New South Wales Bills Explanatory Notes New South Wales Bills Explanatory Notes[Index] [Search] [Download] [Bill] [Help]
COURTS LEGISLATION (CONTEMPT) AMENDMENT
BILL 1991
NEW SOUT
H WALES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This Explanatory Note relates to this Bill as introduced into Parliament)
The object of this Bill is to amend the District Court Act 1973 to enable the Court to
impose a penalty of up to 28 days imprisonment for contempt of court as an alternative
to a monetary penalty. The Bill also amends the following Acts to make uniform as
between the courts to which those Acts apply the penalties for contempt in certain
proceedings:
Children's Court Act 1987
Coroners Act 1980
Justices Act 1902
Local Courts (Civil Claims) Act 1970.
Clause 1 specifies the short title of the proposed Act.
Clause 2 gives effect to the Schedule of amendments.
SCHEDULE 1--AMENDMENTS
The District Court Act 1973 currently enables the District Court to impose a
monetary penalty of up to $2,000 for contempt of court. Schedule 1 amends that Act to
enable the District Court to impose that monetary penalty or a penalty of imprisonment
for a period of up to 28 days.
The other Acts referred to above have differing penalties far contempt m proceedings
to which they relate. schedule l amends those Acts to provide that the penalty that may
be imposed for contempt is up to $1,000 or imprisonment for a period of up to 14 days.
The penalty for contempt in proceedings before a registrar under the Local Courts (Civil
Claims) Act 1970 is not changed