Western Australian Consolidated Acts Western Australian Consolidated Acts (1) In a prosecution
or in other legal proceedings instituted under this Act, proof of the
following is not required unless evidence is given to the
contrary —
(a) the
particular or general appointment of a person by the CEO under this Act;
(b)
authorisation by the Minister of a person to make a complaint, prosecute an
offence or otherwise institute proceedings under this Act.
(2) Where in a charge
of an offence against this Act there is an averment that an act occurred
within the boundaries of waters or associated land to which this Act applies,
courts and persons acting judicially shall, on the act being proved, presume
in the absence of proof to the contrary that the act occurred within the
boundaries of such land or waters as averred.
(3) In any proceedings
for an offence against this Act the fact that —
(a) no
notice had been given, or application submitted, to the Minister;
(b) no
licence or other permission or authorisation had been granted by the Minister,
in relation to any matter to which this Act applies,
shall be deemed to be
proved until proof is given to the contrary.
(4) The production in
a prosecution or other legal proceedings of —
(a) a
copy of the Gazette containing a regulation, declaration, map, notice or other
evidence of the exercise of any power or authority in pursuance or purported
pursuance of the provisions of this Act; or
(b) a
copy purporting to be certified as a copy of a regulation, declaration, map,
notice or other evidence of the exercise of any such power or authority, by a
certificate purporting to have been signed by the CEO,
is evidence of the
making, existence, and publication of the regulation, declaration, map or
notice, or of the exercise of the power or authority, and of all the
preliminary steps having been regularly taken to give full force and effect to
it and to its provisions.
(5) In all proceedings
in which any notice, order, or other document required or authorised to be
given to or served on a party to the proceedings under this Act has to be
proved, the party is deemed to have received notice to produce it, and, until
the contrary is shown, the document and its due service may be sufficiently
proved by the production of what purports to be a copy, bearing what purports
to be a certificate under the hand of the person authorised to issue the
original, or of the CEO, as the case may be, that the copy is a true copy of
the original and that the original was served on the date specified in the
certificate.
(6) The validity of
any declaration, map, notice, order, or other document or of its publication
or service is not affected by any error, misdescription, or irregularity which
is not calculated to mislead, or which in fact does not mislead.
(7) In all courts and
before all persons authorised to receive evidence a signature purporting to be
that of the Minister, the CEO, a delegate of the minister or CEO or a person
otherwise authorised or appointed by the Minister or the CEO under this Act
shall be taken to be the signature of the person whose signature it purports
to be until the contrary is proved.
[(8) deleted]
(9) The provisions of
this section —
(a) are
in addition to and not in derogation of those of the Evidence Act 1906 ;
and
(b) do
not render valid a regulation or by-law which has been disallowed under
section 42(2) of the Interpretation Act 1984 , or which has been
invalidly made.
[Section 75 amended by No. 73 of 1995
s. 186; No. 84 of 2004 s. 80; No. 38 of 2007 s. 183.]
[Heading inserted by No. 38 of 2007 s. 184.]