Queensland Consolidated Acts

PROPERTY OCCUPATIONS ACT 2014 - SECT 204

204 Orders District Court may make

(1) This section applies if the District Court is satisfied the respondent has contravened section 207 , 208 or 209 .

(2) The court may order the respondent to pay to the State a money penalty of not more than the limit of the court’s civil jurisdiction for each contravention.

(3) If satisfied another person has suffered financial loss because of the contravention, the court may order the respondent to pay to the person an amount of compensation decided by the court of not more than the limit of the court’s civil jurisdiction.

(4) The court must decide to make an order for the respondent to pay compensation rather than a money penalty if—

(a) the respondent is an individual; and

(b) the court proposes to order the respondent to pay a money penalty and compensation under subsection (3) ; and

(c) the respondent does not have the resources to pay both.

(5) If a corporation is ordered to pay a money penalty or compensation, the executive officers of the corporation are jointly and severally liable to pay the amount of the penalty or compensation, or any part of it, if the corporation does not have enough financial resources to pay the amount or the part.

(6) It is a defence to a liability under subsection (5) for an executive officer to prove that—

(a) if the officer was in a position to influence the conduct of the corporation relating to the relevant contravention—the officer took all reasonable steps to ensure the relevant contravention did not happen; or

(b) the officer was not in a position to influence the conduct of the corporation relating to the relevant contravention.

(7) For subsection (6) (a) , it is sufficient for the executive officer to prove that the act or omission that was the relevant contravention was done or made without the officer’s knowledge despite the officer having taken all reasonable steps to ensure the relevant contravention did not happen.

(8) In this section—

"relevant contravention" , in relation to a corporation, means the contravention by the corporation of section 207 , 208 or 209 .