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Exempt records - documents and agencies

Exempt documents

Not all documents may be accessed. Schedule 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 1991 (SA) contains the list of exempt documents under the Act. These include, for example, some of the documents in the following categories:

  • Cabinet documents
  • Executive Council documents
  • documents affecting enforcement of law and protection of public safety
  • documents affecting inter-government or local government relations
  • documents affecting personal affairs
  • documents relating to business affairs (for example trade secrets)
  • certain research documents
  • internal working documents
  • documents subject to legal professional privilege
  • documents concerning the judicial functions of a court or tribunal
  • documents subject to secrecy provisions
  • documents containing material obtained in confidence
  • documents affecting the economy of the State
  • documents affecting financial or property interests of the State
  • documents concerning the operations of agencies
  • documents the disclosure of which would be in contempt of Parliament or contempt of court
  • certain documents arising out of companies and securities legislation, and
  • private documents in public libraries or archival collections.

See Freedom of Information Act 1991 (SA) Schedule 1 for more details about these types of documents.

Exempt Agencies

Some agencies are exempt from the Freedom of Information Act 1991 (SA). These are set out in Schedule 2 of the Act and include:

  • all Royal Commissions;
  • the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC);
  • the Office for Public Integrity;
  • the Commissioner for Children and Young People;
  • the Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People;
  • the Guardian for Children and Young People;
  • the Child Death and Serious Injury Review Committee;
  • the Child Development Council;
  • the Motor Accident Commission (in respect of information relating to a claim or action under Part 4 of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (SA));
  • the Essential Services Commission (in relation to certain confidential information under the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 (SA));
  • the Auditor-General;
  • the Attorney-General (in respect of functions relating to the enforcement of the criminal law);
  • the Parole Board;
  • the Parole Administrative Review Commissioner;
  • the Solicitor-General;
  • the Crown Solicitor;
  • the Director of Public Prosecutions;
  • the Commissioner for Victims' Rights;
  • the Judicial Conduct Commissioner and a judicial conduct panel under the Judicial Conduct Commissioner Act 2015 (SA);
  • the Ombudsman (SA);
  • the Legal Professional Conduct Commissioner;
  • the Public Trustee (in respect of functions exercised as executor, administrator or trustee);
  • the South Australian Government Financing Authority, the Local Government Financing Authority and the South Australian Superannuation Fund Investment Trust;
  • the South Australian Police (in relation to information compiled by the former Special Branch, the former Operations Planning and Intelligence Unit, the Operations Intelligence Section (or a body substituting that Section) and the Anti-Corruption Branch (or a body substituting that Branch); and
  • the Local Government Association.

Further agencies are exempt, in whole or in part, pursuant to the Freedom of Information (Exempt Agency) Regulations 2023 and some subsequent regulations.

Exempt records - documents and agencies  :  Last Revised: Thu Oct 26th 2023
The content of the Law Handbook is made available as a public service for information purposes only and should not be relied upon as a substitute for legal advice. See Disclaimer for details. For free and confidential legal advice in South Australia call 1300 366 424.