Review of criminal law protections against the incitement of hatred

Attorney General Michael Daley has appointed former NSW Supreme Court Justice, the Honourable John Sackar AM KC, to review criminal law hate speech protections. The review findings are to be reported to the Attorney General by 5 November 2025.

What is this about?

The review is to consider criminal law protections against hate speech for vulnerable communities.

The reviewer will assess whether existing protections are sufficient and recommend possible improvements, following the NSW Parliament passing the Crimes Amendment (Inciting Racial Hatred) Act 2025, which criminalises the intentional incitement of racial hatred.

Review terms of reference

The Honourable John Sackar (‘the reviewer’) is asked to review and report on the criminal law protections against the incitement of hatred following the introduction of the Crimes Amendment (Inciting Racial Hatred) Act 2025.

In particular, the review should consider:

the sufficiency of criminal law protections against hatred for vulnerable groups in the NSW community, including any improvements that could be made
the interaction between these protections and existing rights and freedoms, including the implied freedom of political communication and freedom of religion
any other matters related to criminal law reform that the Government could consider enhancing social cohesion.

Have your say - Submissions now closed

As part of the review of criminal law protections against the incitement of hatred, the reviewer invited written submissions from stakeholders. Submissions closed on Wednesday, 6 August 2025.

The Issues Paper, released as part of the consultation process, contains a summary of the key issues and includes focus questions that stakeholders were invited to respond to. You can access the Issues Paper here. (PDF, 315.7 KB)

If you have any questions, please contact us via email at: prlindependentreviewsecretariat@dcj.nsw.gov.au.

Written submissions and comments

Below is a list of written submissions and comments received. They are numbered in the order they were received. The exception is supplementary submissions from the same stakeholder, which have the same number as the original submission plus an alphabetical designator (for example ‘20’ and ‘20A’).

Not every written submission and comment has been published, and some are partially redacted. Reasons for this include the:

author asked the submission, or part of it, to be kept confidential
submission contains personal identifying or contact details
submission relates to a case that is, or might come, before the courts.

All written submissions and comments have been considered in full.

Content warning and support services

Please be advised that some submissions or comments contain content or language that some readers may find offensive or distressing.

If you need support, there are some free services you can contact. These include:

Beyond Blue: Call support services on 1300 22 4636

Beyond Blue is an independent, not-for-profit organisation working to reduce the impact of anxiety, depression and suicide in Australia. Learn more at Beyond Blue's website.

Lifeline: Call the 24-hour crisis line on 13 11 14 or talk to a support person online at: Lifeline Crisis Chat

Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing emotional distress with access to 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention services. Learn more at Lifeline's website.

No.	Stakeholder
1	Assyrian Resource Centre (PDF, 1.6 MB)
3	Periyar Ambedkar Thoughts Circle Australia (PDF, 106.2 KB)
5	Lauren Anderson (PDF, 1019.3 KB)
6	Chris Mader (PDF, 1.1 MB)
7	Playgroup NSW (PDF, 2.0 MB)
8	Rainbow Families (PDF, 184.6 KB)
9	Professor Sarah Sorial (PDF, 235.3 KB)
10	The Public Defenders (PDF, 147.7 KB)
11	NSW Women's Action Alliance (PDF, 202.5 KB)
12	Legal Aid NSW (PDF, 260.8 KB)
13	Justice and Equity Centre (PDF, 200.0 KB)
14	The Law Society of NSW (PDF, 1.9 MB)
15	Lebanese Muslim Association (PDF, 559.8 KB)
16	Equality Australia (PDF, 1.5 MB)
17	Australian Muslim Advocacy Network, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, Australian National Imams Council, Lebanese Muslim Association, Muslim Legal Network NSW, Muslim Votes Matter, Muslim Women Association, Shia Muslim Council of Australi and The Muslim Vote (PDF, 220.7 KB)
18	Australia's Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism (PDF, 746.6 KB)
19	Advocate for Children and Young People (PDF, 282.4 KB)
20	Anti-Discrimination NSW (PDF, 1.1 MB)
20A	Anti-Discrimination NSW (PDF, 600.5 KB)
21	Feminist Legal Clinic (PDF, 118.7 KB)
22	Steven Broussos (PDF, 1.4 MB)
23	Executive Council of Australian Jewry (PDF, 1.7 MB)
24	Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney (PDF, 1.1 MB)
25	Inner City Legal Centre (PDF, 1.3 MB)
25A	Inner City Legal Centre (PDF, 277.0 KB)
26	Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW (PDF, 154.2 KB)
27	NSW Council for Civil Liberties (PDF, 273.1 KB)
28	Associate Professor Mark Fowler (PDF, 261.5 KB)
29	Ethnic Communities' Council of NSW (PDF, 119.0 KB)
30	Dr Elyse Methven, Professor Thalia Anthony and Derick Luong (PDF, 1.0 MB)
32	Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney (PDF, 154.5 KB)
33	Australian Christian Lobby (PDF, 533.3 KB)
34	NSW Council of Churches (PDF, 178.9 KB)
35	Australian Human Rights Commission (PDF, 104.4 KB)
36	The Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) (PDF, 608.8 KB)
37	ACON (PDF, 751.7 KB)
38	Professor Nicole Asquith (PDF, 263.6 KB)
45	HIV/AIDS Legal Centre (PDF, 1.2 MB)
45A	HIV/AIDS Legal Centre (PDF, 869.9 KB)
47	NSW Bar Association (PDF, 2.0 MB)
48	Secular Association of NSW (PDF, 92.3 KB)
49	NSW Women's Advisory Council (PDF, 121.3 KB)
50	Kamal Weerakoon (PDF, 1.3 MB)
51	Disability Council of NSW (PDF, 148.8 KB)
52	Shia Muslim Council of Australia (PDF, 887.4 KB)
54	People with Disability Australia (PDF, 1.3 MB)

The Reviewer

The Honourable John Sackar AM KC served as Justice of the Supreme Court of NSW between 2011 and 2024 and was Commissioner for the Special Commission of Inquiry into LGBTIQ Hate Crimes.