The Right to Information Act 2009 (RTI Act) and the Information Privacy Act 2009 (IP Act) were introduced in 2009 to replace the Freedom of Information Act 1992.
The Right to Information (RTI) laws form part of the Queensland Government's initiative to provide the public greater access to information as well as encouraging transparency in government agencies.
Under the RTI framework, more information is being made available to the community, unless on balance it is contrary to the public interest to provide that information. Appropriate protections are still being enforced for an individuals' privacy.
Accessing information
There are two ways to access information held by Queensland Law Society, namely, through administrative and other means or alternatively, by lodging an application under the RTI Act or IP Act.
Check to see if the information you are searching for is already available
Before entering the RTI application process, check whether the information is accessible through other means such as:
- our publication scheme
- our disclosure log
- our website.
If the information is available, an application under the Right to Information Act 2009 or Information Privacy Act 2009 should not be lodged.
If you cannot locate the information, please contact us to find out whether the information you need can be released administratively.
Lodging an application
If you need to make an RTI or IP application, please complete an application form. Submit it by email, post or in person using the details below and an RTI Officer will contact you regarding your application:
- email RTI@qls.com.au
- post The RTI Officer, Queensland Law Society, GPO Box 1785, Brisbane QLD 4001
- in person Queensland Law Society, 179 Ann Street, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Right to information Application
The current application fee for an application under the RTI Act is $53.90. An agency may impose processing charges on searching for or retrieving documents, and making, or doing things related to making, a decision about an application. Access charges may also be imposed for providing the documents.
Processing charges for an RTI application are:
- if the agency spends less than 5 hours – nil
- if the agency spends more than 5 hours processing the application - $8.35 per 15 minutes or part of 15 minutes.
- If the agency spends more than 5 hours processing an application, the processing charge applies to every hour. So if processing takes 6 hours, the processing charge applies to the 6 hours.
The access charges for RTI applications are:
- For copies of documents provided as a black and white A4 photocopy - $0.25 per page.
- There are no excess charges if the documents are provided by email or CD.
Information Privacy Application
There is no application fee for an application under the IP Act, but there may be access charges.
The access charges for IP applications are:
- For copies of documents provided as a black and white A4 photocopy - $0.25 per page.
- There are no excess charges if the documents are provided by email or CD.
The information and documents contained in the Publication Scheme and Disclosure Log are downloadable free of charge.
Our fees and charges increase on 1 July each year. On 1 July 2022 our fees and charges were increased by 2.5% in line with Government’s indexation policy. You can contact us to find out details about specific fees, charges or prices.