Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006

CHAPTER 7 - RECORD KEEPING, REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND BOOKS  

PART 7-3 - REPORTING REQUIREMENTS  

Division 339 - Audit of financial reports  

Subdivision 339-C - Qualification, experience and registration  

SECTION 339-65   QUALIFICATION AND EXPERIENCE: AUDIT FIRM  

339-65(1)    
A person (the defendant ) contravenes this subsection if:

(a)    one of the following imposes a requirement in relation to the audit of a financial report of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation:

(i) an applied provision of the Corporations Act ;

(ii) regulations made for the purposes of section 333-15 ;

(iii) a determination by the Registrar under section 336-1 or 336-5 ; and

(b)    the requirement is that, if the auditor is an audit firm, the audit firm must have a member or members who have particular qualifications or experience; and

(c)    at a particular time, a firm acts as auditor in relation to the financial report or a part of it; and

(d)    at that time, the firm does not have a member or members who satisfy the requirement referred to in paragraph (b) ; and

(e)    the defendant is a member of the firm at that time; and

(f)    the defendant is aware of the circumstances referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d) at that time.

Penalty: 25 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months, or both.

339-65(2)    
A person (the defendant ) contravenes this subsection if:

(a)    one of the following imposes a requirement in relation to the audit of a financial report of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation:

(i) an applied provision of the Corporations Act ;

(ii) regulations made for the purposes of section 333-15 ;

(iii) a determination by the Registrar under section 336-1 or 336-5 ; and

(b)    the requirement is that, if the auditor is an audit firm, the audit firm must have a member or members who have particular qualifications or experience; and

(c)    at a particular time, a firm acts as auditor in relation to the financial report or a part of it; and

(d)    at that time, the firm does not satisfy the requirement referred to in paragraph (b) ; and

(e)    the defendant is a member of the firm at that time.

Penalty: 10 penalty units.

339-65(3)    
For the purposes of an offence based on subsection (2) , strict liability applies to the physical elements of the offence specified in paragraphs (2)(a) and (b) .

Note 1:

For strict liability , see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code .

Note 2:

Subsection (4) provides a defence.

339-65(4)    
A member of an audit firm does not commit an offence at a particular time because of a contravention of subsection (2) if the member either:

(a)    does not know at that time of the circumstances that constitute the contravention of subsection (2) ; or

(b)    does know of those circumstances at that time but takes all reasonable steps to correct the contravention as soon as possible after the member becomes aware of those circumstances.

Note:

A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in subsection (4) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code ).