Commonwealth Numbered Acts

COMPLAINTS (AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE) ACT 1981 No. 21 of 1981 - SECT 23

23. (1) Subject to this Part, where a complaint is made to the Ombudsman under
this Part about action taken by a member -

   (a)  if the complaint is, in substance, about the practices and procedures
        of the Australian Federal Police - the Ombudsman shall investigate the
        complaint under this Part; or

   (b)  in any other case - the Ombudsman shall refer the complaint to the
        Commissioner.

(2) Subject to this Part, where particulars of a complaint are furnished to
the Ombudsman in accordance with section 6, and the complaint is, in
substance, about the practices and procedures of the Australian Federal
Police, the Ombudsman may investigate the complaint under this Part.

(3) Subject to this Part, where the Ombudsman furnishes a notification to the
Commissioner under sub-paragraph 36 (1) (a) (ii) or (2) (a) (i) in respect of
a complaint after it has been investigated by the Investigation Division, the
Ombudsman shall investigate the complaint under this Part.

(4) Where -

   (a)  a complaint is made to the Ombudsman under this Part or particulars of
        a complaint are furnished to the Ombudsman in accordance with section
        6; and

   (b)  before the complaint is so made, or particulars of the complaint are
        so furnished, the Ombudsman had been carrying out an investigation,
        under paragraph 5 (1) (b) of the Ombudsman Act 1976, of -

        (i)    the action taken by a member (in this sub-section referred to
               as the

"relevant action") which is the subject of the complaint;

        (ii)   action taken by a member which includes the relevant action; or

        (iii)  action taken by a member which forms part of the
               relevant action, but had not completed that investigation, then
               -

   (c)  the Ombudsman shall not continue that investigation, or that
        investigation in so far as it relates to the relevant action, as the
        case requires, under the Ombudsman Act 1976;

   (d)  subject to paragraphs (e) and (f), the complaint shall be investigated
        under this Act as if the Ombudsman had not previously commenced to
        investigate the relevant action;

   (e)  if the complaint is to be investigated under this Act by the
        Investigation Division - the Ombudsman shall forward to the
        Investigation Division a report concerning the progress of his
        investigation of the relevant action under the Ombudsman Act 1976; and

   (f)  if the complaint is to be investigated by the Ombudsman under this
        Part - the Ombudsman shall treat the information obtained in the
        course of his investigation of the relevant action under the Ombudsman
        Act 1976 as if it had been obtained in the course of his investigation
        of the complaint under this Part.

(5) Where the Ombudsman is of the opinion that a complaint made to him under
this Part, or to a member under Part II, is, in part, a complaint that is, in
substance, about the practices and procedures of the Australian Federal Police
and in part a complaint that is not, in substance, about the practices and
procedures of the Australian Federal Police -

   (a)  if the Ombudsman is also of the opinion that those parts of the
        complaint cannot conveniently be dealt with separately - the Ombudsman
        may inform the Commissioner, under sub-section 25 (1), that he
        proposes to investigate the complaint as if the whole of the complaint
        was, in substance, about the practices and procedures of the
        Australian Federal Police and, where he does so, this Act applies as
        if the complaint were such a complaint; and

   (b)  in any other case - the Ombudsman may inform the Commissioner that he
        proposes to investigate the first-mentioned part of the complaint
        under this Part and, where he does so, this Act applies as if the
        first-mentioned part and the second-mentioned part of the complaint
        were separate complaints.

(6) Nothing in this section shall be taken to limit the duty of the Ombudsman
to investigate a complaint under this Part in pursuance of sub-section 11 (7)
or section 46.