Tailored to Law Applying to NSW Non-State Schools. Part of LawSense School Law NSW and Separately Bookable
| Date & Time | 17 June 2026 – Student Issues Day (8.45am-4.35pm) |
| Venue/Format | Aerial UTS Function Centre, Building 10, Level 7/235 Jones St, Ultimo AND Live Online & Recorded Choose in person or online. Recording available for both in-person & online attendees Recording Access Expires 17 July 2026 |
| Pricing | Student Issues Day: E. Bird. $695 Stan. $795 Prices include gst. Early Bird expires 1 May 2026 |
| Other related LawSense Events | Part of LawSense School Law NSW 2026 & Separately Bookable |
Program
8.45 LawSense Welcome
8.50 Chairperson’s Remarks
Dr David Nockles, Headmaster, Macarthur Anglican School; Branch Chair, AHISA NSW
8.55 Social Media and Bullying Updates and Students Targeting Staff Online
Bullying Update: Navigating Recent Cases, Rapid Review, Bullying on Social Media, Obligations Beyond the School Gate, Dissatisfied Parents, AVOs Between Students
Applicable Laws and Government Anti-Bullying Rapid Review
- Outlining relevant laws applying to student bullying
- Examining the implications of the Anti-Bullying Rapid Review
- Examining obligations in identifying bullying, including grey areas such as social exclusion
School Obligations Beyond the School “Gate”
- Reviewing recent cases and implications regarding a school’s duty to address bullying beyond the school gate – how has this been extended?
Navigating Particular Challenges with Online Bullying
- Navigating particular challenges in dealing with online bullying, including determining the extent of your duties for conduct outside school hours, or conduct involving students outside the school
Supervision/Monitoring of Online Activity, Including Student Activity Outside School Hours
- Exploring the boundaries of a school’s duty of care in monitoring student online activity, including outside school hours
- Using monitoring software on student managed devices:
- what can you legally monitor and ensuring you have adequate consent
- to what extent should you have human monitoring/ escalation to humans?
- what is your legal exposure for an incident where a greater degree or availability of human monitoring could have prevented harm?
- what are your responsibilities to act where the information you collect indicates a student may be at risk, including when the information arrives outside school hours
Managing Challenges in Proving Bullying Conduct
- Managing Challenges in investigating and proving bullying conduct, including searches of student devices and files and interviewing students
Parent Demands or Dissatisfaction with School Response
- Dealing with parents seeking to dictate consequences for the perpetrator of bullying, including parents providing reports from psychologists or other professionals
AVOs Between Students
- Managing AVOs between students as a result of bullying allegations
Dealing With Students Targeting Staff Online
- Outlining the applicable laws and obligations where students target staff online, including:
- potential offences by the student and reporting to police
- obligations to staff, including psychosocial hazards
- navigating circumstances where it is not an offence, but potential bullying or breach of school values
Student Social Media Update: Navigating Social Media Age Limits and Learnings from School Experiences
- Examining the new laws regarding age limits on social media use, including examining exceptions
- Exploring the implications of the new laws for schools:
- exploring impacts on the duty of care
- what action should you take if you suspect students are using social media in breach of the age limit?
- do the changes provide further rights or expectations for the school to search student devices or monitor social media use
- Learnings from school experiences to date
- Updating school polices to deal with the changes in social media laws
Ben Tallboys, Principal, Russell Kennedy; Legal Counsel, Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA)
10.25 Break
10.50 Student Harmful Sexualised Behaviours: Navigating Allegations of Sexual Assault Between Students, Including Historical Claims, and Responding to Sexting and Deep Fakes
Duties Regarding Sexualised Behaviours and Claims
- Exploring aged appropriate behaviours and legal definitions for sexual offences
- Outlining your obligations in dealing with allegations of harmful sexualised behaviours between students
Extent of The School’s Duties
- Examining the obligations of the school where an alleged incident:
- occurred outside school hours or activities
- involves students from other schools
- involves students who are 18 or over
Examining When Reporting Obligations to Agencies and Police Are Triggered
- Evaluating when legal obligations to report and notify police are triggered
- What steps should be taken where there are only rumours or suspicions?
- Understanding the obligations and options of the school where the alleged victim does not wish the matter to be disclosed, investigated or reported or is not cooperative
Navigating Privacy Considerations
- Dealing with requests from students not to inform their parents
- Examining potential legal risks where the school counsellor is involved with both students
- Understanding the extent to which you can disclose allegations or investigations to staff
- Balancing privacy obligations with your duties to other students and parents
Dealing with Police
- Understanding rights and obligations in Police interviewing students or staff or police requesting your records or other information
Communicating with the Alleged Perpetrator, Survivor/Victim and School Community
- 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
Investigating Suspicions or Allegations
- Understanding when an investigation is required and the extent of any investigation
- Examining the potential limits on a school investigating while other agencies, such as police are involved
- Understanding the potential role of legal privilege
- Obtaining evidence from students – navigating rights and obligations and dealing with hearsay
Particular Issues with Historical Claims
- Examining particular challenges in responding and investigating where claims are made some time after students have left the school or the relevant staff are no longer at the school
Sexting and Deep Fakes-Applicable Laws and Obligations
- Reviewing the legal frameworks for young offenders with online offences including sexting, “sextortion” and deep fakes
- Examining the obligations of the school where staff are the subject of deep fakes
Responding to Deep Fakes and Sexting
- Understanding legal restrictions on the school copying, storing or sharing the offending explicit material, including deep fakes
- Exploring how schools should respond to material affecting students and teachers including:
- preservation of the images and collecting evidence
- reporting to agencies such as the eSafety Commissioner or police, including what information should be provided
- understanding the extent to which the school should conduct its own investigation
- obligations in managing wellbeing/psychosocial impacts
- Calibrating disciplinary responses by the school where police determine to take no action
Leighton Hakwes, Principal, McCabes Lawyers
11.50 Disability and Behaviour: Navigating Reasonable Adjustments, Support Plans, Risk Assessments, Suspensions and Expulsions
Current Legal Framework and Understanding What is “Reasonable”
- Exploring the range of disabilities encountered by schools impacting student behaviour
- Outlining the current laws affecting disability discrimination in schools
- Exploring circumstances where you can impute disability
Proposed Reforms – Disability Discrimination Act 1992
- Outlining notable proposed changes to the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) and potential impacts on student disability and behaviour, including changes to definitions of discrimination, burden of proof and application to discipline and suspensions
Information You Should Collect to Assess and Determine Reasonable Adjustments
- Exploring optimum information collection – what information should you seek of whom
- Dealing with reports from external professionals provided by the parents or advocates. When should you obtain your own professional evidence?
Extent of Consultation Required
- Understanding the extent of your obligations to consult with parents, other stakeholders and advocates. What information should be communicated to parents?
Rights of the School to Determine Adjustments Versus Experts
- Understanding the rights and responsibilities of the school versus health experts to determine what the student requires to meet the diagnosis or disability
Risk Assessments
- Exploring best practice in developing risk assessments, including, when they are required, exploring how extensive assessments should be and who should be involved
Support Plans / Reasonable Adjustments Case Studies
- Learning from case studies and examples:
- how should schools approach determining the limits of reasonable adjustments required in each circumstance, including:
- balancing impacts on other students and staff
- managing experts: responding to experts, briefing, and managing school experts
- determining unjustifiable hardship
- Dealing with parents who refuse to accept or cooperate regarding impacts of the student’s behaviour on staff or other students
- Documenting steps and decision making regarding reasonable adjustments to ensure compliance and optimise your legal position
- how should schools approach determining the limits of reasonable adjustments required in each circumstance, including:
Discipline, Suspensions and Expulsions
- Outlining and balancing key laws applying to suspensions and expulsions of a student with a behavioural disability, including:
- student rights and procedural fairness, including Human Rights legislation
- obligations to staff, including WHS and other obligations
- School discipline examples and case studies:
- managing ongoing discipline of a student with behavioural disability issues
- navigating suspensions
- expulsions – key considerations and navigating pitfalls
- Effectively documenting steps, communications, and decisions regarding expulsions to protect your legal position
Jacquie Seemann, Partner, Thomson Geer Lawyers
12.50 Chairperson’s Remarks
12.55 Lunch
1.40 Chairperson’s Remarks
Dr Gareth Leechman, Headmaster, Arndell Anglican College
1.45 Navigating Conflict Between Parents
Understanding and Interpreting Family Court Orders, Rights and Obligations Where There Are No Court Orders and Navigating, Subpoenas, DVO’s/AVO’s
Rights and Obligations Where there are No Court Orders
- Understanding parent rights and responsibilities where there are no court orders or any written agreement/arrangement
Understanding and Interpreting Court Orders
- Outlining how Family Court Orders can dictate:
- the obligations of parents, including consequences of non- compliance
- school obligations
- Understanding and interpreting Family Court Orders and parenting agreements including:
- Interim Orders
- Final Orders
- the difference between Family Court Orders and Parenting Plans
- orders regarding parental responsibility and living with/spending time with one parent or the other
- responsibility for day-to-day and longer-term decision regarding the child
- Learning from examples of different Court Orders and Parenting Plans
Recent Law Changes Regarding Objecting to Subpoenas
- Understanding the new option to object to a family court subpoena based on “protected confidences” and how it may be used by schools
Challenges – Consent to Counselling, Information Requests by a Parent, Student Wishes
Providing Information to One Parent or the Other
- Examining factors dictating what information can be provided to or withheld from a parent
- Navigating circumstances where one parent agrees to counselling, but asks that you do not inform the other parent
- Understanding the role of the students wishes/consent:
- when should student consent be sought in releasing information to parents
- when do student wishes about parent information access override parent requests
- understanding how student wishes should be documented where information is going to withheld from one parent or another
School Obligations – Providing Information to Non-Parents
- Understanding rights and obligations in providing information to:
- step-parents or grandparents; should you pass on messages to the student from grandparents?
- lawyers for the parent or Independent Children’s Lawyer
- family professionals providing reports, including Family Report Writers
Consent to Counselling
- Navigating circumstances where:
- one parent agrees to student school counselling but the other does not
- the parents do not agree to counselling but you assess that the student needs it
Pick-Ups, Drop-Offs and Student Wishes Contrary to Court Orders
- Navigating circumstances where:
- a parent is seeking to pick up their child from school contrary to Court orders
- the student does not want to go with or stay with one parent despite Court orders
Liability for Fees
- Clarifying respective parent obligations to pay school fees after separation
Family Domestic Violence Orders
Navigating Domestic Violence Orders and Obligations Where You Suspect Domestic Violence / Coercive Control
- Examining common orders made in Domestic Violence Orders in the context of parent relationship breakdown
- Do they override other orders, such as interim Family Court orders?
- What steps should you take to ensure that the DVO is current? Are you entitled to ask for a copy of the orders?
- Understanding your obligations where you suspect domestic violence or coercive control – what evidence do you require before escalating/reporting?
Amy Walsh, Special Counsel, MinterEllison
3.00 Break
3.15 Responding Effectively to “Vexatious” Parents “Bullying” Staff and Learnings from School Experiences Regarding Difficult Parents, Including What Polices and Training Schools Have Implemented
Vexatious Parents, Parents Bullying Staff, Complaints to Regulators
- Exploring the sort of parent conduct that can be considered “vexatious” or “bullying” of staff
- Understanding the applicable laws, including contracts, duty of care and new laws on managing psychosocial hazards to staff in schools
- Examining how the new laws on psychosocial hazards affect assessment and management of vexatious or bullying parents
- Dealing with vexatious complaints to regulators by parents, including responding to the regulator and managing your obligations of the staff member
- Understanding when and how you can implement more robust options:
- restricting or limiting communication with the parent
- restricting the parent from involvement in school activities
- banning a parent from a school
- terminating the enrolment of the student because of parent conduct
- Examining the school’s obligations in practice to students and staff
Principals Panel: Learning from Practical Experiences, Including Strategies Used to Prevent Escalation, Knowing When to Push Back and Training and Policies Schools Have Implemented:
The panel will discuss how they have dealt with a range of issues, what legal options have been relied on and what strategies and policies their schools are using. Aspects covered include:
- approach to dealing with complaints or issues, including the extent to which classroom teachers should deal with parents before management intervenes
- parents not listening and blaming staff such that the student cannot be properly supported by the school
- dealing with parents making vexatious “weaponized” complaints, including to regulators, about staff
- parents demanding information such as CCTV footage or other data relating to student incidents
- parents on social media, including parents posting school correspondence to them on social media
- what staff training/induction and policies schools have implemented and why
Jennifer Patterson, Partner, MinterEllison
Dr Anne Johnstone, Head of School, Cranbrook School
Phillip Heath AM, Head of College, Barker College
Dr Gareth Leechman, Headmaster, Arndell Anglican College
4.30 Chairperson’s Remarks
4.35 Event Close
Presenters / panelists include:
Ben Tallboys provides sector-specific, practical legal solutions to schools across Australia. Ben is a passionate and effective advocate for principals dealing with complex matters relating to parents, staff and students, as well as their own employment.
Leighton Hawkes commenced his career in claims management and other technical roles with a major Australian insurance. 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.
Jacquie Seeman acts for education sector clients across the education lifecycle, including preschools, schools and universities. She advises these clients on employment-related issues and also on the broadest range of education law issues, including child protection and health and disability issues.
Amy Walsh advises Independent Schools and the NSW Department of Education on matters including enrolment disputes, student issues and wellbeing and safety matters, employment matters, parent disputes, child protection investigations, funding issues and governance.
Phillip Heath AM has been Headmaster of St Andrew’s Cathedral School, Sydney, Principal of Radford College ACT in 2009. He was made a Fellow of the ACT Branch ACEL in 2011 and in 2018 was awarded as a Member in the general division of the Order of Australia for his service to education and his commitment to creating greater opportunities for Indigenous students. Mr Heath was appointed as the Head of Barker College in 2014.
Jen Patterson has extensive experience as an industrial relations, employment and WHS law advisor. Jen has particular expertise advising schools. She has acted for the Association of Independent Schools in NSW for more than 20 years and sits on their Employee Relations Committee. Jen was the lead adviser to the AISNSW on industrial strategy for its member schools following the two most recent legislative reforms.