Geoff Bloom

Profile

Geoff is a commercial partner in HWL Ebsworth’s Health Group. Having provided legal services to the health sector for more than 16 years, his experience ranges from advising on commercial contracts and transactions through to regulatory and policy issues.

Geoff advises clients from both the private and public sectors, including state health authorities, public and private hospital operators, not-for-profit research organisations and biotechnology companies.

Geoff is also a pioneer in the emerging area of animal law.

Prior to joining HWL Ebsworth, Geoff developed his own advisory practice providing legal and policy services to the health industry. He has also previously held the position of Principal Legal Officer at the NSW Department of Health and at the Cabinet Office of the NSW Government, providing legal services on a broad range of legal issues in the New South Wales public health system. Before that he worked in large corporate law firms in Sydney and London.

Geoff’s major appointments and projects include:

• Appointment as lawyer for the NSW Office of Science and Medical Research, advising on issues such as national stem cell legislation, research funding agreements and quality and availability of clinical trials insurance for the NSW public and not for profit research sectors
• Legal and policy advice for NSW Health concerning regulation of TV advertising of food to children and guidelines for ethical review of research in the NSW public health system
• National consultation on draft adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation policy for the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council
• Preferred supplier for legal services to North Coast Area Health Service, and policy services to NSW Department of Health
• Establishment of the National Institute of Complementary Medicine to promote science based research into complementary medicine, and design and probity advice on a competitive, peer reviewed grants funding program
• Advice on privacy and data governance for health databases to the Cancer Institute NSW
• Reviewing the legal infrastructure of public health administration in New South Wales through a review of the Health Services Act, tabled in Parliament
• Developing the NSW Civil Liability Act, the State's central tort law reform legislation and reviewing the NSW Health Care Liability Act, which regulates liability specifically in the health sector
• Providing legal advice and jointly developing NSW Health's death and dying policies: Guidelines on End-of-Life Care and Decision-making and Using Advance Care Directives
• Establishing Bio-Link, a government-sponsored IP commercialisation consultancy that provides access to emerging Australian technologies created by the public and not for profit research sector
• Preparing and negotiating many funding agreements for health facility capital works, research and research infrastructure
• Advising area health services, private hospital operators and nursing home operators on their legal issues
• Consultant commissioned by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry on the use of law to promote animal welfare through the Australian Animal Welfare Strategy.

Geoff has been an Adjunct Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University of NSW, teaching Health Law and Animal Law (the first such course in Australia).