South Australian Current Regulations South Australian Current RegulationsSchedule 1—Code of Conduct for Justices of the Peace and Special
Justices
Part 1—Provisions applicable to all justices of the peace
1—Justice must act within conditions of appointment
A justice must not breach, or fail to comply with, a condition of the
justice's appointment.
2—Prohibition on soliciting or accepting fees, gifts etc in connection
with office of justice
(1) A justice must
not, whether directly or indirectly, solicit or accept any fee or reward from
any person in connection with the office of justice.
(2) In this
clause—
reward includes any gift, gratuity, benefit or favour.
3—Conflict of interest and improper influence
(1) A justice must not
exercise the powers of a justice in respect of a matter in which the justice
has a direct or indirect personal, family, financial or business interest.
(2) A justice must not
improperly influence, or attempt to improperly influence, a person who seeks
the services of the justice.
4—Administering oaths, taking affidavits, witnessing instruments, etc
(1) If, under an Act,
it is provided—
(a) that
a declaration may be made before a justice; or
(b) that
an instrument may be signed or executed in the presence of, or be attested by,
a justice,
the justice taking the declaration, or witnessing or attesting to the
instrument, must do so in accordance with any directions provided under the
Act.
Example—
Regulation 23 and Schedule 6 Document 1 (Waiver of Rights)
under the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers Regulations 2010 .
(2) A justice must
not—
(a)
administer an oath or affirmation to a person; or
(b) take
the declaration or affidavit of a person; or
(c)
witness the signing or execution of an instrument,
if the justice reasonably doubts that the person is legally or mentally
competent to make the oath, affirmation, declaration or affidavit or to
execute the document.
5—Justice must not divulge confidential information
A justice must not intentionally divulge information of a private,
confidential or commercially sensitive nature obtained by the justice in
carrying out official duties except—
(a) as
authorised or required by law; or
(b) with
the consent of the person from whom the information was obtained or to whom
the information relates.
6—Justice must not provide legal advice
A justice must not provide legal advice when acting in their capacity as a
justice.
7—Restrictions on use of office or title of justice
(a) use,
or seek to use, the office of justice of the peace for the purpose of
advancing the justice's business, commercial or personal interests; or
(b) use,
or seek to use, the title of justice of the peace for the purpose of advancing
the justice's business or commercial interests; or
(c) use,
or seek to use, the office or title of justice of the peace in a manner, or
for a purpose, that may bring the office of justice of the peace into
disrepute.
(2) Subclause (1) does
not apply to the use of the title of justice of the peace by a Member of
Parliament or member of a council on a personal website or social media page.
(3) In this
clause—
member of a council has the same meaning as in the Local Government
Act 1999 .
(1) A justice must not
criticise or comment on the choice of a person as to whether the person takes
an oath or makes an affirmation.
(2) A justice must
behave in a proper and courteous manner to any person who seeks the justice's
services as a justice.
(3) A justice must not
engage in dishonest activities or conduct themself in such a way as to bring
the office of justice of the peace into disrepute.
9—Notice of certain information to be provided to Attorney-General
(1) A justice must,
within 14 days after any of the following matters occurring:
(a)
being charged with an offence (other than an offence that is expiable);
(b) the
charge of an offence (other than an offence that is expiable) alleged to have
been committed by the justice being withdrawn, dismissed or discontinued;
(c)
being convicted or acquitted of an offence (other than an offence that is
expiable);
(d)
being issued with an interim intervention order or an intervention order under
the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 ;
(e)
being issued with an interim firearms prohibition order or a firearms
prohibition order under the Firearms Act 2015 ;
(f)
being subject to any of the following:
(i)
a control order under the
Serious and Organised Crime (Control) Act 2008 ;
(ii)
a control order under Part 5.3 of the Criminal Code
set out in the Schedule to the Criminal Code Act 1995 of the
Commonwealth, or a law of the Commonwealth that replaces that Code;
(iii)
a control order under the
Child Sex Offenders Registration Act 2006 ;
(g)
being diagnosed with a mental illness where there are concerns the justice may
cause harm to themselves, others or property;
(h)
being found to have acted dishonestly by any court, tribunal, inquiry,
regulatory agency or complaint handling or dispute resolution body;
(i)
becoming bankrupt or applying as a debtor to take the
benefit of the laws relating to bankruptcy;
(j)
being disqualified from managing or being involved in the management of any
company under the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth,
provide written notice of the details of the matter to the Attorney-General.
(2) A justice must,
within 28 days after a change in—
(a) the
justice's name; or
(b) the
justice's business or home address; or
(c) the
telephone number on which the justice can be contacted during business hours
or after business hours; or
(d) the
justice's occupation,
provide written notice of the change to the Attorney-General.
(3) A justice must, as
soon as practicable after becoming aware—
(a) that
the justice will be absent from the State for a period expected to last at
least 3 months; or
(b) that
the justice will, for some other reason, be unable to carry out official
duties as a justice for a period of at least 3 months,
provide written notice of that information to the Attorney-General.
Part 2—Additional provisions applicable to special justices
In this Part—
supervising judicial officer means—
(a) the
Chief Magistrate; or
(b) the
Magistrate who is designated as the Supervising Regional Manager of the
Magistrates Court; or
(c) a
Magistrate who is designated as a Regional Manager of the Magistrates Court;
or
(d) the
Judge of the Youth Court.
(1) A special justice
must observe the directions of the relevant supervising judicial officer
relating to the administration of the Magistrates Court or the Youth Court.
(2) A special justice
must attend court at the time and place notified to the special justice.
(3) However, a special
justice will be excused from attending court if the justice has given
reasonable notice to the relevant supervising judicial officer of the
justice's inability to attend.
(4) A special justice
must attend to the business of the court that is entrusted to the special
justice diligently and to the best of the justice's ability.
(5) A special justice
must, at all times—
(a) when
carrying out official duties as a special justice; and
(b)
while in the precincts of a court,
observe the standard of conduct and dress expected of a judicial officer.
12—Notice of certain information to be provided to Chief Magistrate and
Judge of Youth Court
A special justice must, within 14 days after any of the following matters
occurring:
(a)
being charged with an offence (other than an offence that is expiable);
(b) the
charge of an offence (other than an offence that is expiable) alleged to have
been committed by the justice being withdrawn, dismissed or discontinued;
(c)
being convicted or acquitted of an offence (other than an offence that is
expiable);
(d)
being issued with an interim intervention order or an intervention order under
the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 ;
(e)
being issued with an interim firearms prohibition order or a firearms
prohibition order under the Firearms Act 2015 ;
(f)
being subject to any of the following:
(i)
a control order under the
Serious and Organised Crime (Control) Act 2008 ;
(ii)
a control order under Part 5.3 of the Criminal Code
set out in the Schedule to the Criminal Code Act 1995 of the
Commonwealth, or a law of the Commonwealth that replaces that Code;
(iii)
a control order under the
Child Sex Offenders Registration Act 2006 ;
(g)
being diagnosed with a mental illness where there are concerns the justice may
cause harm to themselves, others or property;
(h)
being found to have acted dishonestly by any court, tribunal, inquiry,
regulatory agency or complaint handling or dispute resolution body;
(i)
becoming bankrupt or applying as a debtor to take the
benefit of the laws relating to bankruptcy;
(j)
being disqualified from managing or being involved in the management of any
company under the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth,
provide written notice of the details of the matter to the Chief Magistrate or
the Judge of the Youth Court (depending on the court to which the special
justice is assigned).
Note—
See also clause 9 of the Code (Notice of certain information to be
provided to Attorney-General).