Other Information

Training Sessions

FOI Solutions offers training sessions in privacy, FOI and other administrative law areas.  We have completed our training sessions for the first half of the year.  We intend to continue running these training sessions for the second half of the year commencing from late August.

Be sure to check in to our website training page from time to time to see what is on offer and future training dates.

Monthly VCAT Decision Summaries

Our firm prepares VCAT Decision Summaries on a monthly basis.  These summaries have been designed to assist agencies with developing an understanding of how VCAT handles matters relating to FOI, privacy as well as health privacy.

If you would like to keep up to date with these decisions on a continued basis and believe that this service will suit you, please register your interest.

For more information, visit our website or alternatively, contact our office on (03) 9601 4111 or email marketing@foisolutions.com.au

Question Time

Q:   Can a copy of the application for review be sought from the Information Commissioner?

A:   Under s 49D of the FOI Act, at any time during the review, the Information Commissioner may provide an affected agency with a copy of the application for review.  This can occur at the request of the agency or on the Information Commissioner's own initiative.

Importantly, the Information Commissioner can only provide a copy with the consent of the applicant.  Further, the power to provide your agency with a copy of the application for review is discretionary and therefore, you cannot obtain one as a right.  We recommend that you seek a copy of the application for review on every occasion where review is sought from the Information Commissioner.

Q: I understand that the Information Commissioner can facilitate a negotiated agreement between the parties to a review under s 49N of the FOI Act.  Does this mean the parties could agree to the applicant amending or narrowing the scope of the request?

A:   No.   Section 49N(1) of the FOI Act provides that the Information Commissioner may facilitate an agreement between the parties in relation to the decision that is the subject of a review.   The agreement must be in writing and the Information Commissioner may make a decision on the basis of the agreement facilitated by the Information Commissioner.  

As the agreement is on the decision on review, the parties cannot agree to amend or narrow the scope of the request.  This would alter the Information Commissioner's jurisdiction to review the request in the first place, and subsequently, the Information Commissioner's power to facilitate an agreement and make a decision under s 49N.  

If you are uncertain about the types of matters that can be agreed upon between the parties to a negotiation under s 49N, please let us know and we can assist.