DTN v Commissioner of Police

In the case of DTN v Commissioner of Police, the applicant sought judicial review of decisions made by the respondent in relation to health information provided by the applicant. The applicant argued that the respondent breached the Health Records Information Privacy Act by collecting health information from sources other than the applicant, and by failing to verify the accuracy and relevance of the information before using it. The applicant claimed to have suffered psychological and physical harm as a result of the respondent's actions.

The court was required to determine whether it was unreasonable or impracticable for the respondent to collect health information from the applicant, and whether the respondent took reasonable steps to ensure the information was relevant, accurate, and not misleading. The court also had to consider the relief available to the applicant if the respondent's actions breached the privacy principles.

The court found that it was unreasonable and impracticable for the respondent to collect health information from sources other than the applicant, and that the respondent failed to take reasonable steps to verify the accuracy and relevance of the information. The court held that the applicant was entitled to compensation for the harm suffered as a result of the respondent's breaches of the privacy principles. The court set aside the respondent's decision and ordered the respondent to pay the applicant $7,500 in compensation, provide a formal written apology, and take steps to correct and prevent future breaches of the privacy principles.

The court also made orders for the respondent to take specific actions to comply with the privacy principles, including implementing training and safeguards to ensure that health information is only collected from the individual, and specifying and implementing steps to ensure that health information is relevant, accurate, up to date, complete, and not misleading before it is used. The court further ordered the respondent to provide a copy of the apology to certain individuals within the respondent and the NSWPF, and to redact or remove certain information from all copies of an internal report held by the respondent and the NSWPF.