South Australian Numbered Acts

EDUCATION AND CHILDREN'S SERVICES ACT 2019 (NO 19 OF 2019) - SECT 37

37—Conflict of interest

        (1)         A member of the governing council of a school who has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in a contract or proposed contract with the governing council—

            (a)         must, as soon as the member becomes aware of the interest, disclose the nature of the interest to the governing council; and

            (b)         must not take part in discussions or decisions of the governing council with respect to that contract; and

            (c)         must not vote in relation to that contract; and

            (d)         must be absent from the meeting room when any such discussion or voting is taking place.

Maximum penalty: $20 000.

        (2)         A member of an affiliated committee who has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in a contract or proposed contract with the affiliated committee, or the governing council with which the committee is affiliated—

            (a)         must, as soon as the member becomes aware of the interest, disclose the nature of the interest to the affiliated committee and governing council; and

            (b)         must not take part in discussions or decisions of the affiliated committee with respect to that contract; and

            (c)         must not vote in relation to that contract; and

            (d)         must be absent from the meeting room when any such discussion or voting is taking place.

Maximum penalty: $20 000.

        (3)         If a member of the governing council of a school or an affiliated committee discloses an interest in a contract or proposed contract in accordance with this section—

            (a)         the contract is not liable to be avoided by the governing council or affiliated committee on any ground arising from the fiduciary relationship between the member and the governing council or affiliated committee (as the case requires); and

            (b)         the member is not liable to account for profits derived from the contract.

        (4)         This section does not apply in relation to a contract in which a member of the governing council of a school or an affiliated committee has an interest while the member remains unaware that they have an interest in the contract, but in any proceedings against the member the burden will lie on the member to prove that they were not, at the material time, aware of the interest.