FOI Review Issue No. 66

Students, examiners and confidentiality under the NSW FOI Act

Anne Cossins

The author examines the ease with which the names of examiners of post graduate theses would be available to a student under the Freedom of Information Act 1989 (NSW). Cossins analyses the 2 avenues in which a University may refuse to give access to names: that they are exempt under 1) clause 6 (personal privacy exemption), or 2) clause 13 (confidentiality exemption) of Schedule 1 of the NSW FOI Act. Upon examination of clause 6, the university must be able to show that the examiner's name is information regarding their personal affairs, a point which Cossins states as arguable. Further, she argues that a number of cases support the public interest test for disclosure contained within clause 6. With regard to clause 13 (a), Cossins looks to whether an examiner could rely on an equitable action for breach of confidence, concluding that it is doubtful, due to persuasive arguments in Strang's case. In the case of clause 13 (b) (which applies when the elements of an action for breach of a confidence cannot be satisfied under 13(a)), she argues that again an exemption would be unlikely to succeed, given the public interest test requirements.
 
 
 

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