NSW Surveillance Devices Commissioner

The inaugural NSW Surveillance Devices Commissioner (SD Commissioner) is Mr Don McKenzie who was appointed to his current role in August 2019 under the Surveillance Devices Act 2007 (the Act). 

Don McKenzie is a highly experienced legal professional with extensive expertise in criminal law and public administration. He holds degrees in Science and Law from the University of Sydney and an Executive Masters in Public Administration. Don is also an Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law with the NSW Law Society.

Professional Background

Mr McKenzie began his public sector legal career in 1989 at the Western Aboriginal Legal Service in Dubbo. He then joined the Office of the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions in 1992, working in the Special Crime Unit. From 1994 to 1997, he served as a senior lawyer at the Royal Commission into the NSW Police Service.

In 1997, Mr McKenzie was seconded to the Office of the NSW Police Commissioner, where he served as Legal Officer and acting Team Leader. He later became the Principal Legal Officer at NSW Police’s Crime Agencies, which evolved into the State Crime Command. His team won the NSW Law Society’s Award for Excellence in Government Legal Services in 2001.

In 2002, Mr McKenzie joined the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) as a Principal Lawyer. He took extended leave in 2011 to serve as Deputy Director at Botswana’s Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC). He returned to ICAC in 2014 before becoming the Director of Legal Services at the NSW Crime Commission in 2016.

In 2018, Mr McKenzie worked as an Anti-Corruption and Law Enforcement Specialist with the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Myanmar, providing advice to the Myanmar Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). He returned to Australia in 2019 to take up his current role as the SD Commissioner for NSW.

The SD Commissioner can be contacted by email at [email protected] or directly on 02 8753 9314.