{"id":"civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961","name":"Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1961","slug":"civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":30246,"registerId":"wa-civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1961","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nCivil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961\n\nWestern Australia\n\nCivil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961\n\nContents\n\n1. Short title and citation 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n3. Interpretation 1\n\n4. Act to bind Crown in right of the State 2\n\n5. Carriage to which Act applies 2\n\n6. Application of certain provisions of the Commonwealth Act  3\n\n7. Stowaways in aircraft 4\n\n8. Administration of the applied provisions as Commonwealth laws 4\n\n9. Alternative arrangements for administration of applied provisions 5\n\n10. Regulations 5\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 6\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nCivil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961\n\nAn Act relating to the carriage of passengers in aircraft.\n\n##### 1. Short title and citation\n\nThis Act may be cited as the *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961* 1.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThis Act shall come in, to operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation 1.\n\n##### 3. Interpretation\n\n(1) In this Act —\n\napplied provisions means the provisions of the Commonwealth Act and the Commonwealth Regulations as they apply under this Act as laws of the State;\n\nCommonwealth authority means an authority or officer of the Commonwealth;\n\n  the Commonwealth Act means the *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1959* of the Commonwealth as amended and in force from time to time;\n\n  the Commonwealth Regulations means the regulations in force under the Commonwealth Act for the purposes of Part IV or IVA of that Act, other than regulations made for the purposes of section 41 of that Act.\n\n(2) The provisions of sections 5, 26 and 41B of the Commonwealth Act apply, by virtue of this Act, to the interpretation of section 5 of this Act in like manner as they apply to the interpretation of section 27 of the Commonwealth Act.\n\n[Section 3 amended: No. 52 of 1970 s. 2; No. 64 of 1976 s. 3 2; No. 80 of 1996 s. 4.]\n\n##### 4. Act to bind Crown in right of the State\n\nThis Act binds the Crown in right of the State.\n\n##### 5. Carriage to which Act applies\n\n(1) The carriage to which this Act applies is the carriage of a passenger where the passenger is or is to be carried in an aircraft being operated by the holder of an airline licence or a charter licence in the course of commercial transport operations under a contract for the carriage of the passenger between a place in the State and another place in the State, not being —\n\n(a) carriage to which Part IV of the Commonwealth Act applies;\n\n(b) carriage to which the Warsaw Convention, the Hague Protocol or the Guadalajara Convention applies; or\n\n(c) carriage to which the provisions of another convention, protocol or treaty apply, being provisions that have the force of law under the Commonwealth Act and that are prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph by the regulations under this Act.\n\n(2) A contract for the carriage of a passenger whereby the carriage is to begin and end at the one place in the State shall, irrespective of whether the carriage is to include a landing at any other place in the State, be deemed for the purposes of subsection (1) to be a contract for the carriage of the passenger between a place in the State and another place in the State.\n\n[Section 5 amended: No. 52 of 1970 s. 3; No. 80 of 1996 s. 5.]\n\n##### 6. Application of certain provisions of the Commonwealth Act 3\n\nThe provisions of Parts IV and IVA of the Commonwealth Act (other than sections 27, 40, 41 and 41J(8)) and the provisions of the Commonwealth Regulations apply to and in relation to carriage to which this Act applies and matters connected with the carriage, as if those provisions were incorporated in this Act and as if, in those provisions as so incorporated —\n\n(a) general references to Parts IV and IVA of the Commonwealth Act were references to this Act;\n\n(b) a reference in one of those provisions to another of those provisions were a reference to that other provision as applying by virtue of this Act;\n\n(c) the reference in section 29(5) of the Commonwealth Act to carriage referred to in section 27(4) of the Commonwealth Act were a reference to the carriage of a passenger where —\n\n(i) the carriage of the passenger between 2 places was to be performed by 2 or more carriers in successive stages;\n\n(ii) the carriage has been regarded by the parties as a single operation, whether it has been agreed upon by a single contract or by 2 or more contracts; and\n\n(iii) this Act would have applied to that carriage if it had been performed by a single carrier under a single contract;\n\nand\n\n(d) the references in the Commonwealth Act to the regulations relating to certain matters were references to the provisions of the Commonwealth regulations relating to those matters as applying by virtue of this Act.\n\n[Section 6 amended: No. 80 of 1996 s. 6.]\n\n##### 7. Stowaways in aircraft\n\nThe provisions of section 42 of the Commonwealth Act apply in relation to a person who, within the State, travels in an aircraft without the consent of the carrier as if those provisions were incorporated in this Act and as if, in those provisions as so incorporated, a reference to a Part or Parts of the Commonwealth Act were a reference to this Act.\n\n##### 8. Administration of the applied provisions as Commonwealth laws\n\n(1) It is the intention of Parliament that the applied provisions should be administered and enforced as if they were provisions applying as laws of the Commonwealth instead of being provisions applying as laws of the State.\n\n(2) To that end —\n\n(a) Commonwealth authorities have the same powers to enforce the applied provisions as they have to enforce the Commonwealth Act and the Commonwealth Regulations;\n\n(b) the laws of the Commonwealth apply to offences against the applied provisions as if they were offences against the Commonwealth Act or the Commonwealth Regulations; and\n\n(c) the laws of the State do not apply to offences against the applied provisions.\n\n(3) In the application of provisions of the Commonwealth Act and the Commonwealth Regulations under this Act, any function or power conferred on a Commonwealth authority by or under those provisions may be exercised or performed (in respect of carriage to which this Act applies and matters connected with that carriage) by that Commonwealth authority.\n\n[Section 8 inserted: No. 80 of 1996 s. 7.]\n\n##### 9. Alternative arrangements for administration of applied provisions\n\n(1) The regulations may provide that —\n\n(a) any or all of the provisions of section 8 do not have effect; and\n\n(b) any or all of the functions or powers conferred on a Commonwealth authority by or under the applied provisions may be exercised or performed by a person or authority specified in the regulations.\n\n(2) To the extent that, because of regulations referred to in subsection (1), the laws of the Commonwealth do not apply to an offence against the applied provisions, the offence is to be regarded as a crime under the laws of the State, but may, at the election of the accused and with the consent of the prosecutor, be dealt with summarily.\n\n[Section 9 inserted: No. 80 of 1996 s. 7; amended: No. 84 of 2004 s. 82.]\n\n##### 10. Regulations\n\nThe Governor may make regulations prescribing all matters that are required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed, or are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for giving effect to the purposes of this Act.\n\n[Section 10 inserted: No. 80 of 1996 s. 7.]\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of the *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961* and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table. The table also contains information about any reprint.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Short title** | **Number and year** | **Assent** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961* | 69 of 1961 | 28 Nov 1961 | 22 Dec 1961 (see s. 2 and *Gazette* 15 Dec 1961 p. 3705) |\n| *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act Amendment Act 1970* | 52 of 1970 | 15 Oct 1970 | 15 Oct 1970 |\n| **Reprint of the *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961* approved 24 Mar 1971**   (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n| *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act Amendment Act 1976* 2 | 64 of 1976 | 22 Sep 1976 | 1 Jul 1976 (see s. 2 and 3) |\n| *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Amendment Act 1996* | 80 of 1996 | 14 Nov 1996 | 1 Sep 1998 (see s. 3 and *Gazette* 28 Aug 1998 p. 4743) |\n| **Reprint 2: The *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1961* as at 7 Mar 2003** (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n| *Criminal Procedure and Appeals (Consequential and Other Provisions) Act 2004* s. 82 | 84 of 2004 | 16 Dec 2004 | 2 May 2005 (see s. 2 and *Gazette* 31 Dec 2004 p. 7129 (correction in *Gazette* 7 Jan 2005 p. 53)) |\n\n\n2 The *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act Amendment Act 1976* s. 3(2) reads as follows:\n\n“\n\n(2) The amendment made by subsection (1) of this section does not apply in relation to an accident or occurrence that took place before the first day of July, 1976.\n\n”.\n\n3 Part IV of the *Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1959* of the Commonwealth is about the liability of carriers in respect of the carriage of passengers in aircraft that is not covered by international conventions.\n\nPart IVA of the Commonwealth Act requires carriers to have insurance for liabilities they may have under other Parts of that Act.\n\nAt the time of this compilation, the Commonwealth Act and the regulations under it could be found at the internet site “scaleplus.law.gov.au”.\n\nDefined terms\n\n*[This is a list of terms defined and the provisions where they are defined. The list is not part of the law.]*\n\n**Defined term Provision(s)**\n\napplied provisions 3(1)\n\nCommonwealth authority 3(1)\n\nthe Commonwealth Act 3(1)\n\nthe Commonwealth Regulations 3(1)\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":6,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act’s original mechanical purpose was to apply Commonwealth carriers’ liability rules to intra‑state passenger carriage in Western Australia. Subsequent amendments broadened and clarified administration: the Act now expressly intends the applied provisions to be administered as Commonwealth laws (section 8) and permits the State, by regulation, to displace that federal administration or transfer enforcement powers to State persons or authorities (section 9). Those changes shifted the law from merely importing substantive liability rules to defining who enforces them and under which criminal law (Commonwealth or State). That is a material expansion of scope from substantive importation to also control the forum and enforcement regime."},"complexity_factors":["Extensive cross-referencing to Commonwealth Act and Commonwealth Regulations (Parts IV and IVA) rather than standalone rules (s.3, s.6).","Several categorical exclusions and special deeming rules for scope (s.5(1)(a)-(c), s.5(2)).","Administrative conditionality: default federal administration with a regulatory option to substitute State administration (s.8–9).","Specific carve‑outs of certain Commonwealth sections and sections excluded when incorporated (s.6 excludes sections 27, 40, 41 and 41J(8)).","Defined terms that tie to external, dynamically amended Commonwealth law (4 defined terms in s.3(1)).","Interaction of criminal/prosecutorial law across State and Commonwealth (s.8(2)(b), s.9(2)).","Regulations may change who exercises powers and whether Commonwealth law applies — creates branching paths in enforcement (s.9).","Relatively short Act text but dense legal effect through incorporation rather than direct substance—complexity arises from external dependencies. "],"plain_english_summary":"This Act imports key Commonwealth carriers’ liability and insurance rules to govern certain commercial passenger flights wholly within Western Australia, treating those federal provisions as part of the State law. It affects licensed airline/charter operators (who must meet liability and financial‑security requirements), passengers and third parties (whose claims are governed by the applied provisions), and which level of government enforces them—by default Commonwealth authorities unless the State’s regulations reassign enforcement."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains focused on its original purpose of establishing carrier liability for domestic intrastate air carriage in Western Australia. While amendments in 1996 significantly altered the administrative arrangements (shifting primary enforcement from State to Commonwealth authorities with an opt-out mechanism), and 2004 amendments updated criminal procedure references, these changes were operational rather than expansions of substantive scope. The core coverage—domestic flights within WA not covered by international conventions—has remained consistent since 1961."},"complexity_factors":["Extensive cross-referencing to external Commonwealth legislation (the 1959 Commonwealth Act and its regulations), meaning the full legal effect cannot be understood without consulting federal law","Nested conditional logic in section 5 excluding carriage covered by international conventions (Warsaw Convention, Hague Protocol, Guadalajara Convention) and other treaties","Complex administrative arrangement in sections 8-9 creating a dual-track system where provisions can be enforced as either Commonwealth or State law depending on regulations","Incorporation by reference mechanism in section 6 requiring readers to mentally substitute references to Commonwealth Act provisions with references to this Act","Only 4 defined terms in the interpretation section, but these terms ('applied provisions', 'Commonwealth Act') themselves refer to extensive external documents","Deeming provision in section 5(2) creating legal fiction about contracts beginning and ending at same place"],"plain_english_summary":"This Western Australian law sets the rules for who pays compensation when passengers are injured or killed during **domestic flights within Western Australia**.\n\n**What it does:**\n- It applies to commercial flights operated by licensed airlines that fly between two places within WA (for example, Perth to Broome, or Kalgoorlie to Port Hedland).\n- It **does not** apply to international flights, or flights covered by other international agreements like the Warsaw Convention.\n- Instead of writing its own detailed rules from scratch, WA **borrows** the liability rules from a Commonwealth (federal) law—the *Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1959*—and applies them as if they were WA law.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Airlines** operating domestic flights within WA must follow these liability rules and carry insurance.\n- **Passengers** who are injured or killed on these flights (or their families) can claim compensation under these rules.\n- **Stowaways** (people who sneak onto planes) are also covered by safety provisions.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nBefore this law, passengers on purely intrastate flights might not have had clear rights to compensation if something went wrong. This law ensures that even if you're just flying within WA, you have the same protections as passengers on interstate flights covered by federal law. It also cleverly avoids duplication by using the Commonwealth rules rather than reinventing them.\n\n**Key quirks:**\n- The law is mostly \"administered\" by Commonwealth authorities (like federal aviation officials) rather than WA state officials, unless the WA Government makes regulations saying otherwise.\n- If someone commits an offence under this law, they're usually prosecuted under Commonwealth criminal procedures, not WA state procedures."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as no legislative text was provided. The webpage returned only a navigation error and acknowledgement of country statement, with zero substantive legal content available for analysis."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative content was returned — only a broken page/404-style error message","Cannot assess actual legal complexity as the text of the Act was not retrievable","The source URL appears to be defunct or relocated following a website system upgrade"],"plain_english_summary":"**No legislation content could be retrieved.**\n\nThe page provided does not contain the actual text of the *Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1961*. Instead, it shows a **broken link error** from the Western Australian Parliamentary Counsel's Office website, indicating the page has moved or been removed during a system upgrade.\n\n**What we do know about this Act generally:** The *Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1961* is a Western Australian law that works alongside the federal *Civil Aviation (Carriers' Liability) Act 1959* to set out the legal responsibilities of airlines and air carriers when passengers are injured or killed, or when baggage or cargo is lost or damaged during domestic flights. It affects anyone who travels on commercial aircraft within Australia, setting limits on how much compensation (money) an airline must pay if something goes wrong.\n\n**To access the actual legislation**, visit the Parliamentary Counsel's Office website directly and search for this Act by name."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961","history":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961/history","analysis":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/civil-aviation-carriers-liability-act-1961/documents"}}