New South Wales Repealed Acts New South Wales Repealed ActsThis legislation has been repealed.
In proceedings before it, a Committee or the Tribunal is not bound to observe the rules of law governing the admission of evidence, but may inform itself of any matter in such manner as it thinks fit.
(1) The chairperson of a Committee and the Chairperson or Deputy Chairperson of the Tribunal may summon a person to appear in proceedings before the Committee or the Tribunal, to give evidence and to produce such documents (if any) as are referred to in the summons.
(2) The person presiding at the proceedings may require a person appearing in the proceedings to produce a document.
(3) A Committee or the Tribunal may, in proceedings before it, take evidence on oath or affirmation and, for that purpose a member of the Committee or the Tribunal:(a) may require a person appearing in the proceedings to give evidence either to take an oath or to make an affirmation in a form approved by the person presiding, and(b) may administer an oath to or take an affirmation from a person so appearing in the proceedings.
(4) A person served with a summons to appear in any such proceedings and to give evidence must not, without reasonable excuse:(a) fail to attend as required by the summons, or(b) fail to attend from day to day unless excused, or released from further attendance, by a member of a Committee or the Tribunal.
(5) A person appearing in proceedings to give evidence must not, without reasonable excuse:(a) when required to be sworn or affirm--fail to comply with the requirement, or(b) fail to answer a question that the person is required to answer by the person presiding, or(c) fail to produce a document that the person is required to produce by this clause.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.
(1) A member of a Committee or the Tribunal may, by notice in writing served on a person, require the person:(a) to attend, at a time and place specified in the notice, before a person specified in the notice, being a member of the Committee or the Tribunal or a person authorised by the Committee or the Tribunal in that behalf, and(b) to produce, at that time and place, to the person so specified a document specified in the notice.
(2) A person who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply with a notice served on the person under this clause is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.
(1) If as a result of an inquiry or appeal a Committee or the Tribunal proposes to give a direction or make an order under section 61 (General powers to caution, reprimand, counsel etc) and the Committee or the Tribunal is of the opinion that the direction or order will impose an appreciable burden on an identifiable third party, in connection with a registered medical practitioner's practice, the Committee or the Tribunal:(a) is to give the third party an opportunity to make submissions with respect to the direction or order, and(b) is to take any such submission into account before giving the direction or making the order.
(2) If a Committee or the Tribunal decides to give a direction or make an order that will, in the opinion of the Committee or the Tribunal, impose an appreciable burden on an identifiable third party in connection with a registered medical practitioner's practice, the Committee or the Tribunal is to give the third party notice of the direction or order as soon as practicable after it is given or made.
(3) An example of a direction or order that may impose an appreciable burden on an identifiable third party in connection with a registered medical practitioner's practice is a direction or order that has the effect of requiring the medical practice of a registered medical practitioner to be supervised by an identified third party.
(4) This clause does not apply in respect of any power exercised by a Committee or the Tribunal under section 164 or 178.
(5) In this clause:
"third party" means a person other than the registered medical practitioner to whom an inquiry or appeal relates, but does not include a person or body exercising functions conferred by this Act or the Health Care Complaints Act 1993 .
(1) A Committee or the Tribunal may receive and admit on production any of the following, as evidence in any proceedings:(a) the judgment and findings of any court (whether civil or criminal and whether or not of New South Wales) or tribunal,(b) the verdict or findings of a jury of any such court,(b1) a finding, decision or determination of a professional standards committee constituted under a health registration Act,(c) a certificate of the conviction of or the making of a criminal finding in respect of any person,(d) a transcript of the depositions or of shorthand notes, duly certified by the Registrar or clerk of the court or tribunal as correct, of the evidence of witnesses taken in any such court or tribunal,where the Committee or the Tribunal is of the opinion that the judgment, findings, verdict, certificate, decision, determination or evidence is relevant to the proceedings.
(2) If the Committee or Tribunal is of the opinion that evidence so admitted is capable of establishing that a registered medical practitioner has engaged in conduct that is sufficiently similar to the conduct alleged against the practitioner in the proceedings, it may rely on the evidence in:(a) making a finding that a registered medical practitioner is guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct, or(b) exercising any of its powers under Division 4 of Part 4.
(1) A Committee or the Tribunal may in proceedings before it deal with one or more complaints about a registered medical practitioner.
(2) If, during any such proceedings, it appears to a Committee or the Tribunal that, having regard to any matters that have arisen, another complaint could have been made against the practitioner concerned:(a) whether instead of or in addition to the complaint which was made, and(b) whether or not by the same complainant,the Committee or the Tribunal may take that other complaint to have been referred to it and may deal with it in the same proceedings.
(2A) In proceedings in which a Committee or the Tribunal is dealing with more than one complaint about a registered medical practitioner, the Committee or Tribunal may have regard to all the evidence before it (whether the evidence arose in relation to a complaint in respect of which the Committee or Tribunal is making a finding or any other complaint or complaints in the proceedings) when making any of the following findings:(a) a finding on a question of fact in relation to the conduct of a registered medical practitioner,(b) a finding that a registered medical practitioner is guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct.
(3) If another complaint is taken to have been referred to a Committee or the Tribunal under subclause (2), the complaint may be dealt with after such an adjournment (if any) as is, in the opinion of the Committee or the Tribunal, just and equitable in the circumstances.
(1) The person presiding in proceedings before a Committee or the Tribunal may, if the person presiding thinks it appropriate in the particular circumstances of the case (and whether or not on the request of a complainant, the practitioner concerned or any other person):(a) direct that the name of any witness is not to be disclosed in the proceedings, or(b) direct that all or any of the following matters are not to be published:• the name and address of any witness,• the name and address of a complainant,• the name and address of a registered medical practitioner,• any specified evidence,• the subject-matter of a complaint.
(2) A direction may be amended or revoked at any time by the person presiding.
(3) A direction may be given before or during proceedings, but must not be given before the proceedings unless notice is given of the time and place appointed by the person presiding for consideration of the matter to:(a) a person who requested the direction, and(b) the complainant or the practitioner concerned, as appropriate, and(c) such other persons as the person presiding thinks fit.
(3A) For the purposes of this clause, a reference to the name of any person includes a reference to any information, picture or other material that identifies the person or is likely to lead to the identification of the person.
(4) A person who contravenes a direction given under this clause is guilty of an offence.Maximum penalty: 150 penalty units in the case of a corporation, and 20 penalty units in any other case.
Every document requiring authentication by a Committee or the Tribunal may be sufficiently authenticated:
(a) in the case of a Committee, if signed by the chairperson of that Committee or by a member of that Committee authorised to do so by that chairperson, or
(b) in the case of the Tribunal, without the seal of the Tribunal, if signed by the Chairperson of the Tribunal or by a member of the Tribunal authorised to do so by the Chairperson.
(1) In any proceedings before a Committee or the Tribunal, a person appointed by the Commission:(a) may act as nominal complainant in place of the actual complainant, and(b) when so acting, is, for the purposes of this Act and the regulations, to be taken to be the person who made the complaint.
(2) A reference in this Act to a complainant includes a reference to a nominal complainant.
(1) Without limiting the operation of clause 8, the Director-General personally (or an officer of the Department of Health appointed by the Director-General) or a person appointed by the Commission may intervene, and has a right to be heard, in any proceedings before a Committee or the Tribunal.
(2) In the case of proceedings before the Tribunal, the Director-General and the Commission may be represented by an Australian legal practitioner.
(1) It is the duty of a Committee and the Tribunal to hear inquiries and appeals under this Act and to determine those inquiries and appeals expeditiously.
(2) Without affecting the generality of subclause (1):(a) an inquiry or appeal related to action taken by the Board under section 66 is to be listed for hearing by a Committee or the Tribunal as soon as practicable, and(b) a Committee or the Tribunal may postpone or adjourn proceedings before it as it thinks fit.
(1) A Committee or the Tribunal may decide not to conduct an inquiry, or at any time to terminate an inquiry or appeal, if:(a) a complainant fails to comply with a requirement made of the complainant by the Committee or the Tribunal, or(b) the person about whom the complaint is made ceases to be a registered medical practitioner, or(c) the complaint before the Committee or the Tribunal is withdrawn.
(2) A Committee or the Tribunal must not conduct or continue any inquiry or any appeal if the practitioner concerned dies.
(3) The power conferred on a Committee or the Tribunal by this clause may be exercised by the chairperson of the Committee or the Tribunal, and in such a case is taken to have been exercised by the Committee or the Tribunal.
(1) The Tribunal may order the complainant, if any, the registered medical practitioner concerned, or any other person entitled to appear (whether as of right or because leave to appear has been granted) at any inquiry or appeal before the Tribunal to pay such costs to such person as the Tribunal may determine.
(2) When an order for costs has taken effect, the Tribunal is, on application by the person to whom the costs have been awarded, to issue a certificate setting out the terms of the order and stating that the order has taken effect.
(3) The person in whose favour costs are awarded may file the certificate in the District Court, together with an affidavit by the person as to the amount of the costs unpaid, and the Registrar of the District Court is to enter judgment for the amount unpaid together with any fees paid for filing the certificate.