{"id":"imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844","name":"Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844","slug":"imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":30672,"registerId":"wa-imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nImperial Acts Adopting Act 1844\n\nWestern Australia\n\nImperial Acts Adopting Act 1844\n\nContents\n\n1. Recited Acts adopted 3\n\n2. Powers and duties of Civil Court and Advocate‑General 4\n\n3. Commencement of Act 4\n\n4. Act may be amended in this session 4\n\n5. Short title 4\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 5\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nImperial Acts Adopting Act 1844\n\nAn Act for adopting certain Acts of Parliament passed in the Third and Fourth, the Fourth and Fifth, the Fifth and Sixth, and the Sixth and Seventh years of the reign of His late Majesty King William the Fourth; and also certain Acts of Parliament passed in the First and Second, the Second and Third, and the Fifth and Sixth years of the reign of Her present Majesty Queen Victoria, respectively; and applying the same in the Administration of Justice in Western Australia in like manner as the other Laws of England are applied therein. 1\n\n **Preamble**\n\nWhereas a certain Act of Parliament was passed in the Third and Fourth years of the reign of His late Majesty King William the Fourth, intituled\n\n\t\t*“An Act to allow Quakers and Moravians to make Affirmation in all cases where an Oath is or shall be required”*; 2*\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the Fourth and Fifth years of the reign of His said Majesty, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act for the amendment of the Law relative to the Escheat and Forfeiture of Real and Personal Property holden in Trust,”* 3* and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to abolish the Practice of Hanging the Bodies of Criminals in Chains,”* 4\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the Fifth and Sixth years of the reign of His said Majesty, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act to amend the Law relating to Securities given for considerations arising out of Gaming, Usurious, and certain other illegal Transactions,”* 5and\n\n\t\t*“An Act for abolishing Capital Punishment in cases of Letter Stealing and Sacrilege”*; 7\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the Sixth and Seventh years of the reign of His said Majesty, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act to amend an Act of the last Session for abolishing Capital Punishment in cases of Letter Stealing and Sacrilege,”* 8 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act for declaring the Law as to the day on which it is requisite to present for payment to the acceptor or acceptors supra protest for honour, or to the referees or referee, in case of need, Bills of Exchange which had been dishonoured,”* 9* and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to repeal so much of two Acts of the Ninth and Tenth years of King George the Fourth as directs the period of Execution, and the prison discipline of persons convicted of the crime of murder,”* 10 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to prevent the fact of a previous conviction being given in evidence to the Jury on the case before them, except when evidence to character is given,”* 11 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act for enabling persons indicted of Felony to make their defence: Counsel or Attorney”*; 12\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the First and Second years of the reign of Her present Majesty Queen Victoria, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act to remove doubts respecting Conveyances of Estates vested in Heirs and Devisees of Mortgages,”* 13 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to facilitate the recovery of possession of Tenements after due determination of the Tenancy,”* 14 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act for permitting affirmation to be made instead of an oath in certain cases,”* 15* and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to remove doubts as to the validity of certain Oaths”*; 16*\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the Second and Third years of the reign of Her said Majesty, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act to amend the Law relating to the Custody of Infants,”* 17 and\n\n\t\t*“An Act to explain and extend the provisions of an Act passed in the First year of His late Majesty King William the Fourth, intituled ‘An Act for consolidating and amending the Laws for facilitating the Payment of Debts out of Real Estates’* 18**”*; 19*\n\nand whereas also certain other Acts of Parliament were passed in the Fifth and Sixth years of the reign of Her said present Majesty, intituled respectively\n\n\t\t*“An Act to amend the Law relating to advances bonâ fide made to agents entrusted with goods,”* 20* and\n\nAnd whereas it is expedient to adopt and apply the said several recited Acts of Parliament in the Administration of Justice in Western Australia:\n\n##### 1. Recited Acts adopted\n\nBe it therefore enacted, by His Excellency the Governor of Western Australia, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, that the said recited Acts of Parliament, and every clause, provision, and enactment therein respectively contained, shall be, and the same are and is hereby adopted and directed to be applied in the Administration of Justice, so far as they can be applied respectively to the circumstances of this Colony.\n\n##### 2. Powers and duties of Civil Court and Advocate‑General\n\nAnd be it enacted, that all and every the powers and duties conferred and imposed in and by any of the aforesaid Acts on the Court of Chancery in England shall be exercised and discharged by the Civil Court of this Colony; and that the functions ascribed by any of the said Acts to the Attorney‑General in England shall be discharged by the Advocate‑General in this Colony.\n\n##### 3. Commencement of Act\n\nAnd be it enacted, that this Act shall commence and take effect from the date of its passing the Legislative Council.\n\n##### 4. Act may be amended in this session\n\nAnd be it enacted, that this Act may be altered, amended, or repealed by any Act to be passed during the present Session.\n\n##### 5. Short title\n\nThis Act may be cited as the *Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844*.\n\n[Section 5 inserted: No. 10 of 1970 s.3.]\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of the *Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844* and includes all amendments effected by the other Acts referred to in the following Table.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Short title** | **Number and year** | **Assent** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| *Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844* | 7 Vict., No. 13 (1844) | 30 May 1844 | 30 May 1844 |\n| *Statute Law Revision Act 1970* s. 3 | 10 of 1970 | 29 Apr 1970 | 29 Apr 1970 |\n| *Statutes (Repeals) Act 2014* s. 14(1)(c) and (d) | 32 of 2014 | 3 Dec 2014 | 4 Dec 2014 (see s. 2(b)) |\n\n\n2 This adopted Act (3 & 4 Will. IV c. 49) (1833), [the *Quakers and Moravians Act 1833* (Imp)], so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations (Consequential Provisions) Act 2005* (No. 24 of 2005) s 4.\n\n3 This adopted Act (4 & 5 Will. IV c. 23) (1834), [the Escheat and forfeiture of real and personal property (Imp)] so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Statutes (Repeals) Act 2016* (No. 50 of 2016) s. 23.\n\n4 This adopted Act (4 & 5 Will. IV c. 26) (1834), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Sentencing (Consequential Provisions) Act 1995*, s 146 [Assent 16 January 1996; Commencement 4 November 1996].\n\n5 This adopted Act (5 & 6 Will. IV c. 41) (1835), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Acts Amendment (Gaming and related provisions) Act 1985*, s 4 [Assent 24 April 1985; Commencement 1 June 1985].\n\n6 Footnote no longer applicable.\n\n7 This adopted Act (5 & 6 Will. IV c. 81) (1835), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Sentencing (Consequential Provisions) Act 1995*, s 146 [Assent 16 January 1996; Commencement 4 November 1996].\n\n8 This adopted Act (6 & 7 Will. IV c. 4) (1836), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Sentencing (Consequential Provisions) Act 1995*, s 146 [Assent 16 January 1996; Commencement 4 November 1996].\n\n9 This adopted Act (6 & 7 Will. IV c. 58) (1836), [the Bills of exchange (day for payment) (1836) (Imp)] has been reproduced as at 26 October 1999 as part of the document entitled “Imperial Acts Adopted”.\n\n10 This adopted Act (6 & 7 Will. IV c. 30) (1836), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Criminal Law Consolidation Ordinance 1865* (29 Vict. No. 5) s 5 [Assent 7 July 1865].\n\nSubsequently it was purportedly also repealed by the *Prisons Act 1903*, s 3 [Assent 31 December 1903; Commencement 1 January 1904].\n\n11 This adopted Act (6 & 7 Will. IV c. 111) (1836), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Criminal Code Act 1902*  \n(1 & 2 Edw. VII No. 14) s 3 [Assent 19 February 1902; Commencement 1 May 1902].\n\n12 This adopted Act (6 & 7 Will. IV c. 114) (1836), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Criminal Code Act 1902*  \n(1 & 2 Edw. VII No. 14) s 3 [Assent 19 February 1902; Commencement 1 May 1902].\n\n13 This adopted Act (1 & 2 Vict. c. 69) (1838), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Trustee Ordinance 1854* (17 Vict. No. 10) [Assent 20 June 1854].\n\n14 This adopted Act (1 & 2 Vict. c. 74) (1838), [the *Small Tenements Recovery Act 1838* (Imp)], so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Courts Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2004* (No. 59 of 2004) s. 20(c).\n\n15 This adopted Act (1 & 2 Vict. c. 77) (1838), [the *Quakers and Moravians Act 1838* (Imp)], so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations (Consequential Provisions) Act 2005* (No. 24 of 2005) s 4.\n\n16 This adopted Act (1 & 2 Vict. c. 105) (1838), [the *Oaths Act 1838* (Imp)], so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations (Consequential Provisions) Act 2005* (No. 24 of 2005) s 4.\n\n17 This adopted Act (2 & 3 Vict. c. 54) (1838), so far as it was a part of the law of WA, was subsequently repealed by the *Guardianship of Infants Act 1926*, s 4(5) [Assent 19 November 1926; Commencement 1 January 1927].\n\n18 I.e. 11 Geo. IV & 1 Will. IV c. 47, [the *Debts Recovery Act 1830* (Imp)] has been reproduced as at 26 October 1999 as part of the document entitled “Imperial Acts Adopted”.\n\n19 This adopted Act (2 & 3 Vict. c. 60) (1839), [the *Debts Recovery Act 1839* (Imp)] has been reproduced as at 26 October 1999 as part of the document entitled “Imperial Acts Adopted”.\n\n20 This adopted Act (5 & 6 Vict. c. 39) (1842), [‘Factors (1842)’ (Imp)] has been reproduced as at 26 October 1999 as part of the document entitled “Imperial Acts Adopted”.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"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"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains true to its original purpose as a one-time adoption mechanism for specific British statutes. The only 'growth' is editorial—modern compilation tables and footnotes added by parliamentary counsel to track which adopted Acts have been repealed. The substantive scope (adopting those 17 specific Imperial Acts) has not expanded."},"complexity_factors":["Simple, linear structure with only 5 operative sections","No defined terms section—relies entirely on external British statutes","Single cross-reference mechanism (Section 2 maps English institutions to colonial equivalents: Court of Chancery → Civil Court, Attorney-General → Advocate-General)","Preamble-heavy format typical of 19th century legislation (lists all 17 adopted Acts by their full historical titles and regnal years)","No conditional logic, exceptions, or nested provisions in the operative sections","Modern complexity added only by compilation notes showing subsequent repeals of adopted Acts"],"plain_english_summary":"This 1844 Western Australian law was a legal 'import' mechanism. It took 17 specific British laws (called 'Imperial Acts') passed between 1833 and 1842 and made them apply in Western Australia as if they were local laws.\n\n**What it actually did:**\n- **Allowed religious alternatives to oaths**: Quakers and Moravians could make solemn affirmations instead of swearing oaths in court\n- **Stopped barbaric punishments**: Abolished hanging criminals' bodies in chains and reduced death penalties for letter stealing and sacrilege\n- **Protected people in debt**: Changed rules about property forfeiture and debt recovery\n- **Improved court fairness**: Let people accused of serious crimes have lawyers defend them, and stopped juries hearing about previous convictions unless character evidence was introduced\n- **Clarified commercial law**: Fixed rules about bills of exchange (promissory notes) and loans to business agents\n- **Made evictions easier**: Helped landlords recover property after leases ended\n- **Protected children**: Updated custody laws\n\n**Who it affected:**\n- Anyone going to court (criminal defendants, civil litigants)\n- Religious minorities who objected to oaths\n- Debtors and creditors\n- Landlords and tenants\n- Parents in custody disputes\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis was how colonial Western Australia built its legal system—by cherry-picking recent British reforms rather than waiting decades for slow ships to bring English common law traditions. It shows the colony wanted modern, humane legal standards from the start.\n\n**Note**: Most of these adopted British laws have since been repealed and replaced by modern Western Australian legislation. Only a few (notably about bills of exchange and debt recovery) remain technically in force as part of a consolidated document called 'Imperial Acts Adopted'."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act’s practical scope has changed over time: the compilation notes show that many of the specific Imperial Acts it adopted were later repealed or replaced by local statutes, and the Act itself was amended (for example, insertion of a short title in 1970) and subject to later statute‑law repeal activity. As a result, the list of operative imported provisions and their effect on Western Australian law is narrower now than at enactment and must be checked against subsequent repeals and local enactments."},"complexity_factors":["Adoption of multiple external statutes requires mapping each Imperial Act to local circumstances (s 1).","Qualification clause—adoption only “so far as they can be applied…to the circumstances of this Colony”—creates factual and legal judgment for courts and administrators (s 1).","Delegation of Chancery powers and Attorney‑General functions to local bodies changes institutional responsibilities and may require procedural adaptation (s 2).","Subsequent amendments and repeals of specific adopted Acts (recorded in the compilation notes) mean historical layering and potential obsolescence when identifying current operative law.","Permits immediate amendment or repeal within the same session, creating short‑term legislative fluidity (s 4)."],"plain_english_summary":"This short law makes a list of British (Imperial) statutes part of Western Australian law where they can sensibly apply, and directs that functions given to England’s Court of Chancery and Attorney‑General under those statutes be performed here by the colony’s Civil Court and Advocate‑General. It takes effect on passage and may be altered in the same parliamentary session. Practically, courts and litigants must treat the adopted Imperial provisions as local law where applicable; the Civil Court and Advocate‑General carry out enforcement and procedural duties formerly ascribed to English institutions."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed — the legislative text is unavailable. No determination can be made as to whether the Act's application has broadened or narrowed from its original intent."},"complexity_factors":["Source document contains no actual legislative text — only an error/redirect page","Cannot assess substantive complexity without access to the Act's provisions","Historical colonial-era legislation typically involves complex interplay between Imperial and colonial law","Age of the Act (1844) suggests potential for archaic legal language and concepts if text were available"],"plain_english_summary":"The 1844 Imperial Acts Adopting Act formally brought certain British (Imperial) statutes into force in the colony of Western Australia. It’s a very old enabling instrument that can still affect rights and disputes tied to property, succession and other legacy legal matters.\n\nAlthough the act’s current text isn’t available on the WA legislation site, it can remain technically “on the books” and occasionally be relevant in historical or niche legal cases."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844","history":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844/history","analysis":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/imperial-acts-adopting-act-1844/documents"}}