LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF THE
NORTHERN TERRITORY

MINISTER FOR JUSTICE AND ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Justice Legislation Amendment Bill 2010

SERIAL NO. 100 

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

GENERAL OUTLINE

This Bill amends various Acts within the Justice portfolio.

The Criminal Code is amended to reinstate the previously existing alternative verdict of ‘serious harm’ to a charge under section 177. 

The Land Title Act is amended to allow agents of owners of land to sign applications for the issuing of a certificate containing the indefeasible title for a lot. Further, where there are two or mortgages over a lot, in order to issue such a certificate, the Registrar-General will only require the consent of the first registered mortgagee.

The Public Interest Disclosure Act is amended such that: 
·	responsible Chief Executives may delegate their functions and powers. 
·	it is not an offence for a disclosure of confidential information (including identifying information) to be communicated provided it is necessary for exercising a power or performing a function under the Act.
·	it is not an offence for a person to disclose confidential information if the disclosure is made in response to circumstances of sudden or extraordinary emergency;
·	it is clear that the type of trust being referred to in section 5(1)(a)(iv) is the trust of the public and not a financial trust. 

The Retirement Villages Act is amended such that it provides a process for the removal of restriction notices concerning retirement villages.

The Sale of Land (Rights and Duties of Parties) Act is amended such that the Act does not apply to contracts, or proposed contracts, for the sale of land if the buyer is a related person of the seller by virtue of a de facto relationship. This exemption already exists in relation to spouses and children.

The Sentencing Act is amended to ensure that section 78BA of the Act may operate in respect of an offence under section 188 of the 
Criminal Code.

The Unit Titles Act is amended so that it is clear that applications under section 10 for the subdivision of a parcel of land can no longer be made under the Act for ‘new developments’ of land that is not already the subject of title under the Unit Titles Act. 

The Retirement Villages Regulations are amended so that references to the Unit Title Schemes Act are included in those parts that refer to the Unit Titles Act.

NOTES ON CLAUSES

PART 1 – PRELIMINARY MATTERS

Clause 1.	Short Title

This is a formal clause which provides for the citation of the Bill.  The Bill when passed may be cited as the Justice Legislation Amendment Act 2010.

Clause 2.	Commencement.

The Bill will commence on the date fixed by the Administrator by Gazette notice.  In accordance with the Interpretation Act this clause operates so that the various provisions of the Act may be commenced on separate days.

PART 2 – AMENDMENT OF CRIMINAL CODE ACT

Clause 3.	Act amended

This Part amends the Criminal Code Act. 

Clause 4.		Amendment of section 177 (Acts intended to cause serious harm or prevent apprehension)

This clause amends section 177 of the Act by omitting and substituting subsection (a) with a new subsection (a), the purpose of which is to reinstate the previously existing alternative verdict of ‘serious harm’ to a charge under section 177. 

PART 3 – AMENDMENT OF LAND TITLE ACT

Clause 5.	Act amended

This Part amends the Land Title Act.

Clause 6.	Amendment of section 44 (Issuing of certificate as to title)

This clause amends section 44 of the Act by omitting and substituting subsections (1) and (2) with new subsections (1) and (2). New subsection (1) will allow legal practitioners (as defined in the Interpretation Act) and licensed conveyancing acting for owners of land to sign applications for the issuing of a certificate containing the indefeasible title for a lot. 

Pursuant to new subsection (2), where there are two or more mortgages over a lot, the Registrar-General will only require the consent of the first registered mortgagee in order to issue a certificate under subsection (1).

This clause also amends section 44(6)(a) to conform with new subsections (1) and (2).

PART 4 – AMENDMENT OF PUBLIC INTEREST DISCLOSURE ACT

Clause 7.	Act amended

This Part amends the Public Interest Disclosure Act.

Clause 8.	Amendment of section 5 (Improper conduct)

This clause amends section 5 by omitting the letter ‘a’ from between the words ‘of’ and ‘public’ in subsection (1)(a)(iv) so as to clarify that the type of trust being referred to is the trust of the public and not a financial trust.

Clause 9.	Amendment of section 53 (Confidentiality of information)

This clause omits the words ‘(other than identifying information)’ from section 53(2)(a) and (b). These amendments will allow for a disclosure of confidential information (including identifying information) to be communicated provided it is necessary for exercising a power or performing a function under the Act, including for a report or a recommendation.

Clause 10.	New sections 53A and 53B 

This clause inserts new sections 53A and 53B. 

53A	Sudden or extraordinary emergency

New section 53A provides that it is not an offence for a person to disclose confidential information if the disclosure is made in response to circumstances of sudden or extraordinary emergency. 

Pursuant to subsection (1), a prescribed person may only disclose confidential information if the person reasonably believes that:

·	the circumstances of emergency exist;
·	disclosure is the only reasonable way of dealing with the emergency; and
·	the risk of emergency outweighs the risk to the discloser in disclosing the information.

Pursuant to subsection (2), a prescribed person must not reveal the identity of the discloser unless the prescribed person reasonably believes that it is necessary to do so.

Subsection (3) establishes requirements for making a disclosure.  The discloser must notify the Commissioner for Public Interest Disclosures within 48 hours of making the disclosure and in that notification must set out the reasons why the disclosure was appropriate.

Subsection (4) provides that this section applies despite any other provision in the Public Interest Disclosure Act or in any other Act.

53B 	Direction not to disclose confidential or identifying information

New section 53B provides that the Commissioner for Public Interest Disclosures may, in certain circumstances, direct that persons not disclose confidential or identifying information. 

Subsection (2) makes it an offence not to comply with this section and provides a maximum penalty of 400 penalty units or imprisonment for 2 years.

Clause 11.	New section 54A	

This clause provides for new section 54A.

54A  Delegation by responsible Chief Executive

New section 54A provides that responsible Chief Executives for a body or public office can delegate any of his or her powers or functions.

The delegation power relates to the following powers and functions:

·	receive disclosures under section 11; 
·	refer disclosures to Commissioner under section 12; 
·	receive and decide requests for relocation under sections 18 and (19);
·	receive notice from the Commissioner of intention to investigate under section 24; 
·	make arrangements with Commissioner regarding staff to assist the Commissioner under section 29;
·	opportunity to comment on adverse reports under section 30; and
·	receive report of findings from investigation and respond to recommendations for action under sections 31 and 32.

PART 5 – AMENDMENT OF RETIREMENT VILLAGES ACT

Clause 12.	Act amended

This Part amends the Retirement Villages Act.

Clause 13.	New section 36A

This clause provides for new section 36A.

36A Removal of notation from Register

Section 36 of the Retirement Villages Act provides for land intended to be a retirement village for a notation to that effect to be registered on the title. However, there is nothing in that Act or in the Land Title Act that provides for the removal of the notation in circumstances where all concerned agree that the land is not, or is not going to be, or is not to remain as a retirement village.

New section 36A establishes a process for the removal of restriction notices concerning retirement villages from the Land Titles Register.
 
PART 6 – AMENDMENT OF SALE OF LAND (RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF PARTIES) ACT 2010

Clause 14.	Act amended

This Part amends the Sale of Land (Rights and Duties of Parties) Act 2010. 

Clause 15.		Amendment of section 8 (Contracts excluded from application of Act)

This clause amends section 8 of the Act by inserting ‘or defacto partners’ after ‘spouse’ in subsection (2)(a). As a result, the Act will not apply to contracts, or proposed contracts, for the sale of land if the buyer is a related person of the seller by virtue of a defacto relationship. This exemption already exists in relation to spouses.

This corrects an anomaly in the Sale of Land (Rights and Duties of Parties) Act 2010 and removes, prior to the commencement of that Act, an inadvertent distinction between married persons and persons in a defacto relationship.

PART 7 – AMENDMENT OF UNIT TITLES ACT

Clause 16.	Act amended

This Part amends the Unit Titles Act.

Clause 17.	New section 116	

The Unit Titles Act is amended so that it is clear that applications under section 10 for the subdivision of a parcel of land can no longer be made under the Act for ‘new developments’. 

This removes doubts that exist as to whether the Unit Titles Act and the   Unit Title Schemes Act operate as per the intention with the new legislative scheme that commenced on 1 July 2009.  The intention was that all new subdivisions of land into units should be covered by the 
Unit Title Schemes Act, except where the land being subdivided is already a unit or lot that is subject to a title under the Unit Titles Act.

PART 8 – AMENDMENT OF OTHER LAWS

Clause 18.	Amendment of other laws

This clause provides for the amendment of other laws in the Schedule to this Bill.

PART 9 – EXPIRY OF ACT

Clause 19.	Expiry

This clause provides that the Act will expire on the day after it commences.

Schedule		Amendment of other laws

Items 1 and 2 of the Schedule amend clauses 19 and 42 of Schedule 2 of the Retirement Villages Regulations, respectively by including references to the Unit Title Schemes Act.

This corrects an error in section 185 of the Unit Title Schemes Act.  This section contains the words ‘Residential Tenancies Regulations’ when it should have contained the words ‘Retirement Villages Act’.  Accordingly, section 185 was a nullity having no substantive effect.

Item 3 of the Schedule amends Item 2 of Schedule 2 of the Sentencing Act to ensure that section 78BA of the Sentencing Act may operate in respect of an offence under section 188 of the Criminal Code.