Australian Capital Territory Current Acts

LEGAL PROFESSION ACT 2006 - SECT 471

    (1)     This section applies despite the Legislation Act

, part 15.4 (Preservation of certain common law privileges) if a person is required by the ACAT to disclose anything in a proceeding before the ACAT under this chapter.

    (2)     The person is not excused from the disclosure because—

        (a)     the disclosure might tend to incriminate the person or make the person liable to a penalty, or the person's property liable to forfeiture, under this Act or another territory law; or

        (b)     the disclosure would be in breach of an obligation (whether imposed by law or otherwise) of the person not to make the disclosure.

Example—client legal privilege

A person is not excused from disclosing a document because to do so would be in breach of an obligation by a lawyer to a client not to disclose the existence or contents of the document.

    (3)     However, the disclosure is inadmissible against the person making the disclosure in a civil or criminal proceeding except—

        (a)     in a criminal proceeding in relation to giving false or misleading documents, information or testimony; or

        (b)     in a proceeding on an application under this Act; or

        (c)     a proceeding resulting from a report or disclosure under section 467 (Duty of council to report suspected offences).

        (d)     for a document—in a civil proceeding in relation to a right or liability it gives or imposes.

    (4)     A proceeding does not lie against a person because of the disclosure if it is in breach of an obligation the person would otherwise have (whether imposed by law or applying otherwise).

    (5)     In this section:

"disclosure", by a person, includes—

        (a)     the person answering a question or giving testimony or information to someone else; and

        (b)     the person giving or producing a statement, document or anything else to someone else.