{"id":"sl-2023-22","name":"Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices) Regulation 2023","slug":"magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"act","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"22 of 2023","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":173507,"registerId":"act-sl-2023-22-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices) Regulation 2023","content":"Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nMagistrates Court (Planning\nInfringement Notices) Regulation 2023\nSL2023-22\nmade under the\nMagistrates Court Act 1930\nRepublication No 1\nEffective: 27 November 2023\nRepublication date: 27 November 2023\nRegulation not amended\n\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAbout this republication\nThe republished law\nThis is a republication of the Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices) Regulation\n2023, made under the Magistrates Court Act 1930 (including any amendment made under the\nLegislation Act 2001, part 11.3 (Editorial changes)) as in force on 27 November 2023. It also\nincludes any commencement, repeal or expiry affecting this republished law.\nThe legislation history and amendment history of the republished law are set out in endnotes 3\nand 4.\nKinds of republications\nThe Parliamentary Counsel’s Office prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws (see the ACT\nlegislation register at www.legislation.act.gov.au):\n• authorised republications to which the Legislation Act 2001 applies\n• unauthorised republications.\nThe status of this republication appears on the bottom of each page.\nEditorial amendments\nThe Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel to make editorial\namendments and other changes of a formal nature when preparing a law for republication.\nEditorial changes do not change the effect of the law, but have effect as if they had been made by\nan Act commencing on the republication date (see Legislation Act 2001, s 115 and s 117). The\nchanges are made if the Parliamentary Counsel considers they are desirable to bring the law into\nline, or more closely into line, with current legislative drafting practice.\nThis republication does not include amendments made under part 11.3 (see endnote 1).\nUncommenced provisions and amendments\nIf a provision of the republished law has not commenced, the symbol U appears immediately\nbefore the provision heading. Any uncommenced amendments that affect this republished law\nare accessible on the ACT legislation register (www.legislation.act.gov.au). For more\ninformation, see the home page for this law on the register.\nModifications\nIf a provision of the republished law is affected by a current modification, the\nsymbol M appears immediately before the provision heading. The text of the modifying\nprovision appears in the endnotes. For the legal status of modifications, see the Legislation\nAct 2001, section 95.\nPenalties\nAt the republication date, the value of a penalty unit for an offence against this law is $160 for an\nindividual and $810 for a corporation (see Legislation Act 2001, s 133).\n\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\ncontents 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nMagistrates Court (Planning\nInfringement Notices) Regulation 2023\nmade under the\nMagistrates Court Act 1930\nContents\nPage\n1 Name of regulation 2\n3 Dictionary 2\n4 Notes 2\n5 Purpose of this regulation 2\n6 Administering authority 3\n7 Infringement notice offences 3\n8 Infringement notice penalties 3\n9 Contents of infringement notice—identifying authorised person 3\n10 Contents of infringement notices—other information 4\n11 Contents of reminder notices—identifying authorised person 4\n\nContents\nPage\ncontents 2 Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\nR1\n27/11/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n12 Authorised people for infringement notice offences 4\nSchedule 1 Planning Act 2023 infringement notice\noffences and penalties 5\nDictionary 6\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes 7\n2 Abbreviation key 7\n3 Legislation history 8\n4 Amendment history 9\n\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\npage 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nMagistrates Court (Planning\nInfringement Notices) Regulation 2023\nmade under the\nMagistrates Court Act 1930\n\nSection 1\npage 2 Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\nR1\n27/11/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n1 Name of regulation\nThis regulation is the Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement\nNotices) Regulation 2023.\n3 Dictionary\nThe dictionary at the end of this regulation is part of this regulation.\nNote 1 The dictionary at the end of this regulation defines certain terms used in\nthis regulation, and includes references (signpost definitions) to other\nterms defined elsewhere.\nFor example, the signpost definition ‘inspector—see the Planning\nAct 2023, dictionary.’ means that the term ‘inspector’ is defined in that\ndictionary and the definition applies to this regulation.\nNote 2 A definition in the dictionary (including a signpost definition) applies to\nthe entire regulation unless the definition, or another provision of the\nregulation, provides otherwise or the contrary intention otherwise appears\n(see Legislation Act, s 155 and s 156 (1)).\n4 Notes\nA note included in this regulation is explanatory and is not part of this\nregulation.\n5 Purpose of this regulation\nThe purpose of this regulation is to provide for infringement notices\nunder the Magistrates Court Act 1930, part 3.8 for certain offences\nagainst the Planning Act 2023.\nNote The Magistrates Court Act 1930, pt 3.8 provides a system of infringement\nnotices for offences under various territory laws. The infringement notice\nsystem is intended to provide an alternative to prosecution.\n\nSection 6\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\npage 3\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n6 Administering authority\nThe administering authority for an infringement notice offence\nagainst the Planning Act 2023 is the territory planning authority.\n7 Infringement notice offences\nThe Magistrates Court Act 1930, part 3.8 applies to an offence against\na provision of the Planning Act 2023 mentioned in schedule 1,\ncolumn 2.\n8 Infringement notice penalties\n(1) The penalty payable by an individual for an offence against the\nPlanning Act 2023, under an infringement notice for the offence, is\nthe amount mentioned in schedule 1, column 4 for the offence.\n(2) The penalty payable by a corporation for an offence against the\nPlanning Act 2023, under an infringement notice for the offence, is\n5 times the amount mentioned in schedule 1, column 4 for the\noffence.\n(3) The cost of serving a reminder notice for an infringement notice\noffence against the Planning Act 2023 is $34.\n9 Contents of infringement notice—identifying authorised\nperson\nAn infringement notice served on a person by an authorised person\nfor an infringement notice offence against the Planning Act 2023\nmust identify the authorised person by—\n(a) the authorised person’s full name, or surname and initials; or\n(b) any unique number given, for this regulation, to the authorised\nperson by the administering authority.\n\nSection 10\npage 4 Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\nR1\n27/11/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n10 Contents of infringement notices—other information\n(1) An infringement notice served on a company by an authorised person\nfor an infringement notice offence against the Planning Act 2023\nmust include the company’s ACN.\nNote The requirement under this section is additional to the requirement under\nthe Magistrates Court Act 1930, s 121 (1) (c).\n(2) In this section:\ncompany means a company registered under the Corporations Act.\n11 Contents of reminder notices—identifying authorised\nperson\nA reminder notice served on a person by an authorised person for an\ninfringement notice offence against the Planning Act 2023 must\nidentify the authorised person by—\n(a) the authorised person’s full name, or surname and initials; or\n(b) any unique number given, for this regulation, to the authorised\nperson by the administering authority.\n12 Authorised people for infringement notice offences\nAn inspector may serve the following:\n(a) an infringement notice for an infringement notice offence\nagainst the Planning Act 2023;\n(b) a reminder notice for an infringement notice offence against the\nPlanning Act 2023.\n\nPlanning Act 2023 infringement notice offences and penalties Schedule 1\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\npage 5\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nSchedule 1 Planning Act 2023 infringement\nnotice offences and penalties\n(see s 7 and s 8)\ncolumn 1\nitem\ncolumn 2\noffence provision\ncolumn 3\noffence penalty\n(penalty units)\ncolumn 4\ninfringement penalty ($)\n1 403 (4) 60 1 200\n2 404 (4) 60 1 200\n3 406 (1) 60 1 200\n4 432 (1) 60 1 200\n5 438 (1) 60 1 200\n6 453 (1) and (2) 60 1 200\n7 473 (4) 10 200\n\nDictionary\npage 6 Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\nR1\n27/11/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nDictionary\n(see s 3)\nNote 1 The Legislation Act contains definitions relevant to this regulation.\nFor example:\n• corporation\n• Corporations Act\n• individual\n• territory planning authority.\nNote 2 Terms used in this regulation have the same meaning that they have in\nthe Magistrates Court Act 1930. For example, the following terms are\ndefined in the Act, dict:\n• administering authority\n• authorised person\n• infringement notice\n• infringement notice offence\n• reminder notice.\ninspector—see the Planning Act 2023, dictionary.\n\nEndnotes\nAbout the endnotes 1\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\npage 7\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes\nAmending and modifying laws are annotated in the legislation history and the\namendment history. Current modifications are not included in the republished law\nbut are set out in the endnotes.\nNot all editorial amendments made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 are\nannotated in the amendment history. Full details of any amendments can be\nobtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.\nUncommenced amending laws are not included in the republished law. The details\nof these laws are underlined in the legislation history. Uncommenced expiries are\nunderlined in the legislation history and amendment history.\nIf all the provisions of the law have been renumbered, a table of renumbered\nprovisions gives details of previous and current numbering.\nThe endnotes also include a table of earlier republications.\n2 Abbreviation key\nA = Act NI = Notifiable instrument\nAF = Approved form o = order\nam = amended om = omitted/repealed\namdt = amendment ord = ordinance\nAR = Assembly resolution orig = original\nch = chapter par = paragraph/subparagraph\nCN = Commencement notice pres = present\ndef = definition prev = previous\nDI = Disallowable instrument (prev...) = previously\ndict = dictionary pt = part\ndisallowed = disallowed by the Legislative r = rule/subrule\nAssembly reloc = relocated\ndiv = division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired R[X] = Republication No\nGaz = gazette RI = reissue\nhdg = heading s = section/subsection\nIA = Interpretation Act 1967 sch = schedule\nins = inserted/added sdiv = subdivision\nLA = Legislation Act 2001 SL = Subordinate law\nLR = legislation register sub = substituted\nLRA = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 underlining = whole or part not commenced\nmod = modified/modification or to be expired\n\nEndnotes\n3 Legislation history\npage 8 Magistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\nR1\n27/11/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices) Regulation 2023\nSL2023-22\nnotified LR 18 September 2023\ns 1, s 2 commenced 18 September 2023 (LA s 75 (1))\nremainder commenced 27 November 2023 (s 2 and see Planning\nAct 2023 A2023-18, s 2 (2) and CN2023-10)\n\nEndnotes\nAmendment history 4\nR1\n27/11/23\nMagistrates Court (Planning Infringement Notices)\nRegulation 2023\nEffective: 27/11/23\npage 9\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n4 Amendment history\nCommencement\ns 2 om LA s 89 (4)\n© Australian Capital Territory 2023","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This regulation narrowly implements an existing mechanism (the Magistrates Court Act 1930 infringement notice system) for a defined set of offences in the Planning Act 2023. It does not broaden the kinds of conduct captured beyond the listed Planning Act provisions, nor add substantive new offences. The instrument is focused on operational details: which offences are eligible, the administering authority, penalty amounts, identification and administrative requirements, and who may serve notices. For those reasons the regulation does not appear to have expanded the original statutory scope; it operationalises the infringement‑notice alternative for specific planning offences rather than changing policy scope."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: 12 substantive sections plus a schedule.","Single schedule listing 7 specific Planning Act provisions and corresponding infringement amounts.","Cross‑references to two separate Acts for key concepts and definitions: Magistrates Court Act 1930 (infringement framework) and Planning Act 2023 (offence definitions, inspector).","Simple conditional rules: corporate penalty multiplier (s8(2)) and reminder notice cost (s8(3)).","Several procedural content requirements (identifying authorised person, ACN inclusion) that require administrative coordination between the territory planning authority and inspectors (s9–s11).","Limited number of defined terms in the regulation itself; relies on external dictionaries (Magistrates Court Act and Planning Act) for key terms (notably \"inspector\").","No nested exceptions or multi‑tiered penalties; relatively few conditional branches."],"plain_english_summary":"**What this regulation does (mechanically)**\n\n- Creates rules for issuing infringement notices (on-the-spot fines as an alternative to court prosecution) for a small set of offences in the Planning Act 2023 (see Schedule 1). (s5, s7; Schedule 1)\n- Names the territory planning authority as the body that administers those infringement notices. (s6)\n- Sets the monetary amount payable under an infringement notice for each listed offence (Schedule 1, column 4) for individuals, and makes the corporate penalty 5 times the individual amount. (s8; Schedule 1)\n- Requires an authorised person who serves an infringement notice or a reminder notice to be identified on the notice by full name (or surname and initials) or by a unique number given by the administering authority. (s9, s11)\n- Requires infringement notices served on companies to include the company’s Australian Company Number (ACN). (s10)\n- Fixes the cost of serving a reminder notice at $34. (s8(3))\n- Specifies that an \"inspector\" (as defined in the Planning Act 2023) may serve both infringement notices and reminder notices under this regulation. (s12)\n\n**Who this affects**\n\n- Individuals and companies who commit one of the specific Planning Act 2023 offences listed in Schedule 1. The Schedule lists 7 offence provisions from the Planning Act and the infringement amount for each. (Schedule 1)\n- The territory planning authority, which administers the scheme and assigns unique numbers to authorised persons. (s6, s9(b), s11(b))\n- Inspectors (as defined under the Planning Act 2023), who are the authorised officers empowered to issue the notices. (s12)\n\n**Why it matters (official rationale and practical consequences)**\n\n- Officially, the regulation implements the infringement notice mechanism under the Magistrates Court Act 1930 as an alternative to prosecution for the listed planning offences. (s5 note)\n\n- Practical effects and decision/ incentive structure:\n  - Individuals or companies who commit a listed offence can be issued an infringement notice instead of being prosecuted, which typically means paying a fixed monetary amount to resolve the matter without a court appearance (Schedule 1; Magistrates Court Act pt 3.8 referenced in s7). (s7; Schedule 1)\n  - Corporations face a higher immediate financial cost for the same infringement because the corporate infringement penalty is five times the individual amount. (s8(2))\n  - The administering authority (territory planning authority) decides which officers are authorised and provides unique identifying numbers for those officers; inspectors exercise the operational discretion to issue notices. Who pays: the recipient of the notice. Who decides: inspectors, under the administering authority’s delegation. (s6, s9–s12)\n  - Companies must be identified by ACN on notices, which is an extra administrative requirement when the recipient is a company. (s10)\n  - There is a set administrative charge for reminder notices ($34), adding a small extra cost if a notice is not paid promptly. (s8(3))\n\n**Trade-offs, implementation considerations and likely effects on behaviour**\n\n- Administrative cost vs court cost: The regulation shifts some enforcement from court prosecutions to an administrative fines regime. That typically lowers transaction costs for the territory (fewer prosecutions) and for many recipients (faster resolution without court), at the cost of removing immediate judicial determination unless the recipient contests the matter in court.\n\n- Discretion and consistency: Operational outcomes depend on inspectors’ exercise of discretion (who they issue notices to, and in what circumstances). The regulation requires identification of authorised officers (s9, s11) and that the territory planning authority administer the scheme (s6), but it does not prescribe detailed enforcement criteria in this instrument. This concentrates decision power at the inspector/administration level (s6, s12).\n\n- Differential impact on companies: Corporations are penalised at 5× the individual rate under the infringement system (s8(2)). Companies receiving an infringement notice must also have their ACN recorded on the notice (s10), which is an extra compliance/administrative detail.\n\n- Small reminder-cost disincentive: A $34 charge for serving a reminder notice creates a fixed additional cost if an initial infringement notice is not paid. (s8(3))\n\n**Concrete references to where to find the rules in the regulation**\n- Administering authority: s6\n- Application of Magistrates Court Act infringement system to listed Planning Act offences: s7\n- Penalty amounts and corporation multiplier: s8 and Schedule 1\n- Identification requirements for authorised persons (infringement and reminder notices): s9, s11\n- ACN requirement for company notices: s10\n- Who may serve notices: s12\n\n(Endnotes and the Dictionary cross‑reference definitions in the Magistrates Court Act 1930 and the Planning Act 2023 for terms such as \"inspector\", \"authorised person\", \"administering authority\", and the value of a penalty unit.)"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: establishing infringement notice procedures for Planning Act 2023 offences. It does not expand beyond this narrow administrative function."},"complexity_factors":["Very short regulation (only 12 sections plus a schedule)","Minimal defined terms (only 1 explicit definition in the dictionary: 'inspector', with others imported by reference)","Simple structure: purpose, administering authority, offences, penalties, notice contents, and authorised persons","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic","Cross-references limited to the Magistrates Court Act 1930 and Planning Act 2023 for definitions and context","Schedule 1 is a straightforward table mapping offence provisions to penalty amounts"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation lets authorised planning inspectors issue on-the-spot infringement notices for specified breaches of the Planning Act 2023 (listed in Schedule 1) as an alternative to court. It sets penalties at $1,200 for individuals and $6,000 for corporations, requires certain details on notices (including inspector ID and company ACN), and charges a $34 reminder fee for unpaid fines.\n\nIt affects ACT developers, builders, landowners, inspectors and the territory planning authority by providing a faster, cheaper way to resolve minor planning offences."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023","history":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023/history","analysis":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/magistrates-court-planning-infringement-notices-regulation-2023/documents"}}