Psychology Board of Australia v Cameron

The Psychology Board of Australia brought a disciplinary action against Cameron, a registered psychologist, for unprofessional conduct. The Board alleged that Cameron had failed to notify the Board of certain criminal charges and convictions and had answered "no" to a question about changes in his criminal history when applying for the renewal of his registration. Cameron admitted to the charges but argued that his failure to disclose was not deliberate.

The central legal issue before the tribunal was whether Cameron's failure to disclose the charges and convictions amounted to unprofessional conduct under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law. The tribunal had to determine whether the failure to disclose was deliberate or an oversight and assess the impact of the failure on the profession and the public interest.

The tribunal found that Cameron's failure to disclose the charges and convictions was not deliberate and that he had not acted recklessly. However, the tribunal held that the failure to disclose was still a serious matter that could undermine the public's confidence in the profession. The tribunal considered the respondent's good character, his remorse, and the fact that he had not posed a risk to the public. The tribunal concluded that a reprimand was an appropriate outcome and ordered that Cameron pay the costs of the proceedings.

The tribunal made several orders, including that Acting Deputy President Stilgoe sit as a member of the tribunal, that Cameron be reprimanded, and that Cameron pay the costs of the proceedings as agreed or assessed on a standard basis on the District Court Scale.