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PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA
Victorian Law Reform Commission Act 2000
Act No.
TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Clause Page
PART 1--PRELIMINARY 1
1. Purpose and outline of Act 1
2. Commencement 2
3. Definitions 3
PART 2--ESTABLISHMENT, FUNCTIONS AND POWERS OF
THE COMMISSION 4
4. Establishment of the Commission 4
5. Functions of the Commission 4
6. Powers of the Commission 5
PART 3--CONSTITUTION AND PROCEDURE OF THE
COMMISSION 7
7. Constitution of the Commission 7
8. Terms and conditions of office of members 7
9. Payment of members 8
10. Vacancies, resignations, removal from office 8
11. Validity of acts or decisions 8
12. Meetings of the Commission 9
13. Chairperson may allocate references or constitute Divisions 10
14. Meetings of a Division 10
15. Staff 11
16. Appointment of consultants 11
PART 4--FINANCE AND REPORTS 12
17. Funding of Commission 12
18. Control on expenditure 12
19. Annual report 12
20. Parliamentary requirement for information 12
21. Interim reports and reports on references 13
PART 5--MISCELLANEOUS 14
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Clause Page
22. Regulations 14
23. Amendment of Legal Practice Act 1996 14
24. Repeal of Law Reform Commission (Repeal) Act 1992 15
NOTES 16
INDEX 17
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PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA
Initiated in Assembly 3 May 2000
A BILL
to establish the Victorian Law Reform Commission and define its
functions and powers, to repeal the Law Reform Commission
(Repeal) Act 1992 and amend the Legal Practice Act 1996 and for
other purposes.
Victorian Law Reform Commission Act
2000
The Parliament of Victoria enacts as follows:
PART 1--PRELIMINARY
1. Purpose and outline of Act1
(1) The purpose of this Act is to establish the
Victorian Law Reform Commission as a central
5 agency for developing law reform in Victoria.
(2) In outline this Act--
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ท establishes the Victorian Law Reform
Commission (VLRC) with a full-time
chairperson and full and part-time members;
ท provides for the employment of a chief
5 executive officer and other staff in VLRC and
for it to be also assisted by consultants;
ท sets up arrangements under which VLRC may
be funded by annual payments out of the Law
Reform and Research Account (an account in
10 the Public Purpose Fund maintained by the
Legal Practice Board);
ท requires VLRC to report to the Attorney-
General on law reform proposals referred to it
by him or her;
ท enables VLRC to suggest references and
15
undertake relevant educational programs;
ท limits VLRC's powers to deal with property
and spend money;
ท allows Divisions of the Commission to be
20 constituted to deal with references;
ท requires VLRC to supply information to
Parliament and Parliamentary Committees;
ท repeals the Law Reform Commission
(Repeal) Act 1992.
25 (3) Sub-section (2) is intended only as a guide to
readers as to the general scheme and effect of this
Act.
2. Commencement
(1) Subject to sub-section (2), this Act comes into
30 operation on a day or days to be proclaimed.
(2) If a provision of this Act does not come into
operation before 1 July 2001, it comes into
operation on that day.
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Act No.
3. Definitions
In this Act--
"chairperson" means chairperson of the
Commission appointed under section 7(2);
5 "Commission" means Victorian Law Reform
Commission established under section 4;
"Division" means Division of the Commission
constituted under section 13;
"member" means member of the Commission
10 appointed under section 7(2) and includes
the chairperson;
"reference" means reference by the Attorney-
General to the Commission under section 5.
_______________
15
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Victorian Law Reform Commission Act 2000
s. 4
Act No.
PART 2--ESTABLISHMENT, FUNCTIONS AND POWERS OF
THE COMMISSION
4. Establishment of the Commission
(1) The Victorian Law Reform Commission is
5 established by this Act.
(2) The Commission--
(a) is a body corporate with perpetual
succession;
(b) has a common seal;
10 (c) may sue and be sued in its corporate name;
(d) subject to section 6, may acquire, hold and
dispose of real and personal property;
(e) may do and suffer all acts and things that a
body corporate may by law do and suffer.
15 (3) All courts must take judicial notice of the
common seal of the Commission affixed to a
document and, until the contrary is proved, must
presume that it was duly affixed.
(4) The common seal of the Commission must be kept
20 in such custody as the Commission directs and
must not be used except as authorised by it.
5. Functions of the Commission
(1) The functions of the Commission are--
(a) to examine, report and make
25 recommendations to the Attorney-General on
any proposal or matter relating to law reform
in Victoria that is referred to the
Commission by the Attorney-General;
(b) to examine, report and make
30 recommendations to the Attorney-General on
any matter that the Commission considers
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raises relatively minor legal issues that are of
general community concern if the
Commission is satisfied that the examination
of that matter will not require a significant
5 deployment of the resources available to the
Commission;
(c) to suggest to the Attorney-General that a
proposal or matter relating to law reform in
Victoria be referred to the Commission by
10 the Attorney-General;
(d) to monitor and co-ordinate law reform
activity in Victoria;
(e) to undertake educational programs on any
area of the law relevant to a reference,
15 whether past or current.
(2) The Attorney-General may--
(a) modify the terms of a reference;
(b) give directions to the Commission as to--
(i) the priority it must give to a reference;
20 (ii) the time within which it must report on
a reference;
(c) at any time before the Commission is to
report on a reference, require it to submit an
interim report to him or her within a
25 specified time.
6. Powers of the Commission
(1) Subject to sub-section (2), the Commission has
power to do all things necessary or convenient to
be done for, or in connection with, performing its
30 functions.
(2) The Commission must not, without the prior
written approval of the Attorney-General--
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(a) acquire any property, right or privilege for a
consideration of more than $250 000 or any
higher amount prescribed for the purposes of
this paragraph; or
5 (b) dispose of any property, right or privilege
that has a value, or for a consideration, of
more than $250 000 or any higher amount
prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph;
or
10 (c) obtain a lease over any land or premises.
_______________
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Act No.
PART 3--CONSTITUTION AND PROCEDURE OF THE
COMMISSION
7. Constitution of the Commission
(1) The Commission consists of--
5 (a) a full-time chairperson; and
(b) such number of full-time and part-time
members as the Governor in Council
considers necessary to enable the
Commission to perform its functions.
10 (2) The chairperson and other members are appointed
by the Governor in Council.
(3) The Attorney-General may appoint a member to
act as chairperson for a period not exceeding
6 months--
15 (a) during a vacancy in the office of
chairperson; or
(b) while the chairperson is absent from Victoria
or is, for any other reason, unable to perform
the duties of the office of chairperson.
20 (4) While a member is acting as chairperson, he or
she has and may exercise all the powers, and must
perform all the duties, of the chairperson.
8. Terms and conditions of office of members
(1) A member holds office--
25 (a) subject to section 10, for the term (not
exceeding 4 years) that is specified in his or
her instrument of appointment, and is
eligible for re-appointment; and
(b) on any other terms and conditions, not
30 inconsistent with this Act, that are specified
in his or her instrument of appointment.
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(2) The Public Sector Management and
Employment Act 1998 does not apply to a
member in respect of the office of member.
9. Payment of members
5 A member is entitled to be paid the remuneration
and allowances that are specified in his or her
instrument of appointment or are fixed from time
to time in respect of him or her by the Governor in
Council.
10 10. Vacancies, resignations, removal from office
(1) A member's office becomes vacant if he or she--
(a) without the Attorney-General's approval,
fails to attend 3 consecutive meetings of the
Commission; or
15 (b) is convicted of an indictable offence or an
offence that, if committed in Victoria, would
be an indictable offence.
(2) A member may resign by writing delivered to the
Governor in Council.
20 (3) The Governor in Council may remove a member
from office if of the opinion that the member--
(a) is guilty of improper conduct in carrying out
the duties of his or her office;
(b) is mentally or physically incapable of
25 carrying out satisfactorily the duties of his or
her office; or
(c) has failed to comply with any term or
condition of appointment.
11. Validity of acts or decisions
30 (1) An act or decision of the Commission is not
invalid merely because of--
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(a) a defect or irregularity in, or in connection
with, the appointment of a member; or
(b) a vacancy in the membership of the
Commission.
5 (2) Anything done by or in relation to a member
purporting to act as chairperson is not invalid
merely because--
(a) there was a defect or irregularity in relation
to the acting appointment; or
10 (b) the occasion for the person to act had not
arisen or had ceased.
12. Meetings of the Commission
(1) The chairperson must convene as many meetings
of the Commission as he or she considers
15 necessary for the efficient conduct of its affairs.
(2) The chairperson or, in his or her absence, a
member appointed to act as chairperson under
section 7(3), must preside at a meeting of the
Commission.
20 (3) The quorum for a meeting of the Commission is a
majority of the members in office for the time
being.
(4) A question arising at a meeting of the
Commission is determined by a majority of the
25 votes of the members present and voting on the
question.
(5) The person presiding has a deliberative vote and,
in the event of an equality of votes on any
question, a second or casting vote.
30 (6) Subject to this Act, the Commission may regulate
its own procedure.
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13. Chairperson may allocate references or constitute
Divisions
(1) The chairperson may--
(a) allocate a reference to a particular member;
5 or
(b) constitute a Division of the Commission
consisting of not less than 3 members for the
purposes of a reference.
(2) The chairperson may appoint himself or herself as
10 a member of a Division.
(3) The chairperson may at any time--
(a) re-allocate a reference to another member; or
(b) dissolve a Division.
14. Meetings of a Division
15 (1) A meeting of a Division must be convened and
presided over by the chairperson (if he or she is a
member of the Division) or in any other case by a
member of the Division appointed for the purpose
by the chairperson.
20 (2) In the event of the absence from a meeting of a
Division of the member who is to preside under
sub-section (1), the members present may elect
one of their number to preside at that meeting.
(3) The quorum for a meeting of a Division is 2.
25 (4) A question arising at a meeting of a Division is
determined by a majority of the votes of the
members of the Division present and voting on the
question.
(5) The person presiding at a meeting of a Division
30 has a deliberative vote.
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(6) If at a meeting of a Division at which only
2 members are present, those members differ in
opinion on a question, the member presiding must
postpone the determination of that question to a
5 meeting of the Division at which more than
2 members of the Division are present.
(7) In the event of an equality of votes on any
question at a meeting of the Division at which
more than 2 members are present, the member
10 presiding has a second or casting vote.
(8) Subject to this Act, a Division may regulate its
own procedure.
15. Staff
(1) A chief executive officer of the Commission must
15 be employed under Part 3 of the Public Sector
Management and Employment Act 1998.
(2) As many other employees as are necessary to
enable the Commission to perform its functions
may be employed under Part 3 of the Public
20 Sector Management and Employment Act
1998.
(3) The staff structure of the Commission shall be
determined by the chairperson having regard to
the Commission's budget.
25 16. Appointment of consultants
(1) The chairperson may engage persons with suitable
qualifications and experience as consultants to the
Commission either in an honorary capacity or for
remuneration.
30 (2) The remuneration of consultants shall be
determined by the chairperson having regard to
the Commission's budget.
_______________
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Act No.
PART 4--FINANCE AND REPORTS
17. Funding of Commission
The money available to the Commission
comprises--
5 (a) amounts paid to it under section 383(2) of
the Legal Practice Act 19962; and
(b) money appropriated by the Parliament for
the purposes of the Commission.
18. Control on expenditure
10 Money given to the Commission must only be
spent by it in defraying expenses incurred by it in
performing its functions, including paying any
remuneration, salaries or allowances payable to
members, staff or consultants.
15 19. Annual report
The Commission must include--
(a) a brief summary of each reference received
by it during the financial year; and
(b) a statement on the progress made by it
20 during the financial year on each of its
references--
in its annual report of operations under Part 7 of
the Financial Management Act 19943.
20. Parliamentary requirement for information
25 (1) The Commission must comply with any
information requirement lawfully made of it by a
House of the Parliament or a Parliamentary
Committee within the meaning of the
Parliamentary Committees Act 1968.
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(2) In this section "information requirement"
means a requirement to give information of a
specified kind within a specified period relating
to--
5 (a) the performance by the Commission of its
functions; or
(b) the exercise by the Commission of its
powers; or
(c) the Commission's expenditure or proposed
10 expenditure.
21. Interim reports and reports on references
(1) The Commission may from time to time, and must
if required to do so under section 5(2)(c), make
interim reports on any work under a reference.
15 (2) The Commission must, at the end of its work
under a reference, make a final report on the work.
(3) The Commission must submit to the Attorney-
General copies of every interim or final report
under this section.
20 (4) The Attorney-General must cause a copy of every
interim or final report submitted to him or her
under this section to be laid before each House of
the Parliament within 14 sitting days of that
House after he or she receives the report.
25 (5) The Commission must make copies of any interim
or final report available to the public, whether for
purchase or without charge.
_______________
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Act No.
PART 5--MISCELLANEOUS
22. Regulations
The Governor in Council may make regulations
for or with respect to any matter or thing required
5 or permitted to be prescribed or necessary to be
prescribed to give effect to this Act.
23. Amendment of Legal Practice Act 1996
No. 35/1996
(1) In section 383(1) of the Legal Practice Act 1996,
Reprint No. 2
after "Board" insert ", with the approval of the
as at
10 15 August Attorney-General,".
1999. Further
amended by
(2) In section 383 of the Legal Practice Act 1996,
No. 52/1999.
after sub-section (1) insert--
"(2) There must be paid to the Victorian Law
Reform Commission each year out of the
15 Law Reform and Research Account such
amount as the Attorney-General directs.
(3) The Board must, at the direction of the
Attorney-General, pay out of the Law
Reform and Research Account to the
20 Victorian Law Reform Commission, by way
of advance on account of an amount to
which it may become entitled under sub-
section (2), such amount as the Attorney-
General directs.
25 (4) Any amount paid by way of advance under
sub-section (3) is repayable to the Board by
the Victorian Law Reform Commission at
the end of the period (not being less than
12 months) that the Board determines and
30 bears interest at any rate that the Board
determines.
(4A) Any repayments received by the Board in
respect of an advance made by it under sub-
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Act No.
section (3) must be credited to the Law
Reform and Research Account.".
(3) In section 383(5) of the Legal Practice Act 1996,
after "Account" insert ", after allowing for any
5 amount required to be paid out of the Account
under sub-section (2),".
24. Repeal of Law Reform Commission (Repeal) Act 1992
No. 84/1992.
The Law Reform Commission (Repeal) Act
1992 is repealed.
10
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Victorian Law Reform Commission Act 2000
Notes
Act No.
NOTES
1
The index attached to this Act does not form part of this Act and is
provided for convenience of reference only.
2
Section 383(2) of the Legal Practice Act 1996 provides that there must be
5 paid to the Commission each year out of the Law Reform and Research
Account such amount as the Attorney-General directs. This is an account
in the Public Purpose Fund established under section 372 of that Act and
maintained by the Legal Practice Board.
3
Under Part 7 of the Financial Management Act 1994 the Commission will
10 be required to prepare a report of its operations during each financial year
and submit it to the Auditor-General. The chief executive officer of the
Commission will be required to prepare, and submit to the Auditor-
General, financial statements of the Commission for each financial year.
The report and audited financial statements are required to be laid before
15 Parliament.
By Authority. Government Printer for the State of Victoria.
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Victorian Law Reform Commission Act 2000
Index
Act No.
INDEX
Subject Section
Act
commencement 2
consequential amendments 23
purpose and outline 1
5, 7, 21
Attorney-General
Chairperson
acting 7, 11
allocation of references 13
appointment 7
constitution of Divisions 13
16
Consultants
Definitions
chairperson 3
Commission 3
Division 3
information requirement 20
member 3
reference 3
13-14
Divisions
20
Information requirements of Parliament
Meetings
of Commission 12
of Divisions 14
Property
limits on Commission's power to deal in 6
References
allocation by chairperson 13
functions of Commission regarding 5
reporting on 21
22
Regulations
24
Repeals
Reports
annual 19
on information required by Parliament 20
on references 19, 21
Victorian Law Reform Commission
chairperson 7, 13
compliance with information requirements 20
Divisions 13-14
establishment 4
functions 5
funding and expenditure 17-18
members 7-9
meetings 12
powers 6
reports 19-21
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Victorian Law Reform Commission Act 2000
Index
Act No.
Subject Section
staff 15
vacancies, resignations, removal from office 10
validity of acts or decisions 11
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