{"id":"tas:sr-2013-007","name":"Proclamation under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011","slug":"proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"tas","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"7 of 2013","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":187822,"registerId":"tas-tas:sr-2013-007-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Proclamation under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011","content":"> Proclamation under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011\n\nI, the Governor in and over the State of Tasmania and its Dependencies in the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Executive Council, by this my proclamation made under [section 2 of the](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2011-031#GS2@EN) [Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2011-031) fix 1 March 2013 as the day on which that Act commences.\n\n18 February 2013\n\nPETER G. UNDERWOOD\n\nGovernor\n\nBy His Excellency's Command,\n\nBRIAN WIGHTMAN\n\nMinister for Justice\n\nDisplayed and numbered in accordance with the *[Rules Publication Act 1953](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1953-050)*.\n\nNotified in the *Gazette* on 27 February 2013\n\nThis proclamation is administered in the Department of Justice.","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This is a commencement proclamation with a single, narrow purpose: to activate the parent Act. It has not expanded beyond its original intent because it has no substantive content of its own — it merely executes a mechanical function under section 2 of the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011."},"complexity_factors":["Single operative provision (fixing a commencement date)","No defined terms","No cross-references to other legislation beyond citation of the parent Act","No conditional logic or exceptions","Standard formal language typical of commencement proclamations","Total length: approximately 150 words of substantive content"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a short official notice (called a 'proclamation') that sets the start date for the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 in Tasmania. \n\n**What it does:**\n- **Fixes the commencement date** — the Act officially comes into force on **1 March 2013**\n- **Who made it:** The Tasmanian Governor (Peter G. Underwood), acting on advice from the Executive Council (the Premier and senior ministers)\n- **Who it affects:** Anyone involved in court proceedings in Tasmania, particularly people who might be declared 'vexatious litigants' (people who repeatedly bring hopeless or harassing legal cases)\n\n**Why it matters:**\nWithout this proclamation, the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 would remain just words on paper — it wouldn't actually apply to anyone. This document 'switches on' the law, allowing Tasmanian courts to start restricting people who abuse the legal system by filing frivolous or malicious lawsuits repeatedly."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"A commencement proclamation has a single, fixed purpose: to bring legislation into force on a specified date. There is no scope to change from original intent — the document does exactly and only what a proclamation of this type is designed to do."},"complexity_factors":["The document itself is extremely brief — it is a commencement proclamation only, not the substantive legislation","No operative legal provisions are contained within this document","The underlying Act (Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011) has moderate complexity, but that complexity is not present here","Minimal interpretive or definitional challenges"],"plain_english_summary":"This Proclamation by the Governor of Tasmania brought the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 into operation on 27 February 2013. It doesn’t change the law’s text — it simply sets the date the Act became effective.\n\nThe underlying Act lets courts declare repeat, meritless litigants “vexatious,” requiring court permission before they can start new proceedings, protecting targets of abusive lawsuits and giving judges a tool to curb misuse of the courts."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[{"type":"other","section":"Currency of version / Status Information","severity":"low","reasoning":"The assurance that legislation is 'usually updated within 3 working days after a change' is rendered meaningless if no changes have occurred in nearly 8 years. The currency claim becomes a tautology: the version is current because nothing has changed, but the 3-working-day promise implies a dynamic update system that has had no occasion to operate. This is not a legal flaw per se but a structural absurdity in the metadata framework.","confidence":0.6,"description":"The document states it is 'current from 27 February 2013 to date (accessed 5 April 2026 at 18:46)' while the file was last modified on 13 August 2018. If the legislation has not been amended since 2018 yet is described as current to 2026, this creates an unverifiable claim of currency spanning nearly 8 years without modification, undermining the stated 3-working-day update guarantee."},{"type":"impossible_compliance","section":"Proclamation under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 - Document Structure","severity":"high","reasoning":"A proclamation with no operative text cannot fulfil its legal function. Under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 (Tas), a proclamation is presumably required to perform a specific legal act (such as fixing a commencement date or designating a court). Without any operative clauses, the instrument is legally vacuous and cannot be complied with, relied upon, or enforced by any party or court. Any legal effect it purports to have is indeterminate.","confidence":0.75,"description":"The proclamation document, which is the operative legal instrument, contains no substantive operative provisions whatsoever. A Proclamation is a formal executive instrument used to bring legislation into force or declare specific legal facts. This document appears to consist entirely of metadata, status information, and navigation elements, with no actual proclamation content."},{"type":"other","section":"Status Information - Authorisation","severity":"medium","reasoning":"Using a file modification date as a substitute for proper authorisation information is a category error. Legal authorisation requires identification of the authorising person or office, the empowering provision, and the date of execution. A file modification timestamp satisfies none of these requirements and could mislead users about the instrument's legal authority and validity.","confidence":0.7,"description":"The document states 'File last modified 13 August 2018' under the heading 'Authorisation', conflating a file system timestamp with a legal concept of authorisation. Authorisation in a legislative context should refer to the authority under which the instrument is made, not when a digital file was last edited."}],"contradictions":[{"severity":"low","section_a":"Currency of version: 'usually updated within 3 working days after a change'","section_b":"Authorisation: 'File last modified 13 August 2018'","confidence":0.65,"description":"The document simultaneously claims to be current to 5 April 2026 and to have been last modified on 13 August 2018. If currency is maintained by updates within 3 working days of legislative changes, then either no changes have occurred in nearly 8 years (making the update promise meaningless in context), or changes have occurred but the file has not been updated (directly contradicting the update commitment)."},{"severity":"high","section_a":"Document title: 'Proclamation under the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011'","section_b":"Document body: contains no operative proclamation provisions","confidence":0.8,"description":"The instrument is titled and presented as a operative legal proclamation under specific empowering legislation, but contains no operative provisions, recitals, enacting words, or substantive legal content. The title contradicts the body in that it represents itself as a substantive legal instrument while functioning only as a metadata shell."}]},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The proclamation does not change the content or scope of the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011; it solely brings the Act into force in Tasmania on 1 March 2013 and records administration and notification arrangements."},"complexity_factors":["Single-purpose instrument: fixes only a commencement date","Direct statutory reference limited to s 2 of the Act","No amendments to substantive law or procedural rules","Clear, minimal acting parties (Governor, Executive Council, Minister, Dept of Justice)","Routine administrative formalities (Gazette notification, publication under rules)","Short text with no delegated discretion or conditional provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"This proclamation sets 1 March 2013 as the day the Vexatious Proceedings Act 2011 begins to operate in Tasmania (made under s 2). It brings the Act’s rules into force so courts, litigants and administrators are bound by them from that date.\n\nMechanically, the Governor (with Executive Council advice) fixed the commencement date and the Department of Justice administers the proclamation; the immediate effect is that affected parties must comply with the Act from 1 March 2013."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011","history":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011/history","analysis":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/proclamation-under-the-vexatious-proceedings-act-2011/documents"}}