Commonwealth Numbered Acts

PRIVACY ACT 1988 No. 119, 1988 - SECT 38

38. (1) The Commissioner shall not deal with a complaint made under
subsection 36 (2) unless he or she is satisfied that the complaint was made in
good faith on behalf of persons other than the complainant.

(2) In order to be satisfied that a complaint was made in good faith on behalf
of persons other than the complainant, the Commissioner must be satisfied:

   (a)  that:

        (i)    the complainant is a member of a class of persons, the members
               of which class have been affected, or are reasonably likely to
               have been affected, by the act or practice complained of;

        (ii)   the complainant has in fact been affected by that act or
               practice;

        (iii)  the class is so numerous that joinder of all its members is
               impracticable;

        (iv)   there are questions of law or fact common to the claims of all
               members of the class;

        (v)    the claims of the complainant are typical of the claims of the
               class;

        (vi)   multiple complaints would be likely to produce varying
               determinations that could have incompatible or inconsistent
               results for the individual members of the class; and

        (vii)  the respondent has acted on grounds apparently applying to the
               class as a whole, thereby making relief appropriate for the
               class as a whole; or

   (b)  that, although that the requirements of paragraph (a) have not been
        satisfied, the justice of the case demands that the matter be dealt
        with and a remedy provided by means of a representative complaint.