{"id":"nsw:act-1897-031","name":"Compensation to Relatives Act 1897","slug":"compensation-to-relatives-act-1897","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"31 of 1897","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":113105,"registerId":"nsw-act-1897-031-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of Act","content":"#### 1 Name of Act\n\n1 Name of Act\n\n> This Act may be cited as the [Compensation to Relatives Act 1897](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1897-031).\n> \n> **s 1:** Am 1985 No 231, Sch 31.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Repeal","content":"#### 2 Repeal\n\n2 Repeal\n\n> The enactments mentioned in the Schedule to this Act to the extent therein expressed are hereby repealed.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"An action to be maintainable against any person causing death through neglect despite the death of the person injured","content":"#### 3 An action to be maintainable against any person causing death through neglect despite the death of the person injured\n\n3 An action to be maintainable against any person causing death through neglect despite the death of the person injured\n\n> > (1) Whensoever the death of a person is caused by a wrongful act, neglect, or default, and the act, neglect, or default is such as would (if death had not ensued) have entitled the party injured to maintain an action and recover damages in respect thereof, then and in every such case the person who would have been liable if death had not ensued shall be liable to an action for damages, notwithstanding the death of the person injured, and although the death has been caused under such circumstances as amount in law to a serious indictable offence.\n> \n> > (2) In any such action any reasonable expenses of the funeral or the cremation of the deceased person and the reasonable cost of erecting a headstone or tombstone over the grave of the deceased person may be recovered.\n> \n> > (3) In assessing damages in any such action there shall not be taken into account:\n> > \n> > > (a) any sum paid or payable on the death of the deceased under any contract of insurance, or\n> > \n> > > (b) any sum paid or payable out of any superannuation, provident, or like fund, or by way of benefit from a friendly society, benefit society, or trade union, or\n> > \n> > > (c) any sum paid or payable by way of pension under:\n> > > \n> > > > (i) the Widows’ Pension Act 1925–1942,\n> > > \n> > > > (ii) the Coal and Oil Shale Mine Workers (Pensions) Act 1941–1942,\n> > > \n> > > > (iii) the [Australian Soldiers’ Repatriation Act 1920–1943](http://www.legislation.gov.au/) of the Parliament of the Commonwealth,\n> > > \n> > > > (iv) the [Widows’ Pensions Act 1942–1945](http://www.legislation.gov.au/) of the Parliament of the Commonwealth,\n> > > \n> > > > (v) the [Invalid and Old-age Pensions Act 1908–1945](http://www.legislation.gov.au/) of the Parliament of the Commonwealth,\n> > > \n> > > or under any Act (Commonwealth or State) amending or replacing any such Act.\n> \n> **s 3:** Am 1928 No 8, sec 2 (1); 1942 No 15, sec 44 (a); 1946 No 23, sec 2; 1999 No 94, Sch 4.89.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"By whom and for whom action may be brought","content":"#### 4 By whom and for whom action may be brought\n\n4 By whom and for whom action may be brought\n\n> > (1) Every such action shall be for the benefit of the spouse, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, parent, and child of the person whose death has been so caused, and shall be brought by and in the name of the executor or administrator of the person deceased, and in every such action the jury may give such damages as they may think proportioned to the injury resulting from such death to the parties respectively for whom and for whose benefit such action is brought, and the amount so recovered, after deducting the costs not recovered from the defendant, shall be divided amongst the before-mentioned parties in such shares as the jury by their verdict find and direct.\n> \n> > (2) If there is more than one spouse of the person whose death has been so caused, the action is (without limiting the application of subsection (1) to other persons) for the benefit of each of the spouses, who are to be separate parties to the action.\n> \n> **s 4:** Am 1942 No 15, sec 44 (b); 1984 No 149, Sch 1 (1); 1999 No 4, Sch 2.3 \\[1\\] \\[2\\].","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Only one action shall lie","content":"#### 5 Only one action shall lie\n\n5 Only one action shall lie\n\n> Not more than one action shall lie for and in respect of the same subject matter of complaint.\n> \n> **s 5:** Am 1953 No 33, sec 2 (a); 1969 No 31, Sch 2.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Plaintiff to deliver a full particular of the person for whom such damages shall be claimed","content":"#### 6 Plaintiff to deliver a full particular of the person for whom such damages shall be claimed\n\n6 Plaintiff to deliver a full particular of the person for whom such damages shall be claimed\n\n> In every such action the plaintiff on the record shall be required, together with the declaration, to deliver to the defendant or the defendant’s attorney a full particular of the persons for whom and on whose behalf such action is brought, and of the nature of the claim in respect of which damages are sought to be recovered.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"6A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Payment into court","content":"#### 6A Payment into court\n\n6A Payment into court\n\n> > (1) In every such action the defendant may pay money into court as a compensation in one sum to all persons entitled under this Act for the wrongful act neglect or default without specifying the shares into which the sum is to be divided by the jury.\n> \n> > (2) If the sum paid in is not accepted, and if an issue is taken by the plaintiff as to its sufficiency, and the jury think the same sufficient, the defendant shall be entitled to the verdict upon that issue.\n> \n> > (3) No portion of the sum paid in shall be paid out of court except under the order of a judge.\n> \n> **s 6A:** Ins 1928 No 8, sec 2 (2).","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"6B","sectionType":"section","heading":"Alternative action","content":"#### 6B Alternative action\n\n6B Alternative action\n\n> > (1) Where there is no executor or administrator of the person deceased, or where the person’s executor or administrator does not bring an action under this Act within six months after the death of the person deceased, the person or any one or more of the persons for whose benefit the action might be brought by such an executor or administrator may bring the action.\n> \n> > (2) Any action so brought shall be for the benefit of the same person or persons and shall be subject to the same provisions and procedure, as nearly as may be, as if it were brought by such an executor or administrator.\n> \n> **s 6B:** Ins 1928 No 8, sec 2 (2).","sortOrder":7},{"sectionNumber":"6C","sectionType":"section","heading":"Survival of action","content":"#### 6C Survival of action\n\n6C Survival of action\n\n> > (1) Every action and cause of action under this Act shall survive notwithstanding the death of the wrongdoer.\n> \n> > (2) (Repealed)\n> \n> > (3) Any damages recovered against the executor or administrator shall be payable in like order of administration as the debts of the wrongdoer.\n> \n> **s 6C:** Ins 1928 No 8, sec 2 (2). Am 1953 No 33, sec 2 (b); 1969 No 31, Sch 2.","sortOrder":8},{"sectionNumber":"6D","sectionType":"section","heading":"Action before judge without jury","content":"#### 6D Action before judge without jury\n\n6D Action before judge without jury\n\n> Where an action under this Act is tried before a judge without a jury, the provisions of this Act with respect to a jury and to the verdict of a jury shall be construed as applying to a judge and to the judgment of a court, as the case may be.\n> \n> **s 6D:** Ins 1928 No 8, sec 2 (2).","sortOrder":9},{"sectionNumber":"6E","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application of Act","content":"#### 6E Application of Act\n\n6E Application of Act\n\n> > (1) This Act applies whether the subject-matter of the complaint arises within or outside New South Wales, and whether the wrongdoer, the person whose death has been caused, or any other person concerned was or is a British subject or not.\n> \n> > (2) This Act applies to actions commenced either before or after the commencement of the [Compensation to Relatives (Amendment) Act 1928](/view/pdf/asmade/act-1928-8).\n> \n> > (3) This Act shall bind the Crown.\n> \n> **s 6E:** Ins 1928 No 8, sec 2 (2).","sortOrder":10},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Construction of Act","content":"#### 7 Construction of Act\n\n7 Construction of Act\n\n> > (1) The following words are intended to have the meanings hereby assigned to them respectively, so far as such meanings are not excluded by the context or by the nature of the subject matter, that is to say, the word parent shall include father and mother, and grandfather and grandmother, and stepfather and stepmother, and any person standing in loco parentis to another; and the word child shall include son and daughter, and grandson and granddaughter, and stepson and stepdaughter, and any person to whom another stands in loco parentis; and the word declaration shall include any statement of the cause of action appropriate to the court in which the action is brought.\n> \n> > (1A), (1B) (Repealed)\n> \n> > (2) In this Act administrator means administrator within the meaning of the [Probate and Administration Act 1898](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1898-013) and includes the NSW Trustee and Guardian acting as collector of an estate under an order to collect.\n> \n> > (3) In this Act executor means the executor to whom probate has been granted and includes an executor by right of representation.\n> \n> > (4) In this Act, spouse means:\n> > \n> > > (a) the person to whom a person is legally married (including the husband or wife of a person), or\n> > \n> > > (b) a de facto partner.\n> > > \n> > > Note—\n> > > \n> > > “De facto partner” is defined in section 21C of the [Interpretation Act 1987](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1987-015).\n> \n> **s 7:** Am 1928 No 8, sec 2 (3); 1942 No 15, sec 44 (c); 1984 No 149, Sch 1 (2); 1999 No 4, Sch 2.3 \\[3\\]–\\[5\\]; 2006 No 80, Sch 3.3; 2010 No 19, Sch 3.21; 2012 No 95, Sch 2.5; 2018 No 28, Sch 1.10.","sortOrder":11},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Rights of action in respect of past events","content":"#### 8 Rights of action in respect of past events\n\n8 Rights of action in respect of past events\n\n> The amendments made to this Act by the [Property (Relationships) Legislation Amendment Act 1999](/view/html/repealed/current/act-1999-004) do not operate to confer on any person a right of action in relation to any act, neglect or default that took place before those amendments took effect.\n> \n> **s 8:** Ins 1999 No 4, Sch 2.3 \\[6\\].","sortOrder":12},{"sectionNumber":"sch","sectionType":"schedule","heading":null,"content":"# sch\n\nSchedule\n\n| Reference to Act | Title of Act | Extent of Repeal |\n| 11 Vic No 32 | An Act for compensating the families of persons killed by accidents. | The whole. |","sortOrder":13}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"_metrics":{"source":"grok-batch-everything"},"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The 1897 Act originally implemented a narrow wrongful-death remedy modelled on Lord Campbell's Act, limited to specific family members and ordinary civil liability. Successive amendments broadened the beneficiary class to include de facto partners, half-siblings and step-relations, extended territorial reach, bound the Crown, preserved the action against a deceased wrongdoer's estate, and updated definitions to reflect contemporary family and succession law, thereby expanding the Act well beyond its late-Victorian purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Layered amendments from 1928 onward that inserted procedural sections (6A–6E) and altered core liability and beneficiary rules","Detailed exclusions in s 3(3) that cross-reference a long list of historical Commonwealth and State pension and superannuation statutes","Interpretation provisions in s 7 that expand 'parent', 'child' and 'spouse' with common-law concepts such as 'in loco parentis' and multiple repealed subsections","Procedural overlays including mandatory particulars (s 6), single-action rule (s 5), payment-into-court mechanics (s 6A) and alternative claimant rules (s 6B)"],"plain_english_summary":"**The Compensation to Relatives Act 1897** lets close family members claim money (damages) if someone dies because of another person's wrongful act, neglect or default. \n\nIt applies when the death was caused in a way that would have allowed the injured person to sue for damages if they had survived. The law makes the responsible person (or their estate) liable to be sued even though the victim has died, and even if the conduct amounted to a serious criminal offence. \n\n**Who can benefit?** The spouse (including de facto partner), parents, children, siblings, half-siblings, and others standing in a parent-child relationship (in loco parentis). The claim is usually started by the executor or administrator of the deceased's estate, but relatives can bring it themselves if no one does within six months. \n\nDamages can cover the financial loss to those family members, plus reasonable funeral and cremation costs and the cost of a headstone. When calculating the payout, certain benefits are ignored — such as life insurance, superannuation payouts, or government pensions. \n\nOnly one lawsuit is allowed for the same death. The Act sets out court procedures, allows payments into court, and makes clear it applies across borders, binds the government, and survives the death of the wrongdoer. It has been updated over time to reflect modern family relationships while keeping its core purpose of providing financial relief to grieving relatives."},"summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 1897 Act was modelled on the English Fatal Accidents Act 1846 and had a narrow scope — focusing on a limited class of family members (primarily spouses and children) and straightforward financial dependency claims. Over successive amendments (notably in 2000, 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2018), the scope has expanded to reflect modern family structures, including de facto partners and potentially other dependants, and has been aligned with contemporary personal injury and damages frameworks in NSW. The core purpose remains the same, but the range of eligible claimants and the interaction with other laws has broadened considerably."},"complexity_factors":["Ancient legislation (1897) with archaic drafting style that may be difficult to interpret without legal training","Has been amended multiple times across different eras, meaning original and current text may differ significantly","Interacts with multiple modern NSW compensation and personal injury statutes, creating a complex legislative ecosystem","Determining eligible 'relatives' and calculating financial dependency can involve nuanced factual and legal analysis","Limitation periods (deadlines for making a claim) add procedural complexity","Only metadata and status information is visible in the provided text — the full operative provisions are not reproduced here, limiting full assessment"],"plain_english_summary":"## Compensation to Relatives Act 1897 (NSW)\n\nThis is one of Australia's oldest surviving pieces of legislation — a New South Wales law originally passed in **1897** that allows the **family members of a person who was killed due to someone else's negligence or wrongful act** to sue for financial compensation.\n\n### Who does it affect?\nIf someone you depend on financially — such as a parent, spouse, or partner — is **killed because of another person's or company's fault** (for example, in a workplace accident, a car crash caused by a negligent driver, or a medical error), this law gives you the right to take that person or organisation to court and claim money for your **financial loss**.\n\n### What can you claim?\nTypically, relatives can claim for the **loss of financial support** they would have received from the deceased had they lived. This is not about emotional grief — it's about the practical, financial impact of losing someone who provided for you.\n\n### Why does it matter?\nBefore laws like this existed, **only the injured person themselves** could sue for damages. If they died from their injuries, the legal claim died with them and their family got nothing. This Act changed that — it gave surviving family members their own independent right to claim.\n\n### Key things to know:\n- This is a **NSW law** — similar laws exist in other Australian states\n- It has been updated several times since 1897, most recently in **2018**\n- It is administered by the **Attorney General**\n- It works alongside other modern compensation laws in NSW\n\nIn short: if a family member is killed through someone else's fault, this law may give you the right to seek financial compensation from whoever was responsible."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act’s scope has been altered from its original form by subsequent insertions and amendments. The text shows multiple insertions of procedural and scope provisions (for example, s 6A–6E were inserted in 1928; s 6B, s 6C and s 6D were also inserted in 1928) and newer amendments broadened definitions (s 7(4) to include de facto partners by later amendments). The Schedule repeals an earlier Act (11 Vic No 32). The 1999 amendment package is expressly prevented from operating retrospectively (s 8). These changes adjust who may sue, how funds are handled, and who qualifies as a beneficiary compared with the original 1897 enactment (see the amendment and insertion notes accompanying each section)."},"complexity_factors":["Mix of substantive liability rules (liability despite death) and detailed procedural provisions (executor primacy, particulars requirement) (s 3(1), s 4(1), s 6).","Allocation discretion given to jury or judge to divide damages among multiple relatives (s 4(1); s 6D).","Payment-into-court mechanism with judicial control over disbursement and a procedural sufficiency issue (s 6A(1)–(3)).","Exclusions of third-party payments (insurance, superannuation, specified pensions) from damage assessments (s 3(3)(a)–(c)).","Alternative plaintiff route and six-month timing backstop if executor/administrator does not act (s 6B(1)).","Survival of action against wrongdoer and treatment of recovered damages as estate debts (s 6C(1), (3)).","Extra-territorial application and Crown-binding clause which expand practical scope (s 6E(1), (3)).","Layered amendments and inserted provisions over time (multiple \"ins\" and amendment notes reflected in headings), producing scattered amendment history within the text (see amendment notes across sections)."],"plain_english_summary":"What this Act does, in simple terms\n\n- Mechanically, the Act creates a civil claim where a person’s death is caused by a wrongful act, neglect or default: the person who would have been liable to the injured person (if they had lived) is liable to an action for damages despite the death (s 3(1)).\n\n- Who benefits: the statutory class of relatives named in the Act — spouse, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, parent and child — are the beneficiaries of any successful action; the action is brought by the deceased’s executor or administrator on their behalf (s 4(1)). The Act also provides that where there is more than one spouse each spouse is a separate party (s 4(2)). The definitions of parent, child and spouse (including de facto partner) are set out in the construction section (s 7(1), (3)–(4)).\n\n- What can be recovered: the Act allows recovery of damages for the loss caused by the death and specifically permits recovery of reasonable funeral or cremation expenses and the reasonable cost of a headstone or tombstone (s 3(2)). When courts assess damages, they must not take into account insurance payments, superannuation/benefit-scheme payments, or specified pension payments (s 3(3)(a)–(c)).\n\n- Who sues and alternative routes: normally the executor or administrator sues in the estate’s name (s 4(1)). If there is no executor/administrator, or if an executor/administrator fails to bring the action within six months of death, one or more of the persons for whose benefit the action could be brought may bring the action instead (s 6B(1)–(2)).\n\n- Procedural mechanics that shape incentives and costs:\n  - Only one action may be brought in respect of the same subject matter (s 5). That centralises recovery into a single proceeding and prevents multiple suits over the same death.\n  - The plaintiff must supply a full particular of the persons for whom damages are claimed together with the declaration (s 6). This is a formal compliance obligation on the plaintiff (s 6).\n  - The defendant may pay a lump-sum into court as a global compensation to all entitled persons without specifying each share; if the plaintiff challenges the sufficiency of that sum and the jury (or judge in a judge-alone trial) finds it sufficient, the defendant is entitled to that verdict on that issue (s 6A(1)–(2)). No part of the sum paid in is to be paid out of court except under a judge’s order (s 6A(3)). Those provisions create a settlement mechanism and vest a measure of judicial control over payment out of court (s 6A).\n  - If the action is tried by a judge alone, the judge takes the role otherwise played by a jury for purposes of this Act (s 6D).\n  - Any action under the Act survives the death of the wrongdoer and damages recovered against an executor or administrator of the wrongdoer are payable in the same order of administration as the wrongdoer’s debts (s 6C(1), (3)).\n\n- Jurisdictional and liability scope: the Act applies to deaths caused within or outside New South Wales and regardless of the nationality of the wrongdoer or the deceased (s 6E(1)). The Act binds the Crown (s 6E(3)).\n\n- Limits and timing: the Act contains a non-retroactivity rule for the 1999 amendments — those amendments do not create causes of action for acts, neglects or defaults that occurred before the amendments took effect (s 8). The Schedule repeals an earlier Victorian-era statute that previously addressed compensation to families of people killed by accidents (Schedule).\n\nPurpose claims (as expressed in the Act) and how they operate mechanically\n\n- The Act’s operative purpose is to preserve and enable civil claims for damages where death results from a wrongful act, neglect or default, by making the responsible person liable despite the death (s 3(1)). Mechanically this converts what would have been a personal injury claim into a survivable claim for the estate/relatives, allocates recoverable items (funeral/headstone) (s 3(2)), and prevents double recovery by excluding certain insurance and pension receipts from the damage assessment (s 3(3)).\n\nCosts, incentives, trade-offs and implementation features (sources cited)\n\n- Who pays: the statutory defendant is the person who caused the death by wrongful act, neglect or default (s 3(1)). Where that person is deceased, recovered damages may be paid out of the wrongdoer’s estate in the same order as other debts (s 6C(3)). The Act also binds the Crown (s 6E(3)).\n\n- Who decides allocation and relief: a jury (or judge in a judge-alone trial) decides the amount of damages and the shares for beneficiaries (s 4(1); s 6D). A judge has the power to order payment out of court in relation to sums paid into court (s 6A(3)). Those provisions concentrate discretion in the trier of fact and the court.\n\n- Compliance burdens on claimants: the plaintiff must lodge full particulars of the persons for whose benefit damages are claimed with the declaration (s 6). This is a formal requirement that structures pleadings and notice to defendants.\n\n- Settlement and litigation incentives: the payment-into-court mechanism (s 6A) allows defendants to proffer a single lump-sum settlement without specifying individual shares. That mechanism can encourage defendants to deposit a global amount and shift the allocation decision to the jury/judge, while plaintiff challengers can force an issue on sufficiency (s 6A(2)). The single-action rule (s 5) and the executor/administrator primacy (s 4(1)) centralise enforcement and limit multiplicity of suits.\n\n- Interaction with third-party payments and double recovery rule: when assessing damages courts must ignore amounts paid under insurance, superannuation/benefit funds, friendly societies or certain pensions (s 3(3)(a)–(c)). This reduces overlap between tort damages and other entitlements and changes the quantum available in a civil claim.\n\n- Effects on private enterprise and risk management (mechanics grounded in the Act): by creating a civil remedy against the person responsible for a death (s 3(1)) the Act imposes potential monetary liability on individuals or organisations whose negligence causes death. That legal exposure can be reflected in increased demand for liability insurance, contractual risk allocation, or changes in operational risk controls; the Act itself does not set regulatory penalties or prices, but it changes private-law financial exposure (s 3(1), s 6C(3)).\n\nConcentrated benefits, diffuse costs and capture risk (textual bearings)\n\n- Benefits are concentrated in the specified classes of relatives (s 4(1)); costs fall on the defendant(s) named in a particular action (s 3(1)). The Act’s single-action rule (s 5) and the requirement that the executor/administrator sue (s 4(1)) concentrate procedural control of claims.\n\nImplementation risks and procedural trade-offs\n\n- The procedural structure (executor primacy, six-month backstop for relatives, particulars requirement, single action rule, payment into court and court control over disbursement) creates identifiable compliance steps and judicial discretion points (s 4(1); s 6B; s 6; s 5; s 6A). These are the channels through which the Act’s intended preservation of remedies is operationalised.\n\nBottom line (mechanical):\n\nThis Act preserves private civil claims for relatives where a death results from a wrongful act, specifies who may bring such claims and who benefits, limits certain double recoveries, provides a mechanism for lump-sum payments into court, and sets procedural rules for allocation and enforcement of any damages awarded. Key operational levers are the executor/administrator’s role (s 4(1)), the payment-into-court option (s 6A), the single-action rule (s 5), and the definition of beneficiaries (s 7)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897","history":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897/history","analysis":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/compensation-to-relatives-act-1897/documents"}}