Peter O'Brien

Australia has made history as the first country in the world to implement a nationwide social media ban for anyone under 16. The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 took effect on 10 December 2025, requiring platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, YouTube, X, Reddit, Threads, Twitch, and Kick to take “reasonable

In the five years to July 2023, NSW Police killed 52 people who were experiencing mental health crises. That figure, reported by AAP following the broadcast of ABC Four Corners’ Brutal Force, has reignited a debate that practitioners in police accountability law have been having for years: when a person is in acute mental health

On Monday 1 June 2026, ABC Four Corners aired Brutal Force, a landmark investigative journalism program examining NSW Police Misconduct. Our Principal Solicitor, Peter O’Brien, appeared as a key expert voice in the program, speaking to the failures of the current police complaint system and the human cost of misconduct that goes unchecked. Four Corners

Suing NSW Police: A Four Corners investigation broadcast this week has put NSW police misconduct back under a national spotlight, and the details are deeply troubling. The case of Brad Kellson, a man who spent four days in intensive care after being kneed five times in the ribs by a police officer at Blacktown Police

In August 2024, Monash IVF agreed to a $56 million settlement, $40 million in compensation plus $16 million in legal costs, to resolve a class action brought by more than 700 patients who alleged the company misled them about the accuracy of an embryo screening test. The case, approved by the Supreme Court of Victoria

A Protest Sentencing bill has been introduced in the NSW Parliament that, if passed, would prohibit courts from imposing a custodial sentence for any non-violent act committed in the course of a demonstration, protest, procession, or assembly. Introduced in the Legislative Assembly in 2025 and progressing through parliament, its passage is not yet certain. However,

We have been made aware that the domain obriensolicitors-au[.]com was recently registered using our business name. This domain has no affiliation with O’Brien Solicitors whatsoever, and we are pleased to confirm it has now been taken down. This type of activity is an increasingly common scam targeting law firms across Australia. We were advised by

Bondi Junction Inquest: On 5 February 2026, NSW State Coroner Magistrate Teresa O’Sullivan handed down her comprehensive findings into the deaths at Westfield Bondi Junction on 13 April 2024. The findings, comprising more than 800 pages, make 23 systemic recommendations and refer the treating psychiatrist to the Health Ombudsman for professional conduct review. This article