Settlement Agents Act 1981 (WA)

Western Australia

Western Australia

Settlement Agents Act 1981

An Act to make provision with respect to the licensing, regulation, and supervision of settlement agents, and for related purposes.

This Act may be cited as the Settlement Agents Act 1981.

The provisions of this Act shall come into operation on such day or days as is or are, respectively, fixed by proclamation.

• (1)

  In this Act unless the context otherwise requires —

appointed day 1 means the day fixed by the Minister pursuant to section 26(2);

approved means approved by the Commissioner;

auditor means a person appointed under this Act to audit the trust accounts of a settlement agent;

bank means —

• (a)

  an ADI (authorised deposit‑taking institution) as defined in section 5 of the Banking Act 1959 of the Commonwealth; or

• (b)

  a bank constituted by a law of a State, a Territory or the Commonwealth;

business means —

• (a)

  subject to paragraph (b), the business of a settlement agent; and

• (b)

  in the definition of business transaction and in section 45(a), any commercial undertaking or enterprise in respect of any profession, trade, employment, vocation or calling within the State;

business settlement agent means any person who arranges or effects a settlement of a business transaction for reward or who, whether for reward or otherwise, carries on business arranging or effecting settlements of business transactions and whether or not that business is carried on in conjunction with or as part of or associated with any other profession, trade, occupation or employment, but does not include the exceptions specified in section 4(1);

business transaction —

• (a)

  means the disposal by sale or exchange, and the acquisition by purchase or exchange of a business and any share or interest in a business or the goodwill thereof within the State; and

• (b)

  includes any disposal by sale or exchange, and any acquisition by purchase or exchange of goods, chattels, or other property within the State relating to a business transaction of the kind specified in paragraph (a),

but does not include —

• (c)

  the sale, exchange, or other disposal or a purchase, exchange, or other acquisition of a share in the capital of a body corporate or an option in respect thereof;

Commissioner has the meaning given in the Fair Trading Act 2010 section 6;

defalcation by a licensee includes criminal or fraudulent conduct —

• (a)

  of a licensee; or

• (b)

  of any one or more of the servants or agents of the licensee; or

• (c)

  of a person who is a partner in the business of the licensee; or

• (d)

  where the licensee is a firm and a body corporate is a partner in the firm or where the licensee is a body corporate, of any one or more of the directors, officers, servants, or agents of the body corporate,

in the course of…