McCulloch v Preshil, the Margaret Lyttle Memorial School

The Federal Court of Australia recently heard an application brought by McCulloch against Preshil, the Margaret Lyttle Memorial School. The applicant sought interlocutory relief in relation to an alleged breach of privacy by the defendant. The basis of the complaint was that the defendant had released information concerning McCulloch's child's medical condition to third parties without the appropriate consent. McCulloch contended that this constituted a breach of privacy under both the Privacy Act 1988 and common law principles.

The central legal issue for the court was whether the defendant's actions constituted a breach of privacy, and if so, whether such a breach warranted interlocutory relief. The court needed to determine whether the information released was indeed personal information within the meaning of the Privacy Act, and whether the disclosure was unauthorised. Additionally, the court considered whether the applicant had demonstrated a sufficient likelihood of success in the main proceedings to merit interlocutory relief.

In dismissing the application for interlocutory relief, the court found that while the facts alleged by McCulloch did indeed constitute a breach of privacy under the Privacy Act, there was insufficient evidence to establish a reasonable likelihood of success in the main proceedings. The court held that the applicant had not demonstrated that the alleged breach of privacy was likely to cause significant harm or distress to the child. The court emphasised the need for the applicant to provide concrete evidence of such harm to justify the grant of interlocutory relief. As such, the application was dismissed without costs.