GREAT BARRIER REEF MARINE PARK ACT 1975 - SECT 61AIC Pecuniary penalty for contravening civil penalty provision

GREAT BARRIER REEF MARINE PARK ACT 1975 - SECT 61AIC

Application for order

  (1)   No later than 6 years after a contravention of a civil penalty provision by a person, the Authority may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, apply to the Federal Court for an order that the person pay the Commonwealth a pecuniary penalty for the contravention.

Court may order person to pay pecuniary penalty

  (2)   If the Federal Court has made a declaration of contravention against the person under section   61AIA, the Court may order the person to pay to the Commonwealth for the contravention the pecuniary penalty that the Court determines is appropriate (but not more than the relevant amount specified for the provision).

Determining amount of pecuniary penalty

  (3)   In determining the pecuniary penalty, the Federal Court must have regard to all relevant matters, including:

  (a)   the nature and extent of the contravention; and

  (b)   the nature and extent of any loss or damage suffered as a result of the contravention; and

  (c)   the nature and extent of any harm to the environment that has been, might be or will be caused by the contravention; and

  (d)   if any harm caused by the contravention was, might be or will be caused in a zone--any objectives specified for the zone in its zoning plan; and

  (e)   the circumstances in which the contravention took place; and

  (f)   whether the person has previously been found by a court in proceedings under this Act or under any other law of the Commonwealth or a State or Territory to have engaged in any similar conduct; and

  (g)   any benefit (whether or not financial) obtained by the person directly or indirectly as a result of the contravention.

Conduct contravening more than one civil penalty provision

  (4)   If conduct constitutes a contravention of 2 or more civil penalty provisions, proceedings may be instituted under this Act against a person in relation to the contravention of any one or more of those provisions. However, the person is not liable to more than one pecuniary penalty under this section in respect of the same conduct.