Queensland Consolidated Acts

WORKPLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT 1995 - SECT 37

(1) It is a defence in a proceeding against a person for a contravention of an obligation imposed on the person under division 2 or 3 for the person to prove--

(a) if a regulation or ministerial notice has been made about the way to prevent or minimise exposure to a risk--that the person followed the way prescribed in the regulation or notice to prevent the contravention; or

(b) if a code of practice has been made stating a way or ways to manage exposure to a risk--

(i) that the person adopted and followed a stated way to prevent the contravention; or

(ii) that the person adopted and followed another way that managed exposure to the risk and took reasonable precautions and exercised proper diligence to prevent the contravention; or

(c) if no regulation, ministerial notice, or code of practice has been made about exposure to a risk--that the person chose any appropriate way and took reasonable precautions and exercised proper diligence to prevent the contravention.

(2) Also, it is a defence in a proceeding against a person for an offence against division 2 or 3 for the person to prove that the commission of the offence was due to causes over which the person had no control.

(3) In this section, a reference to a regulation, ministerial notice, or code of practice is a reference to the regulation, notice, or code of practice in force at the time of the contravention.