I think this law needs to be amended to "not bringing the fish in the boat"....
I use a 3ft dowel with a hook in the end out in the salt, this works great for the rivers as well. In most of the rivers I fish, it's easy to net the fish (with the proper CnR Net), get to a shallow bank, get out and release the fish. If possible grabbing a photo wouldn't hurt. Single or Siwash barbless hooks are the way to go...

Kev