{"id":"printers-and-newspapers-act-1984","name":"Printers and Newspapers Act 1984","slug":"printers-and-newspapers-act-1984","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"nt","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":30434,"registerId":"nt-printers-and-newspapers-act-1984-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Printers and Newspapers Act 1984","content":"NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA\nPRINTERS AND NEWSPAPERS ACT 1984\nAs in force at 14 October 2015\nTable of provisions\nPart I Preliminary\n1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1\n2 Repeal ............................................................................................. 1\n3 Definitions ........................................................................................ 1\nPart II Printing of papers and newspapers\n4 Printer's name to be printed on each published paper..................... 3\n5 Printer to keep record of employer's name and address ................. 3\n6 Names of printer and publisher to be printed on newspapers.......... 3\nPart III Miscellaneous\n7 Name printed prima facie evidence ................................................. 4\n8 Discovery in cases of libel in newspapers ....................................... 4\n9 Delivering unauthorized papers, &c. ................................................ 5\n10 Criminal liability of executive officer of body corporate .................... 5\n11 Exemptions ...................................................................................... 6\n12 Proceedings to be instituted by authorized person only .................. 6\nPart IV Transitional matters for Statute Law\nAmendment (Directors' Liability) Act 2015\n13 Offences – before and after commencement................................... 7\nSchedule Acts repealed\nENDNOTES\n\n\n\nNORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA\n____________________\nAs in force at 14 October 2015\n____________________\nPRINTERS AND NEWSPAPERS ACT 1984\nAn Act relating to printers and newspapers\nPart I Preliminary\n1 Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the Printers and Newspapers Act 1984.\n2 Repeal\nThe Acts specified in the Schedule are repealed.\n3 Definitions\nIn this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\nduplicating machine does not include an offset duplicating\nmachine.\nnewspaper means a paper:\n(a) that contains public news, reports of occurrences or remarks\nor observations on public news, occurrences or political\nmatters; and\n(b) that is printed for sale or gratuitous distribution and published\nperiodically or in parts or numbers at intervals not exceeding\n36 days between each publication,\nbut does not include a paper that is printed or published by the\nauthority of a department or statutory corporation.\npaper includes a book, periodical, pamphlet, handbill, sheet of\nletterpress and paper of any description, but does not include:\n(a) a paper that is printed or published by the Government Printer\nin the course of his duty;\n(b) a paper containing matter of a commercial nature only;\n\nPart I Preliminary\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 2\n(c) a paper containing only an impression from an engraving not\nintended for publication;\n(d) a paper relating to the sale of property by auction or\notherwise;\n(e) a banknote, bill of exchange or promissory note;\n(f) a bond or other security for the payment of money;\n(g) a bill of lading, policy of insurance, letter or power of attorney,\ndeed or agreement;\n(h) a receipt for money or goods;\n(j) a paper used in proceedings in a court, including a writ,\nsummons, complaint, plaint and warrant; or\n(k) a paper declared by the Minister, by notice in the Gazette, not\nto be a paper for the purposes of this Act.\nprinter, in relation to a newspaper, means the person having the\nmanagement and control of a printing press by which the\nnewspaper is printed.\nprinting includes representing or reproducing in a paper words,\nsymbols or pictures in visible form.\nprinting press means a machine or contrivance with which a\nnewspaper is printed, and includes types, blocks, plates, stencils\nand lithographic stones, if any, that are used with the machine or\ncontrivance for the purpose of printing, but does not include:\n(a) a machine or contrivance that is the property of the Territory;\nor\n(b) a duplicating machine.\nproprietor, in relation to a newspaper, means the person having\nthe management or control of the newspaper.\npublisher, in relation to a newspaper, means the proprietor or other\nperson who arranges for the distribution of the newspaper from the\nplace where it is printed.\n\nPart II Printing of papers and newspapers\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 3\nPart II Printing of papers and newspapers\n4 Printer's name to be printed on each published paper\n(1) A person who prints for publication or dispersal, whether\ngratuitously or for money, a paper other than a newspaper, shall\ncause his name, preceded by the words \"Printed by\", and followed\nby the word \"at\" and the address at which the paper is printed by\nhim, to be printed in legible characters upon the front of that paper\nor, where that paper has more than one page, upon the first or last\npage of that paper.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\n(2) Where a paper other than a newspaper is printed by a body\ncorporate, the name of the body corporate, or some abbreviation of\nit, and the name of the person in charge of its printing business,\nand the address at which the business is carried on, shall be\nsubstituted for the particulars required to be printed under\nsubsection (1) and, apart from the substitutions specified in this\nsubsection, that subsection shall apply accordingly.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\n5 Printer to keep record of employer's name and address\nA person who prints for or in the expectation of hire, gain or profit a\npaper other than a newspaper, shall keep not less than one copy of\nthe paper for a period of not less than 6 months after it has been\nprinted and shall, as soon as practicable after it has been printed,\nprint or write on the copy the name and address of the person on\nwhose behalf that paper was printed.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\n6 Names of printer and publisher to be printed on newspapers\nThe printer of a newspaper shall, at the time of the printing:\n(a) cause his name or, where he carries on business under a\nname registered under the Business Names Registration\nAct 2011 (Cth), that name, preceded by the words \"Printed\nby\", and followed by the word \"at\" and the address at which\nthe paper is printed by him; and\n(b) the name of the publisher of the newspaper, preceded by the\nwords \"Published by\", and followed by the word \"of\" and the\naddress of the publisher,\n\nPart III Miscellaneous\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 4\nto be printed in legible characters upon the front of that newspaper\nor, where that newspaper has more than one page, upon the first or\nlast page of that newspaper.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\nPart III Miscellaneous\n7 Name printed prima facie evidence\nA paper on which is printed a name purporting to be the name of:\n(a) the printer of the paper;\n(b) where the paper is a paper other than a newspaper – the\nperson for whom or on whose instructions the paper was\nprinted; or\n(c) where the paper is a newspaper – the publisher of the\nnewspaper,\nshall be received by all courts and tribunals in any proceedings,\nwhether criminal or civil, as prima facie evidence that the person\nwhose name is so printed is:\n(d) the printer of the paper;\n(e) the person for whom or on whose instructions the paper was\nprinted; or\n(f) the publisher of the newspaper,\nas the case may be.\n8 Discovery in cases of libel in newspapers\nWhere a person commences an action in a court for the discovery\nof the name of a person concerned in a newspaper as printer,\npublisher or otherwise, or a matter relating to the printing or\npublishing of the newspaper, in order to enable him the more\neffectively to bring or carry on an action for damages by him alleged\nto have been sustained by reason of a libellous matter concerning\nhim contained in the newspaper, the defendant shall not be\npermitted to plead or demur to the claim, but shall be compellable\nto make the discovery required, but such discovery shall not be\nused for a purpose in a proceeding other than that in which the\ndiscovery is made.\n\nPart III Miscellaneous\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 5\n9 Delivering unauthorized papers, &c.\nA person shall not sell, offer for sale, gratuitously deliver, offer so to\ndeliver, leave in a public place, or otherwise expose to public view a\npaper other than a newspaper upon which the name and address at\nwhich the business is carried on of the printer is not printed as\nrequired by section 4, or upon which a fictitious or false name or\naddress at which the business is carried on is printed.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\n10 Criminal liability of executive officer of body corporate\n(1) An executive officer of a body corporate commits an offence if the\nbody corporate commits an offence by contravening a declared\nprovision (a relevant offence).\nMaximum penalty: The maximum penalty that may be imposed\non an individual for the relevant offence.\n(2) An offence against subsection (1) is a regulatory offence.\n(3) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against\nsubsection (1) if the defendant:\n(a) was not in a position to influence the conduct of the body\ncorporate in relation to the contravention; or\n(b) took reasonable steps to prevent the contravention; or\n(c) did not know, and could not reasonably have been expected\nto know, that the contravention would happen.\n(4) In deciding whether the defendant took (or failed to take)\nreasonable steps to prevent the contravention, a court must\nconsider the following:\n(a) any action the defendant took directed towards ensuring the\nfollowing (to the extent the action is relevant to the\ncontravention):\n(i) the body corporate arranged regular professional\nassessments of the body corporate's compliance with\nthe declared provision;\n(ii) the body corporate implemented any appropriate\nrecommendation arising from an assessment under\nsubparagraph (i);\n\nPart III Miscellaneous\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 6\n(iii) the body corporate's employees, agents and contractors\nhad a reasonable knowledge and understanding of the\nrequirement to comply with the declared provision;\n(b) any action the defendant took when the defendant became\naware that the contravention was, or could be, about to\nhappen.\n(5) Subsection (4) does not limit the matters the court may consider.\n(6) This section does not affect the liability of the body corporate.\n(7) This section applies whether or not the body corporate is\nprosecuted for, or found guilty of, the relevant offence.\n(8) This section does not apply if the body corporate would have a\ndefence to a prosecution for the relevant offence.\n(9) In this section:\ndeclared provision means:\n(a) section 4(1) or (2); or\n(b) a provision of the Regulations prescribed by regulation.\nexecutive officer, of a body corporate, means a director or other\nperson who is concerned with, or takes part in, the management of\nthe body corporate.\n11 Exemptions\n(1) The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, upon such terms and\nconditions as he thinks fit, exempt, for such period, if any, as is\nspecified in the notice, a paper or class of paper from a requirement\nof this Act specified in the notice, and a paper or class of paper the\nsubject of the exemption shall, accordingly, be exempt from that\nrequirement.\n(2) A paper or class of paper the subject of an exemption under\nsubsection (1) shall comply with the terms and conditions, if any,\nspecified in the notice, upon which the exemption was granted.\nMaximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.\n12 Proceedings to be instituted by authorized person only\n(1) The Minister may, by instrument in writing, authorize a person to\ninstitute proceedings for an offence against this Act.\n\nPart IV Transitional matters for Statute Law Amendment (Directors' Liability) Act 2015\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 7\n(2) Proceedings for an offence against this Act shall not be instituted by\na person other than a person who has been authorized under\nsubsection (1) for that purpose.\n(3) In proceedings for an offence against this Act, an instrument\npurporting to be signed by the Minister authorizing under\nsubsection (1) the person named in the instrument to institute\nproceedings for an offence against this Act shall be prima facie\nevidence that the person so named is so authorized.\nPart IV Transitional matters for Statute Law\nAmendment (Directors' Liability) Act 2015\n13 Offences – before and after commencement\n(1) Section 10, as inserted by the Statute Law Amendment (Directors'\nLiability) Act 2015, (the new section) applies in relation to a\nrelevant offence committed by a body corporate after the\ncommencement of Part 2, Division 30 of that Act (the\ncommencement) only if:\n(a) all the conduct constituting the relevant offence occurred after\nthe commencement; and\n(b) all the conduct of the executive officer constituting the offence\nagainst the new section occurred after the commencement.\n(2) Section 10, as in force before the commencement:\n(a) continues to apply in relation to offences committed by a body\ncorporate before the commencement; and\n(b) applies in relation to relevant offences committed by a body\ncorporate after the commencement to which, as a result of\nsubsection (1), the new section does not apply.\n\nSchedule Acts repealed\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 8\nSchedule Acts repealed\nsection 2\nNumber and year Short title\nNo. 30, 1928 Printers and Newspapers Ordinance 1928\nNo. 7, 1929 Printers and Newspapers Ordinance 1929\nNo. 16, 1934 Printers and Newspapers Ordinance 1934\n\nENDNOTES\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 9\nENDNOTES\n1 KEY\nKey to abbreviations\namd = amended od = order\napp = appendix om = omitted\nbl = by-law pt = Part\nch = Chapter r = regulation/rule\ncl = clause rem = remainder\ndiv = Division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired rep = repealed\nf = forms s = section\nGaz = Gazette sch = Schedule\nhdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision\nins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation\nlt = long title sub = substituted\nnc = not commenced\n2 LIST OF LEGISLATION\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 (Act No. 41, 1984)\nAssent date 25 September 1984\nCommenced 25 September 1984\nJustice Legislation Amendment (Penalties) Act 2010 (Act No. 12, 2010)\nAssent date 20 May 2010\nCommenced 1 July 2010 (Gaz G24, 16 June 2010, p 2)\nBusiness Names (National Uniform Legislation) Implementation Act 2012 (Act No. 8,\n2012)\nAssent date 27 April 2012\nCommenced pts 3 and 4: 28 May 2012 (Cth proclamation F2012L00891:\n19 April 2012) ; rem: 27 April 2012 (s 2)\nStatute Law Amendment (Directors' Liability) Act 2015 (Act No. 26, 2015)\nAssent date 18 September 2015\nCommenced 14 October 2015 (Gaz G41, 14 October 2015, p 3)\n3 GENERAL AMENDMENTS\nGeneral amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table\nof amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation\nAmendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: s 1.\n4 LIST OF AMENDMENTS\nss 4 – 5 amd No. 12, 2010, s 3\ns 6 amd No. 12, 2010, s 3; No. 8, 2012, s 30\ns 9 amd No. 12, 2010, s 3\ns 10 sub No. 26, 2015, s 95\ns 11 amd No. 12, 2010, s 3\npt IV hdg ins No. 26, 2015, s 96\ns 13 ins No. 26, 2015, s 96\n\nENDNOTES\nPrinters and Newspapers Act 1984 10","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation maintains its original narrow scope regulating printer identification and newspaper accountability. The 2015 amendments (Part IV and section 10) modernised corporate liability provisions but did not expand the Act's substantive reach beyond printing and newspaper publication requirements."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with only 13 operative sections plus a schedule","11 defined terms in section 3, but most are straightforward (e.g., 'newspaper', 'printer')","Simple structure: preliminary provisions, printing requirements, miscellaneous enforcement, transitional provisions","Section 10 contains nested defences and evidentiary considerations for executive officer liability, adding moderate complexity","Cross-references limited to internal Act references and one reference to Commonwealth Business Names Registration Act 2011","Penalty provisions uniformly set at 1.7 penalty units (approximately $272 as of 2024) with no complex sentencing hierarchies"],"plain_english_summary":"This Northern Territory law regulates who must put their name and address on printed materials like pamphlets, books, and newspapers. It ensures accountability by requiring printers to identify themselves on everything they print, and to keep records of who hired them. For newspapers specifically, both the printer and publisher must be named. The law also helps people sue for defamation (libel) by allowing courts to force disclosure of who printed or published offending material. It includes penalties for anonymous or falsely attributed printing, makes company directors personally liable if their company breaks these rules, and allows the Minister to grant exemptions. The law dates back to 1984 but was updated in 2015 to clarify when company executives can be held responsible for offences."},"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":"Yes. The original, narrow operational core of the Act — obligations to print a printer's or publisher's name and address on papers and newspapers, and related recordkeeping and evidentiary rules (ss 3–9) — has been extended by later amendments. Notably, in 2015 the Act acquired an explicit corporate executive‑officer liability regime (s 10) that attaches personal regulatory liability to directors/executive officers for corporate breaches unless statutory defences apply; this expands the Act from an identification/traceability statute into one that also drives corporate compliance governance. The Act also added procedural centralisation: prosecutions may only be instituted by Minister‑authorised persons (s 12) and the Minister can grant exemptions by Gazette notice (s 11). Transitional rules (s 13) further limit application of the new executive‑officer liability to conduct after commencement, reflecting a change in scope and enforcement reach compared with the original 1984 instrument."},"complexity_factors":["Relatively short Act (one substantive Part plus miscellaneous provisions)","11 defined or specially excluded items in the definition section (s 3) and multiple defined terms (newspaper; paper; printer; printing press; proprietor; publisher)","Nested defences and evidentiary rules in s 10 (executive officer liability) with mandatory judicial considerations (s 10(4))","Ministerial discretions: exemptions (s 11) and prosecution authorisations (s 12), requiring administrative processes and Gazette/ written instruments","Cross‑references and amendments: references to Regulations and to external Acts (Business Names Registration Act 2011 (Cth) in s 6; Regulations in s 10)","Transitional limitation on application of s 10 to post‑commencement conduct (s 13)"],"plain_english_summary":"This law requires printed materials to display who printed or published them and, for commercial jobs, that printers keep a retained copy showing the commissioning party. It gives claimants limited means to identify publishers in defamation cases, creates low monetary penalties for breaches, allows ministerial exemptions and controls who may prosecute, and exposes corporate officers to regulatory liability unless they can show they took reasonable preventive steps. It mainly affects printers, publishers, distributors, corporate managers and anyone commissioning printed works."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984","history":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984/history","analysis":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/printers-and-newspapers-act-1984/documents"}}