Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:C2004A00908:clause:3_15yr
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:C2004A00908
Segment Type: clause
Provision Reference: sch 3 cl 15YR
Character Range: 72325–74302

15YR  Publication identifying child witnesses or child complainants

 (1) A person commits an offence if:
 (a) the person publishes any matter; and
 (b) the person does not have the leave of the court to publish the matter; and
 (c) the matter:
 (i) identifies another person (who is not a defendant in the proceeding) as a child witness or a child complainant in relation to the proceeding; or
 (ii) is likely to lead to the other person being identified as such a child witness or child complainant.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 12 months, or 60 penalty units, or both.

 (2) This section does not apply if the publication is in:
 (a) an official publication in the course of, and for the purpose of, the proceeding; or
 (b) a document prepared for use in particular legal proceedings (whether or not the legal proceedings are a proceeding within the meaning of this Part).

Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (2) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).

 (3) The court may give leave to a person to publish the matter.

 (4) In deciding whether to give leave, the court is to have regard to:
 (a) any trauma to the child witness or child complainant that the publication could cause; and
 (b) any damage to the reputation of the child witness or child complainant that the publication could cause; and
 (c) whether the publication is:
 (i) for the purpose of supplying transcripts of the proceedings to persons with a genuine interest in the proceedings; or
 (ii) for genuine research purposes.

 (5) Leave may be given after the proceedings have finished. For this purpose, the court need not be constituted by the same judicial officers who constituted the court in the proceedings.

 (6) An application for leave under this section:
 (a) must be in writing; and
 (b) must not be determined before the court has considered such submissions and other evidence as it thinks necessary for determining the application.