Privacy and

data law

The Privacy and Data Law Committee monitors all matter related to privacy and data law and represents the Law Society and its members on policy and practice issues arising from it.

Our priorities include:

  • Developing and commenting on law reform and legal policy proposals (including preparing submissions, and liaising with government and other stakeholders in this process)
  • Educating the legal profession about changes to the law, and providing guidance on practice and other issues
  • Exchanging information about issues arising in legal practice (such as recent case law) that may indicate a legal policy issue or concern.

Learn more about committees
Current committee members
How to join a committee

Recent policy submissions

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Cyber Security Legislative Package - 25 October 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 - 4 October 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Mandatory guardrails for AI in high-risk settings - 27 September 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Review of the Criminal Code Amendment (Deepfake Sexual Material) Bill 2024 - 15 July 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Statutory Review of the Online Safety Act 2021 (Cth) - 7 June 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Opportunities and impacts arising out of the uptake of artificial intelligence technologies in Australia - 8 May 2024

Letter to Portfolio Committee No. 1 - Artificial intelligence (AI) in New South Wales – Post-hearing responses - 11 April 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Doxxing and Privacy Reforms - 27 March 2024

Letter to Law Council of Australia - 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy - Legislative Reforms – Consultation Paper - 12 February 2024

Letter to NSW Parliament Inquiry into artificial intelligence in New South Wales - 20 October 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Digital ID Bill 2023 (Exposure Draft) and related documents - 3 October 2023

Letter to Department of Customer Service – Improving NSW rental laws consultation paper – 18 August 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Safe and Responsible AI in Australia - 17 July 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Data and Digital Government Strategy - 17 July 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy – Discussion Paper - 31 March 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Privacy Act Review Report - 20 March 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Family Law Amendment Bill Exposure Draft and Consultation Paper - 24 February 2023

Letter to Law Council of Australia - Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Information Disclosure, National Interest and Other Measures) Bill 2022 - 18 January 2023

Visit the Privacy and data Law policy archive

2024 Committee list

Ms Olga Ganopolsky (Chair), Ms Amber Cerny (Deputy Chair), S. Blanks, H. Brown, P. Cenoz, D. Chien, C. Cloudsdale, N. Commins, S. Eibl, A. Jacquet, G. Jefferson, K. Keogh, P. Leonard, B. Liang,  J. McAteer, S. McLaughlan, L. Mannering, A. Mitchell, S. Ng, L. Nicholson, S. O'Gorman, L. Sinclair, B. Viset, E. Vollebregt.

How to join a committee
Law Society Committees have powers, authorities and tasks delegated by the Council. Consisting of dedicated volunteers, each committee focuses on a particular area of law, pooling together specialist skills and experience in order to scrutinise legislation, court decisions and other government policies.
There are three broad categories of committees:

  • Regulatory committees – perform statutory duties under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW)
  • Liaison committees – linked to other professions or organisations
  • Policy committees

By drawing on the insights of committees, the Law Society can meet its statutory duties and act as a major player in law reform and policy debates.

See the Law Society Committee webpage