News

The township of Timber Creek, half-way between Katherine and Kununarra in the Northern Territory, with a population of fewer than 300 people, has recently been the subject of the undivided attention of the Full Court of the High Court in a landmark native title case.

The recent Court of Appeal decision of Aurizon Operations Limited and State of Queensland v Michael Vincent Baker Superannuation Pty Ltd CA3654/17 is a timely reminder for departments to consider whether their infrastructure is causing a nuisance to adjoining land, particularly where the removal of that infrastructure would not compromise the use of the State’s land.

In the recent decision of Re Cresswell [2018] QSC 142, her Honour Justice Brown delivered the first Queensland judgment to consider the court’s jurisdiction to order a person’s entitlement to possess and use spermatozoa (sperm) removed from a deceased person.

The Uniform Civil Procedure (Subpoenas) Amendment Rule 2018 brings the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld) into alignment with Part 24 of the Federal Court Rules 2011 (Cth) in relation to subpoenas.

The UCPR is now more responsive to changing technologies, as it accommodates electronic methods in the issuing of subpoenas and production of documents and seeks to minimise arguments about costs of compliance.

Agencies are currently required to comply with Information Security Information Standard (IS18:2009).