press Club address by the Federal Treasurer held on 5 May 2020. Due to the observation of social distancing rules (under a special dispensation from the ACT Government), this was perhaps the smallest audience the Press Club has had for one of these events. Read more.

Statutory Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)
The Law Council provided a submission to the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment in response to the second statutory review (the Review) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (the EPBC Act or Act), including the Review discussion paper. Read more.

South Pacific Lawyers’ Association website
On 8 May 2020, the South Pacific Lawyers’ Association (SPLA) launched its new website. The SPLA Secretariat, housed within the Law Council, developed the site in response to feedback by SPLA’s Constituent Members representing seventeen jurisdictions in the region. Read more.

Advocacy

Inquiries and consultations as of 8 May 2020.

2020 Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release - nominated areas for comment, Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources.
2020 Review of the Emissions Reduction Fund, Climate Change Authorit.
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Climate Trigger) Bill 2020, Parliamentary Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications.
Inquiry into Future Directions for the Consumer Data Right: Issues Paper, The Treasury.
Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability – Criminal Justice System Issues Paper, Royal Commission.
Inquiry into the Tax Treatment of Employee Share Schemes, Parliamentary House Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue.
COVID-19, Parliamentary Senate Select Committee on COVID-19.
Review of CGT Roll-overs, The Board of Taxation.
Resources Sector Regulation, Productivity Commission.
Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, Royal Commission.
3rd UPR cycle: contributions and participation of "other stakeholders" in the UPR, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Australia.
Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, Royal Commission.
Review into the Framework of Religious Exemptions in Anti-discrimination Legislation, Australian Law Reform Commission.
Inquiry into Class Actions and Litigation Funding, Law Commission of New Zealand.
Improving protections of employees’ wages and entitlements: further strengthening the civil compliance and enforcement framework, Attorney-General’s Department.
Review of the Code for the Tendering and Performance of Building Work 2016, Attorney-General’s Department.
Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), Attorney-General's Department.

News and Media

Media releases and statements:

Safeguards needed in arrangements with overseas partners in digital era, 12 May 2020.
Law Council President, Pauline Wright, statement on the release of COVIDSafe source code, 11 May 2020.
Proposed constitutional amendments in Samoa concerning, 8 May 2020.
Funding boost will help front line legal services, 8 May 2020.
Law Council President’s statement on the COVIDSafe exposure draft, 5 May 2020.
Vale Mr Philip Selth OAM, 4 May 2020.
Tracing app has been released but privacy concerns still exist, 26 April 2020.
Family Court list dedicated to COVID-19 parenting issues important initiative to keep families and children safe, 26 April 2020.
Law Council calls on government to adopt core design principles when developing tracing app, 24 April 2020.
Privacy protections must be built into COVID-19 tracking app, 20 April 2020.
Call for release of pro-democracy leaders arrested in Hong Kong, 20 April 2020.

Key Coverage:

Amazon COVIDSafe assurance falls short, AFR, 12 May 2020.
Law Council wants changes to secrecy laws invoked in Ben Roberts-Smith defamation case, The Guardian, 8 May 2020
Call for litigation funders to go easy, The Australian, 8 May 2020.
COVIDSafe exposure draft bill backed by LCA, Lawyers Weekly, 7 May 2020.
Experts warn there are still legal ways the US could obtain COVIDSafe data, ABC online, 28 April 2020.
Will the Government's coronavirus app COVIDSafe keep your data secure? Here's what the experts say, ABC online, 27 April 2020.
Federal Circuit Court fast tracks urgent COVID-related cases, Lawyers Weekly, 27 April 2020.
Covid safe: Australian government launches coronavirus tracing app amid lingering privacy concerns, The Guardian, 26 April 2020.
Law and liberty in the time of coronavirus, ABC online, 26 April 2020.
Privacy experts are concerned about the government's coronavirus tracing app. Here's why, SBS, 21 April 2020.
Law Council calls for stricter limits on government tracking app, Lawyers Weekly, 22 April 2020.
Phone tracker data safety 'must be guaranteed', The Australian, 21 April 2020.