Privacy Act 1988

This Schedule establishes a cause of action in tort for serious invasions of privacy.

An individual has a cause of action against another person if, among other things, the other person invaded the individual ' s privacy by intruding upon their seclusion or misusing information relating to them.

It is a defence to the cause of action if the other person acted with lawful authority or in certain circumstances involving consent, necessity or the defence of persons or property. If the invasion of privacy involved the publication of information, the other person may also have access to certain defences that would ordinarily arise in the context of defamation proceedings.

Exemptions apply in relation to intelligence agencies and law enforcement bodies, persons disclosing information to such agencies or bodies, persons using information disclosed by such agencies or bodies, and persons under 18 years of age. Journalists and certain other persons are also exempt in certain circumstances.

The court may, during the proceedings, grant an injunction restraining the other person from invading the individual ' s privacy. The court may also summarily dismiss the proceedings in certain circumstances.

The court may grant remedies including damages.

There are time limits on when proceedings under this Schedule may be commenced.

This Schedule is intended to be read and construed separately from the rest of this Act.