Privacy Act 1988

PART V - INVESTIGATIONS ETC.  

Division 1 - Investigation of complaints and investigations on the Commissioner ' s initiative  

SECTION 38A   COMMISSIONER MAY DETERMINE THAT A COMPLAINT IS NOT TO CONTINUE AS A REPRESENTATIVE COMPLAINT  

38A(1)   [Commissioner's determination]  

The Commissioner may, on application by the respondent or on his or her own initiative, determine that a complaint should no longer continue as a representative complaint.

38A(2)   [Criteria for determination]  

The Commissioner may only make such a determination if the Commissioner is satisfied that it is in the interests of justice to do so for any of the following reasons:

(a) the costs that would be incurred if the complaint were to continue as a representative complaint are likely to exceed the costs that would be incurred if each class member lodged a separate complaint;

(b) the representative complaint will not provide an efficient and effective means of dealing with the complaints of the class members;

(c) the complaint was not brought in good faith as a representative complaint;

(d) it is otherwise inappropriate that the complaints be pursued by means of a representative complaint.

38A(3)   [Effect of determination]  

If the Commissioner makes such a determination:

(a) the complaint may be continued as a complaint by the complainant on his or her own behalf against the respondent; and

(b) on the application of a person who was a class member for the purposes of the former representative complaint, the Commissioner may join that person as a complainant to the complaint as continued under paragraph (a).

[ Commissioner's Note: Section 16(3) of Law and Justice Legislation Amendment Act 1993 , Act No 13 of 1994, provides that amendments made by Act No 13 of 1994 relating to representative complaints do not apply to complaints lodged before the commencement of the amendment.]