LawSense Law for School Counsellors NSW 2025

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Program

8.45      LawSense Welcome

8.50      Chairperson’s Remarks

Jennifer Coen, State Manager – Wellbeing, Catholic Schools NSW

9.00      Case Studies: Exploring Best Practice Note-Taking – Good Versus Bad Notes

Principles to Apply

• Outlining key principles to apply in note-taking and record keeping by school counsellors, including:
  • level of detail or clarity
  • ensuring you cover key aspects
  • “loaded” words from which inferences could be drawn about the writer
  • recording conversations and dealing with hearsay
  • communications with external professionals
  • recording your hypotheses, investigations, conclusions and setting out the basis of opinions
  • making changes to notes after they were originally written
  • naming or referring to other individuals in case notes

Learnings from Examples and Case Studies – Good v Bad Notes

• Exploring best practice note-taking and good versus not so good notes in particular areas:
  • cyber bullying
  • sexualised behaviours/assault
  • anxiety, self-harm
  • case management of complex matters

Dr Gary Banks, Principal Clinical Psychologist and Managing Director, Sydney Counselling Centre; Authorised Clinician, NSW Children’s Court; Approved Clinician (Family Reports and Single Expert Reports); Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Provider

10.00    Morning Tea

10.20    Disclosure to Parents, Parent Consent and Parent Involvement in Student Counselling: Navigating Student Consent, Mature Minors, Separated Parents and Non-Cooperative or Non-Engaged Parents

• Outlining circumstances where parents or one parent/carer may not be involved in or not be provided with information about student care, including:
  • where the student does not wish the parent/carer to be informed or involved
  • there is parent separation and a parent refuses to consent to counselling or to cooperate
  • parents/carers disagree there is an issue, are non-cooperative or disengaged
  • there are risks to the student from the involvement of a parent/carer

Student Wishes, Assessing the Mature Minor and Considerations with Non-Disclosure to Parents

• Examining legal requirements in assessing and managing mature minors
• Exploring duty of care issues in not disclosing to parents and practical considerations
• Exploring circumstances where you would be able to provide information to a parent without student consent
• Effectively documenting assessment about whether a student is a mature minor

Parent Separation – Consent to Counselling and Rights to Information

• Exploring what parent can consent to student counselling where there is family separation
• When do you need consent from both parents?
• Understanding parent rights to information where there are no Court orders:
  • should information provided to one separated parent about counselling be provided to the other? What if the student or other parent objects?

Parent Disagreement/Non-Engagement

• Navigating rights and obligations where there is disagreement between parents about student care
• Understanding your duty of care and obligations where parents deny there is an issue with the student or are disengaged. To what extent are you required to take proactive steps? When does mandatory reporting apply?

Nevena Brown, Consultant, Health and Insurance, Meridian Lawyers

11.20    Clarifying Your Legal Duties in Responding to Bullying and Cyberbullying

• Outlining current laws applying to bullying/cyberbullying and proposed changes to social media laws
• Examining what sort of behaviour falls within the legal definitions of bullying or conduct requiring action
• Understanding your obligations in investigating incidents:
  • should you make enquires or investigate?
  • what steps should you reasonably take and what evidence should you seek?
• Understanding the scope of powers of the e-Safety Commissioner and other enforcement agencies
• Clarifying your obligations in responding where:
  • conduct occurs outside school with students from other schools
  • a student does not wish you to act or disclose to parents
  • a student discloses potential crimes
• Outlining notable recent cases and implications for school counsellors

Leighton Hawkes, Principal, McCabes

12.20    Lunch

1.00      Chairperson’s Remarks

Anna Michalopoulos, Head of Counselling and Student Health, MLC School

1.05      Exploring Best Practice Records Management, Exploring AI and Sharing Information Inside and Outside the School

Obligations Regarding Privacy, Record-Keeping, Psychologist versus Non-Psychologist

• Outlining key obligations regarding storage and retention of counselling records – privacy, confidentiality, consent
• Examining the potential difference where the school counsellor is a registered psychologist versus non-registered psychologist
• Outlining exceptions to privacy and confidentiality applying to wellbeing and health records
• Exploring the potential conflict between professional obligations not to disclose and duty of care obligations of school management – who has authority over what information is released?

Data Storage, Access Permissions and Sharing Within the School

• Examining how notes should be kept and stored – exploring best practice with emails, texts, hand-written and electronic notes, and social media/web
• Exploring optimum counselling data management policies and learnings from schools:
  • who should have access?
  • what permissions should be in place?
  • how can information be shared to meet school duty of care and privacy/professional obligations?
  • learnings from case studies and examples

Disclosure of Counselling Information Outside School – Information Sharing Legislation

• Outlining legislation allowing a school counsellor to share information with other organisations
• Examining key considerations in responding to and making information sharing requests

Exploring AI Use

• Understanding options to use AI for generating notes and other counselling records and how some schools are currently using AI
• Examining current legal and risk issues in using AI in school counselling – including privacy/confidentiality, IP/copyright, bias, “hallucination

Sonya Parsons, Partner, Mills Oakley Lawyers

2.05      Dealing with Harmful Sexualised Behaviours Between Students

• Understanding the role of the school counsellor in supporting the alleged survivor and/or alleged perpetrator
• Examining potential risks and conflicts where the school counsellor is involved with both students
• Understanding your duties where agencies will not act, or they close the case and you still consider there are ongoing issues
• Understanding the obligations and options where the alleged victim does not wish the matter to be disclosed, investigated or reported
• Balancing privacy obligations with your duties to other students and parents

Examining When Reporting Obligations to Agencies and Police Are Triggered

• Evaluating when legal obligations to report and notify police are triggered

Dealing with Police

• Police interviewing students or staff:
  • what are a school’s rights and obligations to participate?
  • what are the rights of the alleged student perpetrator and student witnesses the police wish to interview
  • supporting a student or participating in police interviews – key matters to consider
• Examining your rights and obligations in meeting requests for documents or other material from the police.
• Providing a witness statement and giving evidence to police – what is your exposure and how should this be managed?

Communicating with the Alleged Perpetrator, Survivor/Victim, Parents

• Understanding how communications between the school and parties can and has been used in evidence
• Communicating in a way that is supportive, but considers the legal position of the parties involved, including the school

Alistair Macpherson, Managing Director, Vocare Law

3.05     Afternoon Tea

3.25    Case Study: Working with The Principal on Complex Issues While Best Navigating Your Employment Obligations, Professional Duties, Privacy/Confidentiality and Best Interests of the Student

• Outlining key laws and considerations that apply:
  • Duty of care, risk & student safety
  • Employment obligations
  • Consent – student and parent
  • Privacy/confidentiality obligations, including sharing information within the school
  • Professional obligations and guidelines – psychologists and non-psychologists
  • Wellbeing policies, student consent forms
  • Involvement of:
    • other wellbeing or health staff, including school nurse
    • external professionals
    • parents/carers
  • Navigating complex scenarios

Facilitator: Jacquie Seemann, Partner, Thomson Geer Lawyers

Panel:

Phillip Heath AM, Principal, Barker College

Jennifer Lawrence, Principal, Elderslie High School

Dr Agnes Ko, Head Psychologist, Barker College

4.25      Closing Remarks

4.30      Event Close

Presenters / panelists include:

	Dr Gary Banks is a Clinical and Forensic Psychologist. Gary has been appointed to the NSW Children’s’ Court Clinic since its inception and as a Single Expert and Family Consultant to the Federal Circuit Court and Family Law Court across Australia. In addition to a number of other clinical positions, Gary has been a provider to the Commonwealth and NSW Offices of the Director of Public Prosecutions and Legal Aid Commission for more than 20 years. He is also an expert reviewer for the NSW Psychology Council and the NSW Health Care Complaints Commission.
	Nevena Brown brings a common-sense confidence to her work, and more than 25 years’ experience. Her experience with liability claims is enhanced from having worked as a senior solicitor at NZI/CGU Insurance Ltd for five years. Nevena has advised and defended claims for GIO General Ltd, Vero Insurance, NZI/CGU Insurance Ltd, QBE Europe and other major insurers.
	Leighton Hawkes commenced his career in claims management and other technical roles with a major Australian insurance, working on claims for the NSW Treasury Managed Fund (TMF). This past experience has allowed him to better understand his government client’s needs and has assisted the firm to develop true partnerships with the various agencies for whom he acts. Leighton has acted for the NSW Department of Education for a large number of years. Presently he acts in a diverse range of matters, including claims arising from public liability, property damage to NSW schools, historical sexual abuse, discrimination (employee and disability), and Coronial enquiries.
	Sonya Parsons focusses on resolving disputes for charities, not for profits and in the education sector, as well as more broadly for commercial entities. In particular, she represents both religious entities and charities in historic institutional abuse claims across NSW, Victoria, Western Australia, and Queensland. She has advised on the entry into the National Redress Scheme, on compliance with charitable fundraising laws, licensing, and regulation, on compliance with information requests and in contractual disputes for those organisations.
	Alistair Macpherson focuses on legal issues affecting schools, non-profit entities and other corporate clients. Alistair has personally appeared in numerous Tribunals and Courts as advocate for schools and other clients. Alistair is also a Board Member of Queensland Baptists, which engages in, amongst other things, in schools and other charitable activities.

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