Victorian Numbered Acts Victorian Numbered Acts(1) The Chief Examiner may direct that—
(a) any evidence given before the Chief Examiner; or
(b) the contents of any document, or a description of any thing, produced to the Chief Examiner; or
(c) any information that might enable a person who has given evidence before the Chief Examiner to be identified; or
(d) the fact that any person has given or may be about to give evidence at an examination—
must not be published or communicated, or must not be published or communicated except in such manner, and to such persons, as the Chief Examiner specifies.
(2) The Chief Examiner must give a direction under sub-section (1) if the failure to do so might prejudice the safety or reputation of a person or prejudice the fair trial of a person who has been, or may be, charged with an offence.
(3) A person who makes a publication or communication in contravention of a direction given under sub-section (1) is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to level 6 imprisonment (5 years maximum).
(4) If—
(a) a person has been charged with
an offence before a court; and
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(b) the court considers that it may be desirable in the interests of justice that particular evidence given before the Chief Examiner, being evidence in relation to which the Chief Examiner has given a direction under sub-section (1), be made available to the person or to a legal practitioner representing the person—
the court may give to the Chief Examiner or the Chief Commissioner a certificate to that effect and, if the court does so, the Chief Examiner or the Chief Commissioner (as the case requires) must make the evidence available to the court.
(5) If—
(a) the Chief Examiner or the Chief Commissioner makes evidence available to a court in accordance with sub-section (4); and
(b) the court, after examining the evidence, is satisfied that the interests of justice so require—
the court may make the evidence available to the person charged with the offence concerned or to a legal practitioner representing the person.
(6) Nothing in this section empowers the Chief Examiner to give a direction under sub-section (1) that would restrict the exercise of powers or the performance of duties by the Special Investigations Monitor under this Act or affect a person's right under this Act to complain to the Special Investigations Monitor.