Victorian Current Acts

CHILD WELLBEING AND SAFETY ACT 2005 - SECT 41ZK

    (1)     A person must not use or disclose confidential information disclosed to the person under this Part except in accordance with this Part.

Penalty:     In the case of a person other than a body corporate, 60 penalty units;

    In the case of a body corporate, 300 penalty units.

    (2)     It is a defence to a charge under subsection (1) if the person used or disclosed the confidential information in good faith and with reasonable care.

Note

See also section 41ZB.

    (3)     Subsection (1) does not apply to the following uses and disclosures of confidential information—

        (a)     a use or disclosure made with the consent of the person to whom the information relates;

        (b)     if the person to whom the information relates is incapable of giving consent to the use or disclosure, a use or disclosure made with the consent of the person's authorised representative;

        (c)     a disclosure made to a court or tribunal in the course of legal proceedings;

        (d)     a use or disclosure made pursuant to an order of a court or tribunal;

        (e)     a use or disclosure made to the extent reasonably required to enable the investigation or the enforcement of a law of this State or of any other State or of a Territory or of the Commonwealth;

        (f)     a disclosure made to an Australian legal practitioner for the purposes of obtaining legal advice or representation;

        (g)     a use or disclosure made as required or authorised by or under this Act or any other Act.

    (4)     Subsection (1) does not apply to the use or disclosure of confidential information by a person who is given the confidential information under section 41Y.

    (5)     A person does not commit an offence against subsection (1) only for the reason that the person uses or discloses confidential information in a way that does not comply with guidelines issued under section 41ZA(1).

Note

Despite non-compliance not being an offence—

(a)         this does not preclude non-compliance being taken into account in dealing with a complaint made under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 , the Health Records Act 2001 or the Privacy Act 1988 of the Commonwealth; and

(b)     non-compliance may lead to a person or body ceasing to be prescribed as an information sharing entity or a restricted information sharing entity.

S. 41ZL inserted by No. 11/2018 s. 8.