Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION ACT 1983 - SECT 20

             (1)  The Board may appoint a person to act as Managing Director:

                     (a)  during a vacancy in the office of Managing Director, whether or not an appointment has previously been made to the office; or

                     (b)  during any period, or during all periods, when the Managing Director is absent from duty or from Australia or is, for any other reason, unable to perform the functions of the office;

but a person appointed to act during a vacancy shall not continue so to act for more than 12 months.

             (2)  An appointment of a person under subsection (1) may be expressed to have effect only in such circumstances as are specified in the instrument of appointment.

             (3)  The Board may:

                     (a) determine the terms and conditions of appointment, excluding remuneration and allowances, of a person acting as Managing Director; and

                     (b)  terminate such an appointment at any time.

             (4)  An employee of the Corporation who is acting as Managing Director shall continue to be paid the remuneration and allowances payable to him or her as such an employee but shall also be paid:

                     (a)  so much of any remuneration payable to the Managing Director as exceeds the remuneration that so continues to be paid to the employee;

                     (b)  so much of any allowance payable to the Managing Director as exceeds the corresponding allowance that so continues to be paid to the employee; and

                     (c)  if an allowance is payable to the Managing Director in respect of which there is no corresponding allowance payable to the employee--that allowance.

             (5)  Where a person is acting as Managing Director in accordance with paragraph (1)(b) and the office of Managing Director becomes vacant while that person is so acting, then, subject to subsection (2), that person may continue so to act until the Board otherwise directs, the vacancy is filled or a period of 12 months from the date on which the vacancy occurred expires, whichever first happens.

             (6)  The appointment of a person to act as Managing Director ceases to have effect if he or she resigns the appointment by writing signed by him or her delivered to the Chairperson or, if a Director is acting as Chairperson, to the Director so acting.

             (7)  While a person is acting as Managing Director, he or she has and may exercise all the powers, and shall perform all the functions and duties, of the Managing Director under this Act.

             (8)  A reference in this Act other than this section and section 9 to the Managing Director shall, if a person is acting as Managing Director, be construed as a reference to the person so acting.

             (9)  The validity of anything done by or in relation to a person purporting to act under subsection (1) shall not be called in question on the ground that the occasion for his or her appointment had not arisen, that there was a defect or irregularity in or in connection with the appointment, that the appointment had ceased to have effect or that the occasion for him or her to act had not arisen or had ceased.