Interpretation (Amendment) Act 1969 (NSW)

(2) The Interpretation Act of 1897, as subsequently amended and as amended by this Act, may be cited as the Interpretation Act, 1897-1969.

(3) This Act shall commence on a day to be appointed

by the Governor and notified by proclamation published in

the Gazette.

2. The Interpretation Act of 1897, as subsequently

amended, is amended—

(a)	by omitting from section one the words "Interpreta­ tion Act of" and by inserting in lieu thereof the words "Interpretation Act,";
(b)	by omitting subsection three of section two and by inserting in lieu thereof the following subsection :—

(in) This Act—

(a) applies to this Act;

(b)	except where otherwise expressly provided in this Act, applies to all Acts passed after the commencement of this Act and to all instruments made after that commence­ ment under any Acts whenever passed; and
(c)	notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, except subsection one of this section and subsection two of section 14A of this Act, does not apply to Acts passed before that commencement or to instruments made before that commencement under any such Acts.

(c)	by inserting next after section fourteen the following new section :—
14A. (I) An Act shall be read and construed as operating to the full extent of, but so as not to exceed, the legislative powers of the State, to the intent that where any provision of the Act, or the application of any such provision to any person, subject-matter

subject-matter or circumstance, would, but for this section, have been construed as being in excess of those powers, it shall be a valid provision to the extent to which it is not in excess of those powers, and the remainder of the Act and the application of the provision to other persons, subject-matters or circumstances shall not be affected.

(n) Subsection one of this section applies to an Act passed before or after the commence­ ment of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969, and applies to any such Act in addition to, and not in derogation of, any provision of any such Act relating to the construction, or extent of the operation, of the Act.

(d) (i) by inserting at the end of section twenty-one the following new paragraphs :—

(i)   The word "Commonwealth" shall mean the Commonwealth of Australia.

(j) The word "prescribed" shall mean pre­ scribed by, or by regulations, rules or by-laws made under, the Act in which the word is used.

(ii) by inserting next after the same section the

following new section :—
21A.	(I) Except in so far as a contrary intention

appears, a reference in an Act, whether passed before or after the commencement of the Interpre­ tation (Amendment) Act, 1969, or in an instru­ ment made, whether before or after that commence­ ment, under any such Act to a British subject or a subject of Her Majesty, and any like reference, shall be construed as a reference to a person who, under any Act of the Parliament of the Common­ wealth relating to nationality or citizenship (whether

that

that Act was passed before or after that commence­ ment), being an Act in force at the time in relation to which the reference is being construed, is or has the status of a British subject or has any other status specified in any such Act of that Parliament that is a prescribed status for the purposes of this subsection.

(n) The Governor may make regulations prescribing a status for the purposes of subsection one of this section.

(m) Where a reference in an Act or instru­ ment, as referred to in subsection one of this section, is qualified by the words "natural born" or the word "naturalised" or by any words or word of like im­ port, the construction of that reference in accord­ ance with that subsection shall be subject to the like qualification.

(e) by omitting section twenty-five and by inserting in lieu thereof the following section :—

25. (I) Where an Act or an instrument made under an Act or any provision thereof is referred to in an Act or an instrument so made and the Act, instrument or provision so referred to has, at the time the reference is made, been amended or is

subsequently amended, or is subsequently repealed
and re-enacted, with or without modification, the

reference extends to the Act, instrument or pro­ vision, as the case may be, as amended or re-enacted or, where the Act, instrument or provision as re- enacted has been subsequently amended, to the Act, instrument or provision as re-enacted and amended.

(II) Subsection one of this section—

(a) applies to a reference to an Act passed, and to a reference to an instrument made, before

or

or after the commencement of the Interpre­ tation (Amendment) Act, 1969, and whether the reference is contained in an Act passed, or in an instrument under an Act made, before or after that commence­ ment;

(6) applies, in the case of a reference contained in an Act passed, or in an instrument under an Act made, before the commencement of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969, whether or not the reference is followed by words indicating that the reference includes subsequent amendments of the Act or instrument referred to, and whether or not the reference is to a mode of citation of the Act or instrument that includes two secular years; and

(c) so applies, except in so far as a contrary intention appears.

(III) In the application of subsection one of

this section to an instrument made under an Act—

(a) "amended" includes altered or varied;

(6) "re-enacted" includes re-made; and

(c) "repealed" includes revoked or rescinded.

(f) by inserting at the end of section twenty-seven the following new subsections :—

(II) Any provision in an Act, regulation, rule or by-law (not being a provision, or a provision of an Act, regulation, rule or by-law, declared by an order in force under subsection three of this section to be a provision to which or an Act, regulation, rule or by-law to the provisions of which

this

this subsection does not apply) under which a document, other than a summons, may be or is required to be served on or sent to any person by registered mail, registered post, certified mail or certified post shall be construed as authorising the service or sending of the document by post, other than registered mail, registered post, certified mail or certified post, but nothing in this subsection prevents the service or sending of the document in the manner prescribed by the provision.

(III) The Governor may, by order published in the Gazette, declare that the provisions of sub- section two of this section do not apply to any specified provision of an Act, regulation, rule or by-law or to the provisions of any specified Act, regulation, rule or by-law.

(iv) Subsection two of this section—

(a)	applies only to Acts passed, and to regula­ tions, rules and by-laws made, before the commencement of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969; and
(b)	so applies notwithstanding any provision of any such Act, regulation, rule or by-law.

(v) An order made under subsection three of
this section does not affect the operation of sub­

section two of this section in relation to the service

before the order was made.	or sending of a document that had been posted
(g)	by inserting at the end of section thirty-four the following new subsection :—

(11) Judicial notice shall be taken—
(a) of every regulation, rule or by-law—

(i)   made or purporting to have been made, whether before or after the commencement of the Interpretation

(Amendment)

(Amendment) Act, 1969, by the Governor under an Act passed before or after that commencement; or

(II) made or purporting to have been made, whether before or after that commencement, by any other person or body under an Act so passed and required by the Act under which it is made to be approved or confirmed by the Governor,

where the regulation, rule or by-law is required by this Act or by the Act under which it is made to be published in the Gazette and it is so published; and

(6) of the date of its publication.

(h)	by omitting from section thirty-seven the words ", so far as may be necessary or expedient for the purpose of bringing the Act into operation at the date of the commencement thereof";
(i) by inserting next after section thirty-seven the following new sections and headings :—

STATUTORY BODIES.

38. (i) A corporation constituted by or under an Act—

(a) has perpetual succession;

(b) shall have a common seal;

(c) may take proceedings and be proceeded against in its corporate name;

(d)

(d)	may, for the purposes for which it is con­ stituted, purchase, exchange, take on lease, hold, dispose of and otherwise deal with property; and
(e)	may do and suffer all other things that bodies corporate generally may, by law, do and suffer and that are necessary for or incidental to the purposes for which it is constituted.

(II) The common seal of a corporation so constituted shall be kept by the president, chairman or other principal officer of the corporation and shall only be affixed to an instrument or document in the presence of at least two members of the corporation with an attestation by the signatures of those members of the fact and date of the affixing of the seal.

(III) All courts and persons acting

judicially—

(a)	shall take judicial notice of the seal of a corporation so constituted that has been affixed to any instrument or document; and
(b)

shall until the contrary is proved presume (iv) The foregoing provisions of this

section—	(a)	apply only in respect of a corporation constituted by or under an Act passed after the commencement of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969;
(b)	apply in addition to any other provisions relating to such a corporation that are contained in the Act by or under which it is constituted; and
(c)	so apply, except in so far as a contrary intention appears.

39. (I) Any act or proceeding of any body, whether incorporated or not, constituted by or under an Act is, notwithstanding that at the time when the act or proceeding was done, taken or commenced there was—

(a)	a vacancy in the office of a member of the body; or
(b)	any defect in the appointment, or any disqualification, of a member of a body,

as valid as if the vacancy, defect or disqualification did not exist and the body were fully and properly constituted.

(II) Subsection one of this section—

(a) applies only in respect of a body constituted by or under an Act passed after the commencement of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969;

(6) applies in addition to any other provisions relating to such a body that are contained in the Act by or under which it is constituted; and

(c) so applies, except in so far as a contrary intention appears.

DELEGATED POWERS, ETC.

40. (i) Where the discharge, exercise or per­ formance by a person of a responsibility, power, authority, duty or function under an Act or under an instrument made under an Act depends on his opinion, belief or state of mind and the respon­ sibility, power, authority, duty or function is, in accordance with the Act or instrument, delegated, the delegate may, subject to any restriction im­ posed by the delegation, discharge, exercise or perform the responsibility, power, authority, duty or function on his own opinion, belief or state of mind, as the case may require. (II)

(II) Subsection one of this section applies to a delegate discharging, exercising or performing a responsibility, power, authority, duty or function under an Act passed, or under an instrument made, before or after the commencement of the Interpreta­ tion (Amendment) Act, 1969, and whether the delegation was made before or after that commencement.

PROVISIONS RELATING TO CERTAIN STATUTORY

INSTRUMENTS.

41. (i) A regulation under an Act passed after the commencement of the Interpretation (Amend­ ment) Act, 1969, shall, except in so far as a contrary intention appears—

(a) be published in the Gazette;

(b)	take effect on and from the date of publica­ tion or a later date specified in the regulation; and
(c)	be laid before each House of Parliament within fourteen sitting days of that House after the date of publication.

(n) If either House of Parliament passes a
resolution, of which notice has been given within

fifteen sitting days of that House after a regulation

laid before it, disallowing the regulation or any	referred to in subsection one of this section has been
part thereof, the regulation or part thereupon ceases to have effect.

(HI) For the purposes of subsections one

and two of this section, sitting days shall be counted, whether or not they occur during the same session.

(iv) The provisions of paragraph (c) of
subsection one and the provisions of subsections

two and three of this section shall, in respect of a

regulation

regulation made after the commencement of the Interpretation (Amendment) Act, 1969, under an Act passed before that commencement and not­ withstanding anything contained in any such Act, apply to and in respect of the laying before each House of Parliament, and the disallowance, of that regulation and any such Act so passed shall be deemed to be amended to the extent necessary to give effect to this subsection.

(v) In this section, "regulation" means regulation, rule or by-law—

(a) that is made by the Governor; or

(b) that is made by any other person or body and is required by the Act under which it is made to be approved or confirmed by the Governor.

42. (i) It shall be presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, that all conditions and preliminary steps precedent to the making, whether before or after the commencement of the Interpre­ tation (Amendment) Act, 1969, of an instrument made under an Act have been complied with and performed.

(II) In this section, "instrument" means

instrument—

(a) that is made by the Governor; or

(b) that is made by any other person or body and is required by the Act under which it is made to be approved or confirmed by the Governor,

being an instrument that is required by this Act or the Act under which it is made to be published in the Gazette.

43. (I) The repeal, revocation, or rescission whether in whole or in part, of any regulation under an Act does not affect—

(a)	the previous operation of the regulation or anything duly suffered, done or commenced under the regulation;
(b)	any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued or incurred under the regulation;
(c)	any penalty, forfeiture or punishment incurred in respect of any offence against the regulation; or
(d)	any investigation, legal proceeding or remedy in respect of any such right, privilege, obligation, liability, penalty, forfeiture or punishment,

and any such investigation, legal proceeding or remedy may be instituted, continued or enforced and any such penalty, forfeiture or punishment may be imposed or enforced as if the repeal, revocation or rescission had not occurred.

(n) Subsection one of this section—

(a)	applies only to a repeal, revocation or rescission occurring after the commence­ ment of the Interpretation (Amendment)
Act, 1969; and
(b)	so applies, except in so far as the contrary appears.

(in) In this section, "regulation" means regulation, rule or by-law—

(a) that is made by the Governor; or

(b) that is made by any other person or body and is required by the Act under which it is made to be approved or confirmed by the Governor,

being

being a regulation, rule or by-law that is required by this Act or the Act under which it is made to be published in the Gazette.

44. The penalty, pecuniary or other—

(a) specified at the end of a section of an Act;

(b)	specified at the end of a subsection of a section of an Act, but not at the end of the section; or
(c)	specified at the end of a section of an Act or subsection of a section of an Act and expressed to apply to part only of the section or subsection,

indicates that a contravention of the section, subsection or part, respectively, whether by act or omission, is an offence against the Act, punishable upon conviction by a penalty not exceeding the penalty so specified.

3. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act the provisions of this Act do not affect any proceedings commenced or completed before, or pending at, the commencement of this Act.

APPRENTICES