Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:C2024C00461:section:137
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:C2024C00461
Segment Type: section
Provision Reference: s 137
Character Range: 191733–193899

137  Federal Court or Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) may impose pecuniary penalty

Application for order
 (1) Within 6 years of a person (the wrongdoer) contravening a civil penalty provision, the National VET Regulator may apply on behalf of the Commonwealth to the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) for an order that the wrongdoer pay the Commonwealth a pecuniary penalty.

Court may order wrongdoer to pay pecuniary penalty
 (2) If the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) is satisfied that the wrongdoer has contravened the civil penalty provision, the court may order the wrongdoer to pay to the Commonwealth for each contravention the pecuniary penalty that the court determines is appropriate (but not more than the amount specified for the provision).

Determining amount of pecuniary penalty
 (3) In determining the pecuniary penalty, the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) must have regard to all relevant matters, including:
 (a) the nature and extent of the contravention; and
 (b) the nature and extent of any loss or damage suffered as a result of the contravention; and
 (c) the circumstances in which the contravention took place; and
 (d) whether the person has previously been found to have engaged in any similar conduct by the court in proceedings under this Act.

Civil evidence and procedure rules apply
 (4) The Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) must apply the rules of evidence and procedure for civil matters when hearing and determining an application for an order under this section.
Note: The standard of proof in civil proceedings is the balance of probabilities, see section 140 of the Evidence Act 1995.

Conduct contravening 2 or more provisions
 (5) If conduct contravenes 2 or more civil penalty provisions, proceedings may be instituted under this Act against a person for the contravention of any one or more of those provisions. However, the person is not liable to more than one pecuniary penalty for the same conduct.