Crimes Act 1914

PART VIIC - PARDONS, QUASHED CONVICTIONS AND SPENT CONVICTIONS  

Division 1 - Interpretation and application of Part  

SECTION 85ZL  

85ZL   INTERPRETATION OF PART  

In this Part, unless the contrary intention appears:

AUSTRAC
means the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre continued in existence by the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 .

"Commonwealth authority"
means:

(a) a Commonwealth Minister; or

(b) a Commonwealth Department; or

(ba) the Defence Force;

(c) a body (whether incorporated or not), or a tribunal, established or appointed for a public purpose by or under a Commonwealth law, not being:

(i) an incorporated company, society or association; or

(ii) an organisation registered, or an association recognised, under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 , or a branch of such an organisation or association;

(iii) (Repealed by No 54 of 2009)

(d) a body established or appointed by the Governor-General, or by a Commonwealth Minister, otherwise than by or under a Commonwealth law;

(e) a person holding or performing the duties of an office established by or under, or an appointment made under, a Commonwealth law other than the office of Secretary of a Commonwealth Department;

(f) a person holding or performing the duties of an appointment made by the Governor-General, or by a Commonwealth Minister, otherwise than under a Commonwealth law;

(g) a federal court;

(h) the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory; or

(j) the Australian Federal Police;

"Commonwealth Department"
means an Agency within the meaning of the Public Service Act 1999 ;

"Commonwealth law"
means:

(a) an Act other than:

(i) the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988; or

(ii) the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act 1978 ;

(b) an instrument (including rules, regulations or by-laws) made under an Act (other than an Act referred to in subparagraph (a) (i) or (ii)); or

(c) any other legislation that applies as a law of the Commonwealth (other than legislation in so far as it is applied by an Act referred to in subparagraph (a) (i) or (ii)), to the extent that it operates as such a law;

"Commonwealth Minister"
means a Minister of State of the Commonwealth;

"Commonwealth offence"
means an offence against a Commonwealth law;

"complaint"
means a complaint under subsection 85ZZA(1);

"designated offence"
means:

(a) a sexual offence; or

(b) any other offence against the person if the victim of the offence was under 18 at the time the offence was committed;

"designated position"
means a position in a Commonwealth authority which the head of the authority has determined to be a designated security assessment position whose duties are likely to involve access to national security information classified as secret or top secret;

"foreign law"
means a law of a foreign country;

"foreign offence"
means an offence against a foreign law;

"intelligence or security agency"
means:

(a) the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation; or

(b) the Australian Secret Intelligence Service; or

(ba) the Australian Signals Directorate; or

(c) the Office of National Intelligence; or

(d) (Repealed by No 25 of 2018)

(e) that part of the Defence Department known as the Defence Intelligence Organisation; or

(f) that part of the Defence Department known as the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation.

"law enforcement agency"
means:

(a) the Australian Federal Police; or

(b) the police force of a State or Territory; or

(ba) the Immigration and Border Protection Department; or

(bb) the National Anti-Corruption Commission; or

(bc) the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission of New South Wales, or a similar body established under a law of another State; or

(c) the National Crime Authority; or

(d) the Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence; or

(e) (Repealed by No 45 of 2016)

(f) the Independent Commission Against Corruption of New South Wales, or a similar body established under a law of another State; or

(fa) (Repealed by No 63 of 2023)

(g) the New South Wales Crime Commission, or a similar body established under a law of another State; or

(h) the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, or a similar body established under a State law; or

(j) a Director of Public Prosecutions, or a person performing a similar function, appointed under a law of a State; or

(k) staff appointed to assist a Director or person referred to in paragraph (j); or

(m) officers or members of the Attorney-General ' s Department of a State or a similar State Department, or of a body administered by such a Department, being officers or members whose primary function is the institution or conduct of proceedings for State offences;

"national security information"
means information affecting the defence, security or international relations of Australia;

"Privacy Act"
means the Privacy Act 1988 ;

"Secretary"
, in relation to a Commonwealth Department, means the Agency Head within the meaning of the Public Service Act 1999 .

"security"
has the same meaning as in the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 ;

"spent"
, in relation to a conviction, has the meaning given it in section 85ZM;

"State"
includes the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory;

"State authority"
means:

(a) a State Minister;

(b) a State Department;

(c) a body (whether incorporated or not), or a tribunal, established or appointed for a public purpose by or under a State law, not being:

(i) an incorporated company, society or association;

(ii) an association of employers or employees that is registered or recognised under a State law dealing with the conciliation and arbitration of industrial disputes; or

(iii) the body corporate constituted under subsection 6(1) of the Legal Practitioners Ordinance 1970 of the Australian Capital Territory or a similar body constituted under a law of another State;

(d) a body established or appointed by a Governor of a State, or by a State Minister, or by the Australian Capital Territory Executive or the Administrator of the Northern Territory otherwise than by or under a State law;

(e) a person holding or performing the duties of an office established by or under, or an appointment made under, a State law, other than the office of head of a State Department (however described);

(f) a person holding or performing the duties of an appointment, being an appointment made by a Governor of a State or by a State Minister, or by the Australian Capital Territory Executive or the Administrator of the Northern Territory otherwise than under a State law;

(g) a State court; or

(h) a State police force;

"State law"
means a law in force in a State (other than a Commonwealth law);

"State offence"
means an offence against a State law;

"Territory"
does not include the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory;

"Territory law"
means a law in force in a Territory (other than a Commonwealth law);

"Territory offence"
means an offence against a Territory law;

"waiting period"
, in relation to an offence, means:

(a) if the person convicted of the offence was dealt with as a minor in relation to the conviction - the period of 5 years beginning on the day on which the person was convicted of the offence; or

(b) in any other case - the period of 10 years beginning on the day on which the person was convicted of the offence.