Unpack the three essential areas of government law including the latest developments shaping government liability, the essentials of judicial review and information law in one concise, practical session. You will explore how recent cases are redefining the boundaries of public authority responsibility, understand how courts are approaching liability across agencies and officials and sharpen your ability to anticipate and respond to review challenges in 2026. With expert insights into judicial review trends and key updates in information law, you will leave better equipped to assess exposure, refine litigation strategy, and confidently navigate the legal and operational pressures facing government decision-makers today.  

Presenters

Dr. Ashley Tsacalos, Partner, Clayton Utz
Ashley is a dispute resolution lawyer based in Sydney and a leading adviser to government. He is also a leading authority on the government's "model litigant obligations". Ashley has experience in all forms of dispute resolution, including litigation in various courts and tribunals, as well as mediation and conciliation. He is engaged by both the public and private sector due to his extensive experience in managing complex and often sensitive disputes. He has particular expertise in relation to contractual disputes, intellectual property disputes, negligence claims and other tortious claims as well as applications for merits-based review and judicial review. He regularly provides advice in relation to procurement and tendering issues, governance and probity issues generally as well as risk allocation and insurance. Ashley has acted for a range of individuals and organisations in Royal Commissions, Commissions of Inquiry, Judicial Inquiries and coronial inquiries. Ashley's expertise in administrative law and insurance law provides him with a unique perspective in terms of dispute resolution generally. Ashley established and continues to teach a government law course and an insurance law course at the University of Wollongong where he has also been appointed an Honorary Professorial Fellow.

Arjun Chhabra, Barrister, Maurice Byers Chambers
Arjun specialises in appellate and judicial review matters. He has appeared in the High Court of Australia and regularly appears in State and Federal appellate courts. He practices in criminal law, public/administrative law, and family law. Arjun focuses on issues of statutory construction, the limits of judicial and public power, and the admissibility of evidence. He has authored several papers as well as the seminal evidence law text, Exclusionary Provisions in the Uniform Evidence Law, published by Thomson Reuters. Prior to joining the Bar, Arjun worked at various criminal law firms and commercial law firms in Australia, China, and the Middle East, including Baker & McKenzie, Clyde & Co, Blake Dawson Waldron (now Ashurst) and the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT).

Ooma Khurana, Partner, Maddocks
Ooma provides specialist legal advice to both public and private sector clients with a focus on privacy, data protection and technology. In addition to ‘business as usual’ regulatory and technology procurement matters, Ooma advises on surveillance, cybersecurity and critical infrastructure laws, especially as these regulatory frameworks evolve at pace in response to global threats. Ooma has advised on the data protection and privacy aspects of some of NSW most significant technology procurements and regularly undertakes complex Privacy Impact Assessments for high risk projects involving emerging technologies, such as biometric and facial recognition. Ooma leverages her regulatory background to support clients in meeting their data breach preparation, response and notification obligations.