Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Human Tissue Act 1982 - SECT 3

Definitions

3. Definitions



(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears-

child means a person who-

   (a)  has not attained the age of 18 years; and

   (b)  is not married; coroner has the same meaning as it has in the
        Coroners Act 1985;

designated officer in relation to a hospital means-

   (a)  a registered medical practitioner for the time being appointed under
        section 4 to be a designated officer for that hospital; or

   (b)  where, in relation to a hospital, there is no such person, the medical
        superintendent of the hospital or, while he is absent from or not on
        duty at the hospital, a person acting in his place; domestic partner
        of a person means-

   (a)  a person who is in a registered relationship with the person; or

   (b)  an adult person to whom the person is not married but with whom the
        person is in a relationship as a couple where one or each of them
        provides personal or financial commitment and support of a domestic
        nature for the material benefit of the other, irrespective of their
        genders and whether or not they are living under the same roof, but
        does not include a person who provides domestic support and personal
        care to the person-

   (i)  for fee or reward; or

   (ii) on behalf of another person or an organisation (including a government
        or government agency, a body corporate or a charitable or benevolent
        organisation);

* * * * *



next of kin means-

   (a)  in relation to a child-a person referred to in subparagraph (i), (ii)
        or (iii) of paragraph (a) of the definition of senior available next
        of kin; and

   (b)  in relation to any other person-a person referred to in subparagraph
        (i), (ii), (iii) or (iv) of paragraph (b) of that definition;
        non-regenerative tissue means tissue other than regenerative tissue;
        regenerative tissue means tissue that, after injury or removal, is
        replaced in the body of a living person by natural processes;
        registered medical practitioner means a medical practitioner
        registered under the Health Professions Registration Act 2005;





senior available next of kin means-

   (a)  in relation to a deceased child-

   (i)  where a parent of the child is available-a parent of the child;

   (ii) where a parent of the child is not available-a brother or sister of
        the child who has attained the age of eighteen years and who is
        available; or

   (iii) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii) is
        available-a person who was the guardian of the child immediately
        before the death of the child and who is available; and

   (b)  in relation to any other deceased person-

   (i)  where the person, immediately before the person's death, had a spouse
        or domestic partner and that spouse or domestic partner is
        available-the spouse or domestic partner;

   (ii) where the person, immediately before the person's death, did not have
        a spouse or domestic partner or the spouse or domestic partner is not
        available-a son or daughter of the person who has attained the age of
        18 years and who is available;

   (iii) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii) is available
        but a parent of the person is available-that parent; or

   (iv) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) is
        available-a brother or sister of the person who has attained the age
        of eighteen years and is available; spouse of a person means a person
        to whom the person is married;

State Coroner means the person appointed to be the State Coroner under the
Coroners Act 1985;

tissue includes an organ, or part, of a human body or a substance extracted
from, or from a part of, the human body.

(2) A reference in this Act to the transplantation of tissue shall be read as
including a reference to the transplantation of any part of the tissue and to
the transplantation of a substance obtained from the tissue.

(3) A reference in this Act to a person's brother or sister is a reference to
a brother or a sister whether of the whole blood or the half-blood and
includes a reference to a person who was adopted by one or both of the parents
of the first-mentioned person.

(4) For the purposes of the definition of domestic partner in subsection (1)-

   (a)  registered relationship has the same meaning as in the
        Relationships Act 2008; and

   (b)  in determining whether persons who are not in a registered
        relationship are domestic partners of each other, all the
        circumstances of their relationship are to be taken into account,
        including any one or more of the matters referred to in section 35(2)
        of the Relationships Act 2008 as may be relevant in a particular case;
        and

   (c)  a person is not a domestic partner of another person only because they
        are co-tenants.