New South Wales Consolidated Acts

COMMERCIAL AGENTS AND PRIVATE INQUIRY AGENTS ACT 2004 - SECT 4

4 Definitions

(1) In this Act:
"authorised inspector" means a police officer or a person appointed as an authorised inspector under section 35.
"commercial agent" means the holder of a master licence or operator licence with respect to one or more commercial agent activities.
"commercial agent activity" means debt collection, process serving or repossession of goods.
"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Police.
"criminal intelligence" means information classified by the Commissioner as criminal intelligence within the meaning of the Crimes (Criminal Organisations Control) Act 2009 .
"debt collection" means:

(a) any activity carried out by a person on behalf of a second person (not being his or her employer) in the exercise of the second person’s rights under a debt owed by a third person, or

(b) any activity carried out by a person on his or her own behalf in the exercise of rights acquired from a second person (otherwise than in the course of an acquisition or merger of business interests) under a debt owed by a third person,

being an activity that involves finding the third person or requesting, demanding or collecting from the third person money due under the debt.
"disqualified corporation" means:

(a) a corporation that has been convicted or found guilty of a major offence, or

(b) a corporation that has, as one of its directors or as one of the persons concerned in its management, an individual who is a disqualified individual by virtue of paragraph (c) or (d) of the definition of "disqualified individual".

"disqualified individual" means:

(b) an individual who, not being an Australian citizen, is prohibited from engaging in employment to carry out commercial agent activities or private inquiry agent activities, or

(c) an individual who, in the opinion of the Commissioner, is not a fit and proper person (whether because of subsection (2A) or otherwise) to hold a licence, or

(d) an individual who has been convicted or found guilty of a major offence, or

(e) in relation to a master licence or an application for a master licence:

(i) an individual who does not comply with the requirements of the regulations with respect to membership of an approved industry association with respect to the activities to which such a licence relates, or

(ii) an individual who is an undischarged bankrupt, or the subject of a deed of arrangement, under the Bankruptcy Act 1966 of the Commonwealth, or

(f) an individual who is a director of a disqualified corporation or is concerned in the management of a disqualified corporation, or

(g) an individual who is a controlled member of a declared organisation within the meaning of the Crimes (Criminal Organisations Control) Act 2009 .

Note: Controlled members are prohibited from applying for licences-see section 27 of the Crimes (Criminal Organisations Control) Act 2009 .

"investigation of persons" means any activity carried out by a person on behalf of a second person (not being his or her employer), being an activity that involves finding a third person or investigating a third person’s business or personal affairs.
"licensee" means the holder of a master licence or operator licence.
"major offence" means:

(a) an offence involving violence, fraud, dishonesty or theft, being an offence punishable by imprisonment, or

(b) an offence involving the unlawful possession or use of a firearm or other weapon, or

(c) an offence involving the unlawful possession or use of a drug, or

(d) an offence under Part 2 of the Surveillance Devices Act 2007 , or under corresponding provisions of the law of the Commonwealth or of another State or Territory, or

(e) an offence under the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 1979 of the Commonwealth, or

(f) any other offence declared by the regulations to be a major offence for the purposes of this Act.

"master licence" means a licence referred to in section 6 (1).
"minor offence" means:

(a) an offence under section 55 of the Fair Trading Act 1987 , or under a corresponding provision of a law of the Commonwealth or another State or Territory, or

(b) an offence under this Act or the regulations, or

(c) any other offence declared by the regulations to be a minor offence for the purposes of this Act.

"operator licence" means a licence referred to in section 12 (1).
"private inquiry agent" means the holder of a master licence or operator licence with respect to one or more private inquiry agent activities.
"private inquiry agent activity" means investigation of persons or surveillance of persons.
"process serving" means any activity carried out by a person on behalf of a second person (not being his or her employer), being an activity that involves serving legal process on a third person in relation to legal proceedings to which the second and third persons are, or are intended to be, parties, regardless of which jurisdiction the legal proceedings are, or are intended to be, held in.
"Register of Licensees" means the Register of Licensees referred to in section 21.
"repossession of goods" means any activity carried out by a person on behalf of a second person (not being his or her employer), being an activity that involves finding goods held by a third person or requesting, demanding or seizing such goods.
"surveillance of persons" means any activity carried out by a person on behalf of a second person (not being his or her employer), being an activity that involves the surveillance of a third person.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (a) of the definition of "disqualified corporation" and paragraph (d) of the definition of "disqualified individual" in subsection (1), any conviction that is more than 10 years old, and any finding of guilt that is more than 5 years old, are to be ignored.

(2A) For the purposes of paragraph (c) of the definition of "disqualified individual", an individual is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence under this Act if the Commissioner has reasonable grounds to believe from information held in relation to the individual:

(a) that the individual is a member of, or regularly associates with one or more members of, a declared organisation within the meaning of the Crimes (Criminal Organisations Control) Act 2009 , and

(b) that the nature and circumstances of the individual’s relationship with the declared organisation or its members are such that it could reasonably be inferred that improper conduct that would further the criminal activities of the declared organisation is likely to occur if the individual were to hold or continue to hold a licence under this Act.

(3) Notes included in this Act do not form part of this Act.