New South Wales Consolidated Acts

FINES ACT 1996 - SECT 52

52 Provisions relating to withdrawal and annulment of penalty notice enforcement orders

(1) The Commissioner or the Local Court, when deciding whether or not to withdraw or annul a penalty notice enforcement order under this Division, may stay enforcement action under the penalty notice enforcement order subject to such terms and conditions as the Commissioner or Court thinks fit.

(2) A penalty notice enforcement order may be withdrawn or annulled completely or only to the extent of some of the penalty notices to which it applies.

(4) If a penalty notice enforcement order is withdrawn or annulled completely--

(a) the order then ceases to have effect, and

(b) any enforcement action already taken is to be reversed, unless the same enforcement action is authorised under another penalty notice enforcement order or a court fine enforcement order, and

(c) enforcement costs are not payable in respect of the issue of the order and, if paid, are repayable, and

(d) any amount that has been paid under the order is repayable to the person by whom it was paid, unless the amount was paid to the Commissioner at the time of making an application for the withdrawal of the order under section 46.

(5) If a penalty notice enforcement order is withdrawn or annulled only to the extent of some of the penalty notices to which it applies--

(a) the order continues to have effect in respect of the remaining penalty notices to which it applies, and

(b) any amount that has been paid under the order is to be applied to payment of the remaining penalty notices to which it applies and any enforcement costs in respect of that order.

(6) The withdrawal of a penalty notice enforcement order under section 47 does not prevent the making of a further order in respect of the penalty notice.

(7) If a penalty notice enforcement order is withdrawn by the Commissioner under section 47 or annulled by the Local Court under section 50, the period within which proceedings for an offence may be instituted in respect of the matter under section 179 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 or any other Act commences on the date the order is withdrawn or annulled (as the case requires).

(8) The regulations may make provision for or with respect to the following--

(a) the withdrawal of penalty notice enforcement orders,

(b) applications for withdrawals and fees for applications,

(c) the practice and procedure of the Commissioner when making decisions about withdrawals.

Note : The Commissioner may, instead of repaying an amount under this section, reallocate it towards the payment of other amounts payable by the person (see section 122C).