The Public Law & Commercial (Advisory) practice group advises NSW Government agencies in relation to issues of constitutional law, administrative law and statutory interpretation, as well as in relation to areas of commercial law that apply to NSW Government agencies.
The practice group’s expertise includes matters involving:
- constitutional challenges to government action and legislation, including on behalf of the NSW Attorney General as intervener under the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth)
- a wide range of constitutional law, statutory interpretation and administrative law issues, including in relation to the statutory functions and obligations of public sector agencies and law enforcement agencies
- government procurement, including compliance with the NSW Procurement Board Directions
- public finance, including advice on regulatory obligations, grants and funding arrangements
- Crown copyright, including identifying Crown copyright material and advising in relation to the licensing or assignment of Crown copyright
- significant commercial transactions, such as major infrastructure projects or asset divestments.
Key areas of expertise: constitutional law; administrative law advice; statutory interpretation; commercial law advice; contractual drafting; intellectual property; public finance law.
Significant matters
- Representing the Attorney General for NSW in G Global 120E T2 Pty Ltd v Commissioner of State Revenue [2025] HCA 39. The Court held that amendments to the International Tax Agreements Act 1953 (Cth), to exclude State land taxes from treaty-based non-discrimination protections, were valid. The amendments were supported by the external affairs powers and did not amount to an acquisition of property under s 51(xxxi).
- Acting in an important constitutional matter before the NSW Court of Appeal:Attorney General for NSW v MM (a pseudonym) by his tutor Barbara Ramjan [2025] NSWCA 238. The case addressed whether section 138 of the Mental Health and Cognitive Impairment Forensic Provisions Act 2020 (NSW) was operationally inconsistent with section 67G of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (Cth), and, more broadly, the extent to which section 67G protects documents held by NDIS providers from production under compulsory processes.
- Acting for the State of NSW in its appeal to the High Court in NSW v Wojciechowska [2025] HCA 27. The High Court allowed the State’s appeal, finding that the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) exercises administrative rather than judicial power when conducting administrative review under the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998, including where an applicant seeks an order for compensation under that act. The High Court found that NCAT has jurisdiction to determine claims for compensation made by applicants who are residents of other states, as the determination of those claims does not involve an impermissible exercise of Commonwealth judicial power by NCAT.
- Acting for the appellant in Commissioner of Corrective Services v Hamzy [2024] NSWCA 240, in which the Court of Appeal upheld the Commissioner’s appeal.
- Acting for State of NSW or the NSW Attorney General in significant constitutional cases in the High Court of Australia, including:
- Providing complex advice and assistance to government agencies on a broad range of questions concerning exercises of public power and government involvement in commercial and financial activity.
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