{"id":"evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005","name":"Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005","slug":"evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":176623,"registerId":"wa-evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nEvidence Act 1906\n\nEvidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005\n\nWestern Australia\n\nEvidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005\n\nContents\n\n1. Citation 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n3. Term used: PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA 1\n\n4. Office prescribed (Act s. 50B *authorised officer*) 1\n\n5. Persons prescribed (Act s. 50B *forensic scientist*) 2\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 4\n\nUncommenced provisions table 5\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nEvidence Act 1906\n\nEvidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005\n\n##### 1. Citation\n\nThese regulations are the *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005*.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThese regulations come into operation on the day on which they are published in the *Gazette*, or the day on which the *Evidence Amendment Act 2004* section 4 comes into operation, whichever is the later.\n\n##### 3. Term used: PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA\n\nIn these regulations —\n\nPathWest Laboratory Medicine WA means the health service provider with that corporate name established by order under the *Health Services Act 2016* section 32(1).\n\n[Regulation 3 inserted: SL 2022/204 r. 4.]\n\n##### 4. Office prescribed (Act s. 50B *authorised officer*)\n\n[(1) deleted]\n\n(2) The office of the chief pathologist in PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA is prescribed for the purposes of the definition of ***authorised officer*** in section 50B(1) of the Act.\n\n[Regulation 4 inserted: Gazette 19 Jun 2018 p. 2077; amended: SL 2022/204 r. 5.]\n\n##### 5. Persons prescribed (Act s. 50B *forensic scientist*)\n\nThe persons listed in the Table, employed in the Forensic Biology Department of PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA, are forensic scientists for the purposes of the definition of that term in section 50B(1) of the Act.\n\nTable\n\n| **Given names** | **Family name** |\n| --- | --- |\n| Sarah Kate | APLIN |\n| Anna‑Marie | ASHLEY |\n| Fiona Orr | BAXTER |\n| Penny Lorraine | COOPER |\n| Samuel John | CORNWELL |\n| Scott Elliott | EGAN |\n| Ryan Oliver | FISHER |\n| Ross | HEDLEY |\n| Quintin William | HUGHES |\n| Cheryl Anne | JOHANSEN |\n| Louise Susanne | KING |\n| Sarah Nicole | McCABE |\n| Casey Elizabeth | McLAUGHLIN |\n| Julie Ann | MURAKAMI |\n| Bethany Dorcas | OFFEREINS |\n| Wee Ting Jasmine | TAY |\n| Louisa Helen Anne | TSELEPIS |\n| Gavin Robert | TURBETT |\n| Daniel Lindsay | TURNER |\n| Tammara Joy | WHITE |\n\n\n[Regulation 5 inserted: SL 2022/204 r. 6; amended: SL 2023/163 r. 4; SL 2025/77 r. 4.]\n\n![dline]()\n\nNotes\n\nThis is a compilation of the *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005* and includes amendments made by other written laws. For provisions that have come into operation, and for information about any reprints, see the compilation table. For provisions that have not yet come into operation see the uncommenced provisions table.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Citation** | **Published** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005* | 6 May 2005 p. 2024‑5 | 18 Jun 2005 (see r. 2 and *Gazette* 17 Jun 2005 p. 2658) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2005* | 12 Jul 2005 p. 3240‑1 | 15 Jul 2005 (see r. 2) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2010* | 9 Apr 2010 p. 1345‑7 | r. 1 and 2: 9 Apr 2010 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 10 Apr 2010 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2011* | 21 Apr 2011 p. 1467‑8 | r. 1 and 2: 21 Apr 2011 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 22 Apr 2011 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2012* | 14 Aug 2012 p. 3835‑6 | r. 1 and 2: 14 Aug 2012 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 15 Aug 2012 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| **Reprint 1: The *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005* as at 23 Nov 2012** (includes amendments listed above) | | |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2015* | 5 Jun 2015 p. 1972-3 | r. 1 and 2: 5 Jun 2015 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 6 Jun 2015 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2016* | 24 Jun 2016 p. 2319-20 | r. 1 and 2: 24 Jun 2016 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 1 Jul 2016 (see r. 2(b) and *Gazette* 24 Jun 2016 p. 2291) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2018* | 19 Jun 2018 p. 2077 | r. 1 and 2: 19 Jun 2018 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 1 Jul 2018 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2019* | 15 Mar 2019 p. 793-4 | r. 1 and 2: 15 Mar 2019 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 16 Mar 2019 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2020* | SL 2020/77   9 Jun 2020 | r. 1 and 2: 9 Jun 2020 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 10 Jun 2020 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2022* | SL 2022/204 2 Dec 2022 | r. 1 and 2: 2 Dec 2022 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 3 Dec 2022 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2023* | SL 2023/163 1 Nov 2023 | 1 Nov 2023 (see r. 2) |\n| *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Amendment Regulations 2025* | SL 2025/77 28 May 2025 | r. 1 and 2: 28 May 2025 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 29 May 2025 (see r. 2(b)) |\n\n\nUncommenced provisions table\n\nTo view the text of the uncommenced provisions see *Acts as passed* on the WA legislation website.\n\n| **Citation** | **Published** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Evidence Act 2025* assented to 25 Sep 2025 s. 387(d) | | To be proclaimed (see s. 2(e)) |\n\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\nPathWest Laboratory Medicine WA 3\n\n© State of Western Australia 2025.\n\nThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (CC BY 4.0). To view relevant information and for a link to a copy of the licence, visit www.legislation.wa.gov.au.\n\nAttribute work as: © State of Western Australia 2025.\n\nBy Authority: GEOFF O. LAWN, Government Printer\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: prescribing specific individuals and offices for the purposes of section 50B of the Evidence Act 1906. While the list of named forensic scientists has been updated multiple times through amending regulations (as shown in the compilation table), this represents maintenance of the existing scheme rather than scope creep. The 2022 amendment updated the definition of PathWest to reflect the Health Services Act 2016, but this was a technical update rather than an expansion of purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Only 5 substantive regulations, with 2 being purely administrative (citation and commencement)","Single defined term (PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA)","No conditional logic or nested exceptions","No cross-references to other legislation except the parent Act and the Health Services Act 2016 for the definition","Straightforward prescription of offices and named individuals","Table format for named persons is simple and readable","Deleted provision (regulation 4(1)) creates minor clutter but no interpretive difficulty"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a short piece of Western Australian law that names specific people who are allowed to give certain types of evidence in court.\n\n**What it does:**\nThe regulations work with the *Evidence Act 1906* (WA) to say who counts as an \"authorised officer\" and who counts as a \"forensic scientist\" for giving evidence about forensic analysis (like DNA testing).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **The chief pathologist at PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA** — this person is declared an \"authorised officer\" under the Act. This means they can sign certificates about forensic analysis that can be used as evidence in court without needing to appear in person.\n- **20 named individuals** — these specific employees of the Forensic Biology Department at PathWest are declared to be \"forensic scientists\". This means their evidence about forensic analysis (such as DNA test results) can be given in a particular way under the Act.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nNormally, witnesses must appear in court to give evidence. These regulations allow certain forensic experts to give evidence through certificates or statements instead, which saves court time and resources. The law specifically names the individuals rather than just describing the job, which gives certainty about who is qualified to give this type of evidence.\n\n**Key point:** This is essentially a list of approved experts. If your name isn't on this list (and you don't hold the chief pathologist position), you cannot give this specific type of forensic evidence under this particular section of the Act."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed — the legislative text was not available for review. No comparison between original intent and current operation is possible."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative content was retrievable — the source page is unavailable","Only a title and error message were provided, making substantive analysis impossible","Inferences from the title alone carry significant uncertainty"],"plain_english_summary":"## Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005 — Western Australia\n\n**⚠️ Content Unavailable**\n\nThe actual text of this legislation could not be retrieved. The Western Australian legislation website returned an error page rather than the content of the *Evidence (Prescribed Persons) Regulations 2005*.\n\n**What we can infer from the title:**\nThis is a Western Australian regulation (a type of subordinate law made under a broader Act called the *Evidence Act*) that likely defines or lists specific categories of \"prescribed persons\" — people who may have special rights, obligations, or treatment under evidence law. This could relate to things like:\n- Who is allowed to give evidence in a particular way (e.g., via video link)\n- Who is exempt from certain evidentiary rules\n- Who qualifies for special protections when testifying\n\n**To find the actual text**, visit the [Western Australian legislation website](https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au) and search for this regulation directly."},"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"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The instrument’s practical scope has been updated since first made. Amendments have inserted a definition for PathWest (Reg 3), prescribed the chief pathologist’s office (Reg 4) and repeatedly amended the list of named forensic scientists (Reg 5), with changes recorded in 2018, 2022, 2023 and 2025 in the compilation table. Those updates alter who is authorised under section 50B without changing the underlying statutory power."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow, targeted subject‑matter: prescribes a specific office and a finite list of named individuals (Reg 4–5).","Reliance on external statute: functionality depends on definitions and powers in Evidence Act 1906 s.50B.","Frequent, incremental amendments to keep the list and institutional name current (see amendment entries 2018, 2022, 2023, 2025 in compilation table).","Cross‑reference to Health Services Act 2016 for the corporate identity of PathWest (Reg 3).","Administrative upkeep requirement: personnel changes require regulatory amendment rather than internal delegation.","Commencement linkage to another amending Act (Reg 2) and presence of an uncommenced successor Act entry in the compilation (Evidence Act 2025)."],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations officially name the office of the chief pathologist at PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA and a list of staff in PathWest’s Forensic Biology Department as the \"authorised officer\" and \"forensic scientists\" under section 50B of the Evidence Act 1906. That formal recognition means those named people can exercise the evidentiary functions the Act attaches to those roles, so their forensic reports and acts are accepted under the Act."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005","history":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005/history","analysis":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/evidence-prescribed-persons-regulations-2005/documents"}}