Electoral and Referendum Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1)

Overview

The Electoral and Referendum Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1) were introduced to amend the Electoral and Referendum Regulations 1940 under the authority granted by Section 395 of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. These regulations were enacted to address a gap in the legal framework concerning the use of electoral roll information by the Federal Court of Australia. The regulations were developed under the authority of the Australian Parliament and aim to facilitate the Federal Court's role in jury selection processes by providing it with necessary electoral roll information. Specifically, the regulations allow the Federal Court to access electoral roll information to establish a list of eligible jurors, determine juror qualifications, and provide criminal history information to the Australian Federal Police for potential jurors. Additionally, the Federal Court can share information about recent federal jurors with state and territory courts to assist in subsequent jury service summons. The regulations were prepared in consultation with the Federal Court and the Department of Finance and Deregulation.

Scope and Application

The Electoral and Referendum Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1) extend the application of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 by prescribing the Federal Court of Australia as a new authority authorised to receive electoral roll information. This amendment is designed to facilitate the Federal Court’s administration of justice by enabling the establishment of a list of eligible jurors for a jury district. Specifically, the Federal Court is now authorised to use electoral roll information to verify the eligibility of individuals on a jury list, to exclude those who are not qualified or should be excused from serving. Additionally, the Federal Court can share this information with the Australian Federal Police to obtain any relevant criminal history of potential jurors and with state and territory courts to consider summoning jurors for state or territory courts immediately after their service in the Federal Court. These Regulations do not specify any exclusions or thresholds, and they apply nationwide, extending the scope of entities that can access electoral roll data for judicial purposes.

Key Provisions

The key provisions of the Electoral and Referendum Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1) involve the amendment of the Electoral and Referendum Regulations 1940 to allow the Federal Court of Australia access to electoral roll information for specific purposes (Regulation 3). The main operative sections of these regulations (Regulations 5A, 7, 8, and Schedule 1) prescribe the Federal Court as a prescribed authority that may receive electoral roll information and specify the purposes for which this information may be used (Regulation 3, Schedule 1, Item [1]). These purposes include establishing a list of people eligible for jury selection in a jury district, determining the eligibility of persons on a jury list to serve as jurors, providing the Australian Federal Police with information about the criminal history of potential jurors, and enabling state and territory courts to consider summoning a person for jury service immediately following federal jury service (Schedule 1, Item [1]). The obligations imposed by these regulations include ensuring that the Federal Court is provided with the necessary electoral roll information for the specified purposes (Schedule 1, Item [1]). The Federal Court must use this information responsibly and only for the purposes outlined in the regulations. Additionally, the Australian Federal Police must use the information provided by the Federal Court to check the criminal history of potential jurors and provide this information back to the Federal Court (Schedule 1, Item [1]). State and territory courts are also required to consider the information provided by the Federal Court regarding recent federal jurors when deciding whether to summon a person for jury service in their courts (Schedule 1, Item [1]). Any breach of these regulations could result in civil or criminal penalties, depending on the nature and severity of the breach. For example, unauthorised access to electoral roll information could be considered an offence under the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, which carries penalties of up to two years imprisonment for individuals and fines of up to $21,000 for corporations (Section 13A, Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918). Additionally, misuse of the information could lead to further penalties under relevant state or territory laws. The regulations themselves do not specify particular penalties for breaches, but breaches of related sections of the Electoral Act or misuse of information could attract the aforementioned penalties.