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Amendment Bill 1997
Explanatory note
This explanatory note relates to this Bill as introduced into Parliament.*
·
the Administrative Decisions Tribunal Act I997
·
the Bail Act 1978
·
the Compensation Court Act 1984
·
the Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967
·
the District Court Act 1973
·
the District Court Amendment Act 1997
·
the Family Provision Act 1982
* Amended in committee--see table at end of volume.
·
the Legal Profession Act 1987
·
the Local Courts Act 1982
·
the Suitors Fund Act 1951
·
the Supreme Court Act 1970
·
the Testator's Family Maintenance and Guardianship of Infants Act
1916
·
the Uncollected Goods Act 1995
Clause 2 provides for the commencement of the proposed Act on a day or
days to be appointed by proclamation.
Clause 3 is a formal provision giving effect to the Schedule of amendments
to various Acts administered by the Attorney General.
Schedule 1.1 amends the Administrative Decisions Tribunal Act 1997 so as:
to correct a cross-reference (Schedule 1.1 [l]: proposed amendment to
the definition of application in section 4), and
to make the language used in provisions of the Act dealing with the
making of applications consistent, with the intention that the
amendments not affect the right of any interested person to have the
assistance of a legal practitioner or other agent in the preparation or
lodgment of an application in accordance with any rules made under
section 90 (Schedule 1.1 [2] and [4]): proposed amendments to
sections 42 (a) and 55 (1) (a)), and
to make it clear that an application may be lodged with the
Administrative Decisions Tribunal if the applicant has been notified of
the result of an internal review under that Act, or after the expiry of 14
days from the lodgment of the internal review application where no
such notification has been received within that period (or other agreed
period) (Schedule 1.1 [3]: proposed amendment to section 53), and
to make it clear that the Tribunal can direct the Registrar to make a
document already lodged with it under section 58 (4) available to a
party seeking a summons for the production of the document rather
than, as at present, only documents lodged by a party under section 58
(1) (Schedule 1.1 [7]: proposed amendment to section 58), and
Explanatory note page 2
to enable the Tribunal to dismiss applications that are misconceived or
lacking in substance as well as proceedings that are frivolous or
vexatious (Schedule 1.1 [8]: proposed amendment to section 73), and
to enable orders of the Tribunal for the payment of fines and other
penalties to be registered (and therefore enforced) as judgment debts in
courts of competent jurisdiction, complementing section 82 which
deals with the recovery of amounts (other than penalties) ordered to be
paid by the Tribunal (Schedule 1.1 [9]: proposed section 82A), and
to make it clear that parties to proceedings may consent to a member
with a conflicting interest participating in the determination of
proceedings, and to enable the President to direct a member not to
participate in the determination of proceedings if the member has a
conflicting interest (Schedule 1.1 [11]: proposed clause 14 of Schedule
3), and
to ensure that decisions of an abolished body that are appealable to a
court before its abolition (but which have not yet been appealed) may
be appealed instead to an Appeal Panel of the Tribunal (Schedule 1.1
[14]: proposed clause 14A of Schedule 3 , and
to make other minor, consequential or ancillary amendments (Schedule
1.1 [5], [6], [10], [12] and [13]).
Schedule 1.2 amends the Bail Act 1978 so as to substitute section 48B
(which deals with the review of bail conditions by a justice) (Schedule 1.2
[l]). The new section extends the matters in relation to which a justice may
vary bail reporting conditions (paragraphs (b), (c), (d) and (e) of proposed
section 48B (3)). The powers conferred by paragraphs (c), (d) and (e)
(relating to the number of days on which the accused must report to a police
station, the revocation of bail conditions requiring the accused to report to a
police station and the accused's place of residence) are not to be exercisable
over the objections of the appropriate prosecuting authority or in relation to a
bail condition imposed by the Supreme Court, nor are they to be exercisable
after summary or committal proceedings against the accused have been
determined (proposed section 48B (4)).
The Schedule also makes amendments of a savings or transitional nature
(Schedule 1.2 [2]: proposed Part 4 of Schedule 1).
Schedule 1.3 amends the Compensation Court Act 1984 so as:
(a)
to impose an upper limit of 70 years on the age of acting
commissioners (Schedule 1.3 [l]: proposed section 13 (IA)) and
commissioners (Schedule 1.3 [4]: proposed amendments to clauses l
and 9 of Schedule 2), and
Explanatory note page 3
(b) to provide for the appointment of acting registrars (Schedule 1.3 [2]:
proposed section 14AA), and
(c)
to provide that an appeal to the Court of Appeal (other than an appeal
from a final decision or award involving a claim for, or a question
relating to, an amount of $20,000 or more) may not be made without
the leave of the Court of Appeal (Schedule 1.3 [3]: proposed section
32 (4)), and
(d)
to make other minor, consequential or ancillary amendments (Schedule
1.3 [5], [6] and [7]).
Schedule 1.4 amends the Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967 so as to abolish
an existing requirement for a justice (but not a judge) to specify an amount of
costs in a certificate given under that Act for the purpose of enabling a person
who is acquitted or discharged in criminal proceedings to recover costs paid
in connection with that person's defence in those proceedings (proposed
repeal of section 3 (2)).
Schedule 1.5 amends the District Court Act 1973 so as:
to clarify the meaning of the expression motor accident claim when
used in that Act (Schedule 1.5 [l]: proposed amendment to that
definition in section 4 (l)), and
to remove any doubt as to the kinds of action with respect to which the
District Court has jurisdiction (Schedule 1.5 [2] and [3]: proposed
section 44 (1) (a) and (e)), and
to provide that an appeal to the Supreme Court (other than an appeal
from a final judgment or order involving a claim for, or a question
relating to, an amount of $100,000 or more) may not be made without
the leave of the Supreme Court (Schedule 1.5 [6]: proposed section
127 (2) (c)), and
to make other minor, consequential or ancillary amendments (Schedule
1.5 [4], [5] and [7]).
Schedule 1.6 amends the District Court Amendment Act 1997 as a
consequence of amendments being made by Schedule 1.7 and 1.12 to the
Family Provision Act 1982 and the Testator's Family Maintenance and
Guardianship of Infants Act 1916.
Schedule 1.7 amends the Family Provision Act 1982 so as to clarify the
definition of Court in section 6 (1).
Explanatory note page 4
Schedule 1.8 amends the Legal Profession Act 1987 so as to allow the Legal
Services Tribunal:
(a)
to make orders for costs in relation to its determinations under section
48K of that Act (Schedule 1.8 [ l]: proposed amendment to section
48 L), and
(b)
to make orders for costs for specified or unspecified amounts,
including amounts to be determined on a specified basis (Schedule 1.8
[l] and [S]: proposed amendments to sections 48L and 171E), and
(c)
to make other minor, consequential or ancillary amendments (Schedule
1.8 [2], [3] and [4]).
Schedule 1.9 amends the Local Courts Act 1982 so as allow a former
Magistrate to be reinstated as a Magistrate up to the age of 70 years, instead
of 65 years as is presently the case (proposed amendment to section 21 (l)).
Schedule 1.10 amends the Suitors' Fund Act 1951 so as:
(a)
to impose a limit on the costs payable with respect to indemnity
certificates issued under that Act for appeals to the High Court (where
the limit is set at $20,000) or to any other court (where the limit is set
at $10,000) (Schedule 1.10 [2]: proposed section 6 (2A)), and
(b)
to provide that where more than one such certificate is issued for the
same appeal proceedings, the maximum amount payable in respect of
any one certificate is the amount equal to the maximum limit for the
appeal divided by the number of certificates that have been issued,
unless the court otherwise determines (Schedule 1.10 [2]: proposed
section 6 (2B)), and
(c)
to make other minor, consequential or ancillary amendments (Schedule
1.10 [1] and [3]).
Schedule 1.11 amends the Supreme Court Act 1970 so as:
(a)
to clarify which appeals may be dealt with by 2 Judges of Appeal
rather than 3 (Schedule 1.11 [1]: proposed amendment to section 46A),
and
(b)
to provide that an appeal to the Court of Appeal from a Divisional
Court (other than an appeal from a final judgment or order involving a
claim for, or a question relating to, an amount of $100,000 or more, an
application for a writ of habeas corpus, the committal or arrest of a
person or contempt) may not be made without the leave of the Court of
Appeal (Schedule 1.11 [2]: proposed section 101 (2) (r)), and
(c)
to clarify the occasions on which video link facilities may be used
(Schedule 1.11 [3] and [4]: proposed amendment to section 110A and
proposed section 110AA), and
Explanatory note page 5
(d)
to make amendments of a savings or transitional nature (Schedule 1.11
[5]).
Schedule 1.12 amends the Testator's Family Maintenance and Guardianship
of Infants Act 1916 so as to clarify the definition of Court in section 2.
Schedule 1.13 amends the Uncollected Goods Act 1995 so as:
(a)
to clarify the definition of bailed goods in section 3 (Schedule 1.13
[1]), and
(b)
to confer jurisdiction on the District Court to hear applications under
that Act involving property valued up to the jurisdictional limit of the
District Court (currently $750,000) (Schedule 1.13 [2], [3], [4] and
[5]): proposed amendments to section 18).
Explanatory note page 6