The commission was the first permanent body established in Australia to continually conduct and investigate law reform.

Its establishment is important as it was an independent body that could devote its deliberations full-time to examining law reform in the state[1] The first real law reform commission in the state was one set up in 1870 by the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and set up by letters patent of 14 July 1870.

The commission consisted of the five lawyers and the Chief Justice of New South Wales, Sir Alfred Stephen.

This Commission prepared a draft bill to simplify equity procedure and indicated the need for consolidation and reform of lunacy, insolvency and jury laws.

[5] Some of the recent reports of the commission include reports on Parole (2015), Encouraging appropriate early guilty pleas (2014), Criminal appeals (2014), Sentencing (2013), and People with cognitive and mental health impairments and the criminal justice system (2013).