Source: LSJ (Law Society Journal)

The Law Society Policy and Practice Department’s May 8, 2026 update lists multiple concurrent law‑reform and advocacy items affecting New South Wales, including a parallel report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, community safety initiatives in regional and rural areas, an inquiry into small business insurance, and public consultation on new NDIS framework planning rules. The update also records an inquiry into supported decision‑making, consideration of historical development consents in NSW, and the passage of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Act 2025 (NSW). Additional items include consecutive sentences imposed by the Local Court, an inquiry into identity protections for proceedings involving children, the Identity Protection and Recovery Bill 2025 (NSW), and publication of Consultation Draft Lodgment Rules Version 2.2.

The December 2025 contribution from the Human Rights and Indigenous Issues Committees to a Law Council submission is noted as informing Australia’s Sixth Periodic Report under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). That submission provided brief updates specific to NSW on progress toward incorporation of the ICESCR into domestic law, economic, social and cultural rights policies relating to Indigenous peoples, modern slavery, and reforms to anti‑discrimination legislation. The update also references a Fair Work Commission Guidance Note on the use of generative artificial intelligence in Commission cases and notes that the LSJ article is behind a subscriber sign‑in for full access.