Droppert, Graham --- "President's page: Do you know who can hear you?" [2021] PrecedentAULA 49; (2021) 166 Precedent 3

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DO YOU KNOW WHO CAN HEAR YOU?

By Graham Droppert SC

This is such a rich edition of Precedent, both in its insightful and scholarly content and the exceptional quality of the authors. In future we will look back on this as an edition that cut through the maze of big data, shedding light on what is privacy in the digital age and why there should be limits on who is listening and tracing.

Amid the grind and fatigue of lengthy east coast 2021 lockdowns, which may be seen as defining the lives of many, the information superstructure of the ‘new normal’ is still in place and continues to have an impact.

As lawyers and as citizens we need to know more about the way our governments and the corporations in our lives acquire and use information. What are the boundaries that society should apply to those processes, even if the stated objectives are laudable? Is it acceptable to have electronic surveillance, without limits, of organised crime syndicates or possible terrorists? Can the same be said for surveillance of those planning anti-vaccination rallies? If the health of society is protected by the interception of all of those activities, why does the interception of some seem repugnant, but the interception of others almost a necessity?

The use of personal information, including medical records, is obviously a prominent issue in the time of COVID-19. Already, the quarantine and home isolation regimes are founded in the requirement to undergo medical tests and provide the results to police authorities before you can return to doing what everyone else in your community is free to do. And these regimes exist simply as high-level precautions, without any requirement for reasonable belief that any particular individual could have an infectious disease. There is a growing movement citing the need for vaccine ‘passports’ as a likely prerequisite for international travel, and already there has been a need to prove at least partial vaccination status in order to enter WA from NSW. Does an optional requirement become a mandatory one when a failure to give the police private health information confines you to a particular state or to your home? If that is permissible as an emergency health response, should the location data gathered as we ‘check-in’ at places we visit be available to health authorities but not to the police? These are real and pressing matters that add a very real and contemporary setting for much of what is canvassed in the articles in this edition.

Looking towards the ALA, I again acknowledge the exceptional work of the staff and the members active in our branches and Special Interest Groups in doing everything possible to continue the work of the ALA. It means our voice is heard by governments at all levels and we join the public debate on matters that align with the values of our organisation. However, no matter how much we pivot and refocus in this COVID-19 era, the cancellation of some face-to-face conferences and meetings is a great loss. We all gain from our collegial gatherings. The success of the branch conferences that we were able to hold in the past year and a half is a reminder that when the time comes we will be truly ready to meet at a National Conference.

I acknowledge that wherever we meet and work, the land is and always has been the land of the First Nations peoples. I pay my respects to the Elders – past, present and emerging – throughout Australia.

Graham Droppert SC is a barrister practising from Albert Wolff Chambers, Perth, specialising in personal injury. PHONE [phone] EMAIL [e-mail].