Hannah Gollasch 
25/02/2026 The November 2025 amendment to the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) has seen significant changes to the way in which contractors interact with the Government. While much of the discussion surrounding the new CPRs has focused on the preference for Australian business and SME (which you can read about here: Updates to the Commonwealth Procurement Rules …
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25/02/2026 A recent Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) decision on Bunnings Group Limited’s (Bunnings) use of facial recognition technology (FRT) has overturned some of the Privacy Commissioner’s findings in relation to the contravention of the Australian Privacy Principles (APP). Departing from the Commissioner’s findings, the ART found that Bunnings lawfully collected the sensitive information of individuals entering its stores via FRT in accordance with APP 3.3 as …
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25/02/2026 The Legal Services Directions 2025 (LSDs) apply to Commonwealth legal work and are issued by the Attorney-General under the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth). The LSDs are binding on those undertaking Commonwealth legal work and serve as a critical framework to manage legal, financial, and reputational risks to the Commonwealth. On 2 March 2026, the …
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06/02/2026 As workplaces continue to grapple with the emergence and implications of AI, Microsoft has announced a landmark Framework Agreement with the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), to ensure workers have a voice in how AI and other emerging technologies are implemented in Australian workplaces. The continuing improvements in AI capabilities has caused increased …
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21/01/2026 Proposed laws targeting hate groups and hate speech passed both houses of Parliament on Tuesday, 20 January 2026. The laws come in the wake of the terror attack in Bondi in December 2025 and aim to address rising levels of antisemitic and other hate speech, violence and extremism in Australia. The reforms strengthen existing …
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13/01/2026 On 8 January 2026, the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon Anthony Albanese MP, announced the establishment of a Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion (the Royal Commission). Following the Australian Government’s announcement, the New South Wales Government confirmed that its own planned Royal Commission would be folded into the Commonwealth process, ensuring …
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22/01/2026 While the recent updates to the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) that commenced on 17 November 2025 focused on expanding opportunities for Australian small and medium enterprises, a new wave of legislative scrutiny is brewing in the Senate. Three Private Senator’s Bills currently before the Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee (the Committee) signal an …
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12/01/2026 The review into gender undervaluation in the SCHADS Award is ongoing after a series of conferences at the end of 2025, conducted by Deputy President O’Neill, were not able to resolve outstanding issues or reach a consensus between interested parties on the classification structure for the revised SCHADS Award. Due to the low likelihood …
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12/01/2026 In December 2025, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) announced plans to conduct its first-ever compliance sweep in January 2026. Australia’s privacy regulator will kick off the new year with a targeted review of businesses privacy policies to ensure that entities are meeting their obligations under Australian Privacy Principle 1 (APP 1). …
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26/11/2025 On 17 November 2025, updates to the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) came into effect. The updates aim to improve the competitive capability of Australian businesses participating in Commonwealth procurement. How will the procurement process change? There are now tighter requirements in the tendering process to encourage competition. Non-corporate Commonwealth entities (NCEs) must only invite …
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