Page 1706 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 30 April 1991
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The ACT Criminal Law Consultative Committee chaired by Justice Elizabeth Evatt, the President of the Australian Law Reform Commission, was consulted as to the Community Law Reform Committee's recommendation. The Criminal Law Consultative Committee unanimously endorsed the recommendations of the Community Law Reform Committee in respect of this issue. Support for the repeal of sections 556 and 552 was also received from the ACT Law Society. The Government accepts the recommendations of the ACT Community Law Reform Committee in its first report, as is clearly indicated. I commend the Bill to the Assembly. I note once again the support for law reform from the members opposite, and trust that this will continue in the future as our Territory's new community based Law Reform Committee becomes even more active in the future.
MR STEFANIAK (9.16): Like my two government colleagues and also Mr Connolly, I commend the ACT Community Law Reform Committee for its first report. I never fail to be amazed by the amount of effort that committee puts in. The Attorney-General has certainly given it a lot of references. It has a lot of work and it is pleasing to see a number of reports now coming out of that committee. It is, I think, very appropriate that this is the first one.
There is a big difference between laying a criminal charge and laying a civil charge. The fundamental difference is, of course, that a criminal charge deals with punishing an offender for wrongdoing. The civil charge basically is to recompense a plaintiff for injuries received as a result of a legal wrongdoing. It is a different kettle of fish entirely. As the committee quite properly points out at paragraph 10 of its report, when dealing with the current legislation which this Bill seeks to remedy, in terms of civil proceedings, if the old sections were allowed to remain, and especially section 556(1)(b):
As to that the Committee recommends that the sub-paragraph be repealed, the more so since the civil proceedings referred to in the sub-paragraph may quite possibly be concerned with damages amounting to many thousands of dollars.
In terms of the practice in the ACT, virtually all criminal proceedings are brought by the police or brought on behalf of the police by the Director of Public Prosecutions. It is not very often that an individual has to bring a criminal proceeding or is, indeed, motivated to do so. But I think it is an important right for people to bring criminal proceedings themselves - a private information for a criminal offence. That criminal offence is treated by the court in exactly the same way as it would be if it were brought on behalf of the state by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
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