New South Wales Consolidated Acts

TRAVEL AGENTS ACT 1986 - SECT 20

20 Notices to show cause

(1) Where, at any time, the Director-General is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds for believing that:

(a) a licence has been improperly obtained or, at the time a licence was granted, there were grounds for refusing to grant it,

(b) a licensee has been convicted of an offence against this Act or any other enactment administered by the Minister,

(c) a licensee has failed to comply with this Act, a condition or restriction to which the licence is subject, a requirement under section 21 (1) (b) or an order of the Tribunal applicable to the licensee,

(d) a licensee has been found guilty of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty punishable on conviction by imprisonment for 3 months or more,

(e) a licensee does not have, or is not likely to continue to have, sufficient financial resources to enable the licensee to continue to carry on business as a travel agent,

(f) the business to which a licence relates is being carried on in a dishonest or unfair manner,

(g) if a person were not a licensee, the Director-General would be required by section 10 (2) or (4) to refuse an application by the person for a licence,

(h) a licensee has, for a period of one month or more, ceased to carry on the business to which the licence relates,

(i) a person (other than the licensee) involved in the direction, management or conduct of a business to which the licence relates is not a fit and proper person to be so involved,

(j) a licensee has been refused a licence under a corresponding Act,

(k) a licensee has been the subject of action that, under a corresponding Act, had an effect similar to the effect under this Act of action under section 21 (1) (a), (b), (c), (d) or (g), or

(l) a licensee is not, for any other reason, a fit and proper person to continue to hold a licence,

the Director-General may, by notice in writing served on the licensee, call upon the licensee to show cause, within such period, being not less than 14 days, as is specified in the notice, why the licensee should not, for such of the reasons referred to in paragraphs (a)-(l) as are specified in the notice, be dealt with in accordance with section 21 (1).

(2) A notice may not be served on a licensee for the reason specified in subsection (1) (i) unless:

(a) the notice specifies the reasons why it is considered that the person involved in the direction, management or conduct of the business to which the licence relates is not a fit and proper person to be so involved, and

(b) a notice in writing is also served on the person so involved calling on the person to show cause, within the same period as is specified in the notice served on the licensee, why the person should not, for reasons specified in the notice (being the same as those specified under paragraph (a)) be disqualified in accordance with section 21 (2).

(3) A notice may not be served on a licensee for the reason specified in subsection (1) (l) unless the notice specifies the reasons why it is considered that the licensee is not a fit and proper person to continue to hold a licence.

(4) A licensee on whom a notice under subsection (1) has been served, a person with whom the licensee carries on, in partnership, the business to which the licence relates or, where the licensee is a body corporate, a director or officer of the body corporate may, within the period specified in the notice, make submissions, orally or in writing, with respect to the matters to which the notice relates.

(5) A person on whom a notice under subsection (2) (b) has been served may, within the period specified in the notice, make submissions, orally or in writing, with respect to the matters to which the notice relates.

(6) In order to determine:

(a) whether or not to serve a notice under subsection (1), or

(b) whether or not to take action under section 21,

the Director-General may make such investigations as the Director-General thinks fit.

(7) The Commissioner of Police shall, if the Director-General so requests, make such investigations for the purposes of subsection (6) as are specified by the Director-General and shall, as soon as practicable after completing the investigation, make a report on the investigation to the Director-General.

(8) The Director-General may suspend a licence for any one or more of the following periods:

(a) a period of not more than 14 days pending a determination as to whether or not a notice should be served on the licensee under subsection (1),

(b) where such a notice is so served-the period specified under subsection (1) in the notice,

(c) pending a determination as to whether or not action is to be taken under section 21-a period of not more than 14 days.

(9) A licensee on whom notice to show cause has been served under this section may not surrender the licence unless the Director-General has made a determination under section 21 in relation to each matter to which the notice relates.