{"id":"liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010","name":"Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010","slug":"liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":178685,"registerId":"wa-liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nLiquor Control Act 1988\n\nLiquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010\n\nWestern Australia\n\nLiquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010\n\nContents\n\n1. Citation 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n3. Term used: Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community 1\n\n5. Declaration of restricted area 1\n\n6. Notice of restricted area 2\n\n7. Prohibitions as to liquor in the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community 2\n\n8. Seizure and disposal of containers of liquor 2\n\n9. Period during which these regulation have effect 3\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 4\n\nOther notes 4\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nLiquor Control Act 1988\n\nLiquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010\n\n##### 1. Citation\n\n\t\tThese regulations are the *Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010*.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThese regulations come into operation as follows —\n\n(a) regulations 1 and 2 — on the day on which these regulations are published in the *Gazette*;\n\n(b) the rest of the regulations — on the day after that day.\n\n##### 3. Term used: Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community\n\nIn these regulations —\n\nNicholson Block Aboriginal Community means the area of land described as the whole of Crown Reserve 39518, being Lot 506 on Deposited Plan 400197 on Crown Land Record 3166/750.\n\n[Regulation 3 amended: SL 2022/158 r. 7.]\n\n[**4.** Deleted: SL 2022/158 r. 8.]\n\n##### 5. Declaration of restricted area\n\nThe Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community is declared to be a restricted area for the purposes of section 175(1a) of the Act.\n\n##### 6. Notice of restricted area\n\n(1) The Director of Liquor Licensing must take all reasonable steps to cause to be posted, and while the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community continues to be a restricted area by operation of regulation 5 to be kept posted, at each place where a customary access route enters the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community a notice —\n\n(a) describing the offences set out in regulation 7; and\n\n(b) specifying the penalties for those offences.\n\n(2) A failure to comply with subregulation (1) does not invalidate the declaration in regulation 5.\n\n##### 7. Prohibitions as to liquor in the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community\n\n(1) A person who —\n\n(a) brings liquor into, or causes liquor to be brought into, the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community; or\n\n(b) has liquor in his or her possession in the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community,\n\ncommits an offence.\n\nPenalty:\n\n(a) if subregulation (2) applies — a fine of $5 000;\n\n(b) in any other case — a fine of $2 000.\n\n(2) This subregulation applies to an offence under subregulation (1) committed by a licensee, a manager of licensed premises or a director of a body corporate that holds a licence.\n\n##### 8. Seizure and disposal of containers of liquor\n\nDespite section 155(4) and (5) of the Act, a member of the Police Force may seize and, as soon as is practicable, dispose of any opened or unopened container of liquor suspected on reasonable grounds to be the subject of an offence under regulation 7.\n\n##### 9. Period during which these regulation have effect\n\nUnless sooner repealed, these regulations have effect for the period that ends at the close of 18 September 2028.\n\n[Regulation 9 amended: Gazette 13 Sep 2013 p. 4290; 9 Sep 2016 p. 3888; 6 Sep 2019 p. 3203; SL 2022/158 r. 9; SL 2023/140 r. 6.]\n\n![dline]()\n\nNotes\n\nThis is a compilation of the *Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010* and includes amendments made by other written laws. For provisions that have come into operation see the compilation table.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Citation** | **Published** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| *Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Regulations 2010* 1 | 17 Sep 2010 p. 4760-1 | r. 1 and 2: 17 Sep 2010 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 18 Sep 2010 (see r. 2 (b)) |\n| *Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Amendment Regulations 2013* | 13 Sep 2013 p. 4290 | r. 1 and 2: 13 Sep 2013 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 14 Sep 2013 (see r. 2 (b)) |\n| *Liquor Control Regulations Amendment (Restricted Area) Regulations 2016* Pt. 4 | 9 Sep 2016 p. 3887-8 | 10 Sep 2016 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Liquor Control (Nicholson Block Restricted Area) Amendment Regulations 2019* | 6 Sep 2019 p. 3202‑3 | r. 1 and 2: 6 Sep 2019 (see r. 2(a));   Regulations other than r. 1 and 2: 7 Sep 2019 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Racing and Gaming Regulations Amendment (Liquor Control) Regulations (No. 3) 2022* Pt. 3 | SL 2022/158 9 Sep 2022 | 10 Sep 2022 (see r. 2(b)) |\n| *Racing and Gaming Regulations Amendment (Liquor Control) Regulations (No. 4) 2023* Pt. 3 | SL 2023/140 6 Sep 2023 | 7 Sep 2023 (see r. 2(b)) |\n\n\nOther notes\n\n1 These regulations expire at the close of 18 September 2028 (see r. 9).\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\nNicholson Block Aboriginal Community 3\n\n© State of Western Australia 2023.\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 2023.\n\nBy Authority: GEOFF O. LAWN, Government Printer\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The instrument's scope has been modified since enactment: the definition of the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community was amended (reg. 3 amended: SL 2022/158 r.7), a provision was deleted (reg. 4 deleted: SL 2022/158 r.8), and the expiry/operative period has been updated repeatedly (reg. 9 amended as shown in the compilation table). These amendments alter the defined area and the period during which the restrictions operate."},"complexity_factors":["Clear geographic scope set by a precise land description (definition in r.3).","Criminal offences with fixed pecuniary penalties and a higher penalty for licensees, managers or corporate license holders (r.7 and r.7(2)).","Obligation on the Director of Liquor Licensing to post and maintain signage at customary access routes, but non‑compliance does not invalidate the restriction (r.6 and r.6(2)).","Police seizure and disposal power for suspected containers, expressly operating despite provisions cited in the Act (r.8).","Time‑limited instrument with a statutory expiry date and a history of amendments to the definition and expiry (r.9; compilation table).","Small number of short, interactional provisions reduces interpretive complexity but concentrates legal effect in a few clauses."],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations declare the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community a liquor‑restricted area and set enforceable rules. They ban bringing or possessing alcohol in that area (r.5–7), require the Director of Liquor Licensing to post notices at access routes (r.6), and allow police to seize and dispose of suspected containers (r.8). Fines apply (higher for licensees) and the regulations remain in force until 18 September 2028 unless repealed (r.9)."},"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"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose of restricting alcohol in the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community. The only amendments have been technical updates to the community boundary description (2022) and extensions of the expiry date (2013, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023). No expansion of substantive prohibitions or application to new areas."},"complexity_factors":["Only 8 substantive regulations (one deleted)","Single defined term in interpretation section","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic","Minimal cross-referencing (only references to sections 155 and 175 of the parent Act)","Straightforward penalty structure with only two tiers (licensees vs others)","Simple sunset clause with multiple extension amendments (2013, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023)"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a Western Australian law that creates a **dry zone** (restricted area) for alcohol at the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community, located on Crown Reserve 39518.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Bans alcohol** in the specified Aboriginal community area\n- Makes it an offence to bring alcohol into the area or possess it there\n- Allows police to seize and dispose of any alcohol containers (opened or unopened) if they reasonably suspect an offence\n- Requires the Director of Liquor Licensing to post warning notices at entry points to the community\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Anyone entering the Nicholson Block Aboriginal Community\n- Licensed venues and their staff face **higher penalties** ($5,000) than ordinary people ($2,000)\n- Police officers, who have powers to seize alcohol\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis is part of Australia's system of **alcohol restrictions in Indigenous communities** — a controversial policy area involving public health, community safety, and self-determination. The law automatically expires on 18 September 2028 unless renewed.\n\n**Key details:**\n- The restricted area is precisely mapped to Crown Reserve 39518 (Lot 506 on Deposited Plan 400197)\n- The ban applies to opened AND unopened containers\n- Even if warning signs aren't posted, the alcohol ban still applies (the signs are a courtesy, not a legal requirement)"},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as the legislative text is unavailable. Based on the title alone, there is no evidence of scope change from original intent — the regulation appears to be a targeted, localised liquor restriction instrument consistent with its stated purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Source document is unavailable — the legislation text cannot be reviewed or analysed","Inferred content (restricted area liquor regulations) is typically straightforward in structure","Geographic scope is narrow and localised, limiting complexity","Such regulations generally contain a small number of operative provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation (made under WA's Liquor Control Act 1988) appears to have declared the \"Nicholson Block\" a restricted area, limiting possession or consumption of alcohol there. It would mainly affect residents, workers and visitors to that locality — often remote Aboriginal communities — by curbing alcohol-related harm. For the current, authoritative text, check legislation.wa.gov.au."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010","history":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010/history","analysis":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/liquor-control-nicholson-block-restricted-area-regulations-2010/documents"}}