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TASMANIA
__________
COMMONWEALTH POWERS (DE FACTO
RELATIONSHIPS) BILL 2006
__________
CONTENTS
1. Short title
2. Commencement
3. Interpretation
4. References
5. Termination of references
6. Administration of Act
[Bill 21]-I
2
COMMONWEALTH POWERS (DE FACTO
RELATIONSHIPS) BILL 2006
(Brought in by the Minister for Justice and Workplace
Relations, the Honourable Steven Kons)
A BILL FOR
An Act to refer certain financial matters arising out of the
breakdown of de facto relationships to the Parliament of
the Commonwealth for the purposes of section 51(xxxvii)
of the Constitution of the Commonwealth
Be it enacted by His Excellency the Governor of Tasmania, by
and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and
House of Assembly, in Parliament assembled, as follows:
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth
Powers (De Facto Relationships) Act 2006.
2. Commencement
This Act commences on a day to be proclaimed.
3. Interpretation
(1) In this Act
"de facto partner" means a person who lives
or has lived in a de facto relationship;
[Bill 21] 3
Commonwealth Powers (De Facto Relationships) Act 2006
Act No. of
s. 3
"de facto relationship" means a marriage-
like relationship (other than a legal
marriage) between two persons;
"financial matters", in relation to de facto
partners, means any or all of the
following matters:
(a) the maintenance of de facto
partners;
(b) the distribution of the property of
de facto partners;
(c) the distribution of any other
financial resources of de facto
partners, including prospective
superannuation entitlements or
other valuable benefits of or
relating to de facto partners;
"property" means any legal or equitable
estate or interest (whether present or
future and whether vested or contingent)
in real or personal property of any
description and wherever situated,
including money or choses in action.
(2) For the purposes of this Act, a de facto
relationship exists even if a de facto partner is
legally married to someone else or is in another
de facto relationship.
(3) A reference in this Act
(a) to the property or other financial
resources of de facto partners includes a
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Commonwealth Powers (De Facto Relationships) Act 2006
Act No. of
s. 4
reference to the property or other
financial resources of either or both of
them; and
(b) to the distribution of such property or
resources includes a reference to the
conferral of rights or obligations in
relation to the property or resources.
(4) This Act extends to de facto relationships that
ended before the commencement of this Act.
4. References
(1) The following matters, to the extent to which
they are not otherwise included in the legislative
powers of the Parliament of the Commonwealth,
are referred to the Parliament of the
Commonwealth for a period commencing on the
day on which this Act commences and ending on
the day fixed, pursuant to section 5, as the day
on which the references under this Act are to
terminate, but no longer:
(a) financial matters relating to de facto
partners arising out of the breakdown
(other than by reason of death) of de
facto relationships between persons of
different sexes;
(b) financial matters relating to de facto
partners arising out of the breakdown
(other than by reason of death) of de
facto relationships between persons of
the same sex.
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Commonwealth Powers (De Facto Relationships) Act 2006
Act No. of
s. 5
(2) The operation of each paragraph of
subsection (1) is not affected by the other
paragraph.
5. Termination of references
(1) The Governor may, at any time, by proclamation
published in the Gazette, fix a day as the day on
which the references under this Act are to
terminate.
(2) The day fixed under subsection (1) must be no
earlier than the first day after the end of the
period of 3 months beginning with the day on
which the proclamation is published under that
subsection.
(3) The Governor may, by proclamation published
in the Gazette, revoke a proclamation published
under subsection (1), in which case the revoked
proclamation is taken (for the purposes of
section 4) never to have been published.
(4) A revoking proclamation has effect only if
published before the day fixed under
subsection (1).
(5) The revocation of a proclamation published
under subsection (1) does not prevent
publication of a further proclamation under that
subsection.
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Commonwealth Powers (De Facto Relationships) Act 2006
Act No. of
s. 6
6. Administration of Act
Until provision is made in relation to this Act by
order under section 4 of the Administrative
Arrangements Act 1990
(a) the administration of this Act is assigned
to the Minister for Justice and Workplace
Relations; and
(b) the department responsible to that
Minister in relation to the administration
of this Act is the Department of Justice.
Government Printer, Tasmania 7