O’REGAN J and SACHS J
which safeguard individual freedom are protected by their Constitution.42 O’Connor J too
distinguished in a similar manner between zones of protected activity and others.43 Central to the
reasoning of both Brennan J and O’Connor J is the concept of a zone of privacy that diminishes
as the activity becomes more public in character. This notion has been foundational to this
Court’s jurisprudence on privacy.
[80]
The problem in the present matter is where to place commercial sex on the continuum
described by Ackermann J in Bernstein. In doing so, it is necessary to realise that there are a
range of factors relevant to distinguishing the core of privacy from its penumbra. One of the
considerations is the nature of the relationship concerned: an invasion of the relationship
between partners, or parent and child, or other intimate, meaningful and intensely personal
relationships will be a strong indication of a violation close to the core of privacy. Another
consideration is the extent to which the body of a person is invaded: physical searches or
examinations are often invasive of privacy as section 13 of the interim Constitution suggests.
42
Id at 617-8.
43
Id at 631 and 636.
52
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