Queensland is the most herpetologically diverse of all the Australian states. Existing legislation affecting the conservation and management of wild and captive herpetofauna in the state is reviewed, as is new legislation — the Nature Conservation Act 1992. The adoption of procedures to assess the conservation status of herpetofauna in Queensland suggest that there is an increasing number of species requiring conservation action and the likely direction of the new Nature Conservation Regulation as it relates to recreational herpetology is discussed.