Ask a New South Wales agency for records under guiding principle 8
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the institutions and years the lawyer has named, draft a request for complaint files, personnel records and placement records for those years only. Do not describe the abuse, and do not enclose an account.
- What the lawyer must review
- The lawyer settles the letter before it is sent.
- Apply principle 8 to State agencies only, not to a private institution.
- Do not enclose an account while principle 17 has not been discussed with the client.
- Keep the file in the firm's system. ASCR r 9 and APP 11 apply.
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. New South Wales. A letter to a State agency, or to a private institution without relying on principle 8.
Produce. A record request limited to the institutions, people and years the lawyer has named.
Have ready. The institutions and years the lawyer has named; Whether the recipient is a State agency; Whether principle 17 has been discussed.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The recipient is a department and the lawyer has not yet spoken with the client about principle 17. The draft asks for records by year and institution. It does not attach an account of the abuse.
Stop and hand it back when
- An account is enclosed before principle 17 has been discussed.
- Principle 8 is cited to a private institution as if it bound that institution.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From the institutions and years the lawyer has named, draft a request for complaint files, personnel records and placement records for those years only. Do not describe the abuse, and do not enclose an account. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Guiding principle 8 says agencies should facilitate access to records relating to the claimant and the alleged abuse, subject to other people's privacy and legal professional privilege.
- That principle is about State agencies. Part 1B does not create a pre-court production duty in the provisions that were opened.
- Principle 17 says agencies acknowledge they are required to report claims of any serious indictable offence to the NSW Police Force. The letter should not attach an account while that has not been discussed with the client.
- The letter names institutions, people and years. It does not narrate the abuse.
Sources
- NSW guiding principles for agencies responding to civil claims for child abuse · 2026-10-23
- Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) s 6K · 2026-10-23
- Supreme Court of New South Wales page on Practice Note SC Gen 23 · 2026-10-23
Do not present principle 8 as a right against a private institution.
If this is used in a Supreme Court document, read Practice Note SC Gen 23. The Court's page records amendments that came into effect on 3 February 2025. The note itself was not opened, so no clause is quoted.
Records on this file stay in a firm-controlled tool. ASCR r 9 and APP 11 apply, and a breach may be notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).