New South Wales Consolidated Acts New South Wales Consolidated Acts(Section 7)
In this Schedule:
"Aboriginal person" means a person who:
(a) is a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia, and
(b) identifies as an Aboriginal person, and
(c) is accepted by the Aboriginal community as an Aboriginal person."appointed member" means a member appointed under clause 2 (2).
(a) social sciences,
(b) the justice system,
(c) consumer issues,
(d) the needs of disadvantaged people,
(e) legal practice."Torres Strait Islander" means a person who:
(a) is descended from a Torres Strait Islander, and
(b) identifies as a Torres Strait Islander, and
(c) is accepted as a Torres Strait Islander by a Torres Strait Islander community.
(1) The Board is to consist of 8 members.
(2) Seven of the members are to be appointed by the Attorney General and of them:(a) 4 are to be persons who have, in the opinion of the Attorney General, special expertise, and(b) one is to be a person nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly who has, in the opinion of the Leader, special expertise, and(c) one is to be an Australian legal practitioner who:(i) is appointed from a panel of 6 persons nominated by the New South Wales Bar Association, and(ii) has, in the opinion of the Attorney General, special expertise, and(d) one is to be an Australian legal practitioner who:(i) is appointed from a panel of 6 persons nominated by the Law Society of New South Wales, and(ii) has, in the opinion of the Attorney General, special expertise.
(3) The other member is to be the person for the time being holding the office of Director.
(4) Not more than 3 of the 4 persons referred to in subclause (2) (a) may be an Australian legal practitioner, and at least one of the 4 persons must be an Aboriginal person or a Torres Strait Islander.
(5) Where nominations for the purposes of subclause (2) (b), (c) or (d) are not submitted within the time or in the manner directed by the Attorney General, the Attorney General may appoint a person to be a member instead of the member required to be appointed, being a person possessing the same qualifications for appointment as the member required to be appointed.
(1) The Attorney General may, from time to time, appoint an alternate member to act in the office of an appointed member during the illness or absence of the member, and the alternate member, while so acting, has and may exercise all the functions of the member and is taken to be an appointed member.
(2) An alternate member is to have the same qualifications and be nominated in the same manner as the member for whom he or she is the alternate member.
(3) An alternate member acts in the office until the occurrence of a vacancy in the office of the member for whom he or she is the alternate member.
(4) An alternate member is entitled to be paid such remuneration (including travelling and subsistence allowances) as the Board may from time to time determine in respect of the alternate member.
(1) An appointed member (other than the Opposition member) holds office for such period, not exceeding 3 years, as is specified in the member’s instrument of appointment and is, if otherwise qualified, eligible for re-appointment as a member.
(2) The Opposition member holds office until the member’s successor is appointed under subclause (3).
(3) The Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly may at any time while an Opposition member holds office nominate another person to be the Opposition member.
(4) On the expiry of the term of office of an appointed member (other than the Opposition member):(a) the person who held the office concerned immediately before the expiry of that term is to act in that office until the person’s successor is appointed (or the person is re-appointed) or until the expiration of a period of 3 months from expiry, whichever occurs first, and(b) while so acting, the person has and may exercise all the functions of a member and is taken to be an appointed member.
(1) The Attorney General is to appoint one of the members to be the Chairperson of the Board as often as occasion requires.
(2) The Director may not be appointed Chairperson, and may not act in the office of Chairperson.
(1) If by or under any Act provision is made:(a) requiring a person who is the holder of a specified office to devote the whole of his or her time to the duties of that office, or(b) prohibiting the person from engaging in employment outside the duties of that office,the provision does not operate to disqualify the person from holding that office and also the office of an appointed member or from accepting and retaining any travelling and subsistence allowances payable to a member under clause 7.
(2) Part 2 of the Public Sector Management Act 1988 does not apply to or in respect of the appointment of an appointed member.
An appointed member is entitled to be paid such remuneration (including travelling and subsistence allowances) as the Board may from time to time determine in respect of the member.
The office of an appointed member becomes vacant if the member:
(a) dies, or
(b) completes a term of office and is not re-appointed, or
(c) resigns his or her office by instrument in writing addressed to the Attorney General, or
(d) is absent from 3 consecutive meetings of the Board of which reasonable notice has been given to the member, unless on leave granted to the member by the Board, or
(e) becomes bankrupt, applies to take the benefit of any law for the relief of bankrupt or insolvent debtors, compounds with his or her creditors or makes an assignment of his or her remuneration for their benefit, or
(f) becomes a mentally incapacitated person, or
(g) is convicted in New South Wales of an offence punishable by imprisonment for 12 months or more, or is convicted elsewhere than in New South Wales of an offence that, if committed in New South Wales, would be an offence so punishable, or
(h) ceases to hold a qualification by virtue of which the member was eligible for appointment, or
(i) in the case of the Opposition member, has a successor appointed, or
(j) has his or her membership of the Board terminated under clause 18.
On the occurrence of a vacancy in the office of an appointed member, the Attorney General may appoint a person to the vacant office for the balance of his or her predecessor’s term of office, being a person qualified and nominated under the same paragraph of clause 2 (2) as the predecessor.
The quorum for a meeting of the Board is 5 members.
(1) The Chairperson is to preside at a meeting of the Board at which the Chairperson is present and, if the Chairperson is absent from any meeting, the members are to appoint one of their number to preside at that meeting.
(2) The presiding member has a deliberative vote and, in the event of an equality of votes, has a second or casting vote.
A decision supported by a majority of the votes cast at a meeting of the Board at which a quorum is present is the decision of the Board.
(1) The Board may, if it thinks fit, transact any of its business by the circulation of papers among all the members of the Board for the time being, and a resolution in writing approved in writing by a majority of those members is taken to be a decision of the Board.
(2) The Board may, if it thinks fit, transact any of its business at a meeting at which members (or some members) participate by telephone, closed-circuit television or other means, but only if any member who speaks on a matter before the meeting can be heard by the other members.
(3) For the purposes of:(a) the approval of a resolution under subclause (1), or(b) a meeting held in accordance with subclause (2),the Chairperson and each member have the same voting rights as they have at an ordinary meeting of the Board.
(4) A resolution approved under subclause (1) is, subject to the regulations, to be recorded in the minutes of the meetings of the Board.
(5) Papers may be circulated among the members for the purposes of subclause (1) by facsimile or other transmission of the information in the papers concerned.
The Board is to cause full and accurate minutes to be kept of its proceedings at meetings.
The procedure for the calling of meetings of the Board and for the conduct of business at those meetings is, subject to this Act and the regulations, to be as determined by the Board.
No matter or thing done, and no contract entered into, by the Board, and no matter or thing done or omitted to be done by a member, subjects a member personally to any action, liability, claim or demand if the matter or thing was done, or the contract was entered into, in good faith for the purpose of executing this Act.
(1) If:(a) a member has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in a matter being considered or about to be considered at a meeting of the Board, and(b) the interest appears to raise a conflict with the proper performance of the member’s duties in relation to the consideration of the matter,the member must, as soon as possible after the relevant facts have come to the member’s knowledge, disclose the nature of the interest at a meeting of the Board.
(2) A disclosure by a member at a meeting of the Board that the member:(a) is a member, or is in the employment, of a specified company or other body, or(b) is a partner, or is in the employment, of a specified person, or(c) has some other specified interest relating to a specified company or other body or to a specified person,is a sufficient disclosure of the nature of the interest in any matter relating to that company or other body or to that person which may arise after the date of the disclosure and which is required to be disclosed under subclause (1).
(3) Particulars of any disclosure made under this clause must be recorded by the Board in a book kept for the purpose and that book must be open at all reasonable hours to inspection by any person on payment of the fee determined by the Board.
(4) After a member has disclosed the nature of an interest in any matter, the member must not, unless the Minister otherwise determines:(a) be present during any deliberation of the Board with respect to the matter, or(b) take part in any decision of the Board with respect to the matter.
(5) A contravention of this clause does not invalidate any decision of the Board.
(1) The Attorney General may terminate the membership of an appointed member at any time.
(2) Without affecting the generality of subclause (1), the Attorney General may terminate the membership of an appointed member who contravenes clause 17.
The Attorney General may call the first meeting of the Board in such manner as the Attorney General thinks fit.