{"id":"royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992","name":"Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992","slug":"royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110022,"registerId":"wa-royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nRoyal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992\n\nWestern Australia\n\nRoyal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992\n\nContents\n\n1. Short title 1\n\n2. Commencement 1\n\n3. Effect of this Act 1\n\n4. Definitions 2\n\n13. Copies 4\n\n14. Availability of records as State archives 4\n\n15. Performance of Royal Commission’s functions under this Act 6\n\n16. Protection relating to publication 7\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 8\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nRoyal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992\n\nAn Act relating to the manner in which the records and materials held by the Royal Commission appointed by the Governor on 8 January 1991 are to be dealt with after the Commission has completed its inquiries and reports, and for related purposes.\n\n##### 1. Short title\n\nThis Act may be cited as the *Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992* 1.\n\n##### 2. Commencement\n\nThis Act comes into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent 1.\n\n##### 3. Effect of this Act\n\n(1) This Act has effect notwithstanding —\n\n(a) the *Royal Commissions Act 1968*;\n\n(b) the *State Records Act 2000*;\n\n(c) any other written law whether enacted or made before or after this Act is enacted; or\n\n(d) any other law.\n\n(2) Notwithstanding any written or other law a record of the Royal Commission shall not be dealt with in a way that prevents it from being dealt with under this Act.\n\n(3) Nothing in this Act affects the operation of section 20 of the *Royal Commissions Act 1968*.\n\n(4) This Act binds the Crown in right of the State and, subject to the limits of the legislative power of the State, the Crown in all its other capacities.\n\n[Section 3 amended: No. 53 of 2000 s. 23.]\n\n##### 4. Definitions\n\n(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears —\n\n  administrative record means a record of an administrative nature relating to the operations of the Royal Commission;\n\n  confidential record means —\n\n(a) a record obtained by or on behalf of the Royal Commission (whether or not under compulsion) that is the subject of an assurance of confidentiality given by or on behalf of the Royal Commission; or\n\n(b) a record of a statement, or of an interview or of information obtained by or on behalf of the Royal Commission, being a statement, or an interview or information (whether or not obtained under compulsion) that is the subject of an assurance of confidentiality given by or on behalf of the Royal Commission,\n\nbut does not include a transcript record;\n\n  copy, in relation to a record, includes a copy that is in a different form or medium than the record itself;\n\n  Director of State Records  means the Director of State Records under the *State Records Act 2000*;\n\n  DPP means the Director of Public Prosecutions under the *Director of Public Prosecutions Act 1991*;\n\n  former Commissioners means the persons who were the members of the Royal Commission before it delivered its report under the terms of reference;\n\n  internal working document means a working record prepared by the Royal Commission or a member or an officer of the Royal Commission for internal purposes of the Royal Commission;\n\n  Library Act means the *Library Board of Western Australia Act 1951*;\n\n  Library Board means The Library Board of Western Australia constituted under the Library Act;\n\n  officer of the Royal Commission means a counsel or other person appointed, employed or engaged to assist the Royal Commission;\n\n  prescribed exhibit means an exhibit received by the Royal Commission in the course of a hearing relating to item 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 or 1.4 of Schedule 1 to paragraph (1) 1 of the terms of reference;\n\n  private submission means a submission made to the Royal Commission in respect of paragraph (1) 1 (e) or (1) 2 (e) of the terms of reference;\n\n  record has the same meaning as it has in the *State Records Act 2000*;\n\n  record of the Royal Commission means a confidential record, an internal working document, a private submission, an administrative record, a transcript record or any other record prepared or obtained for the purposes of the Royal Commission by the Royal Commission or a member or an officer of the Royal Commission;\n\n  regulatory body means —\n\n(a) the Police Force;\n\n(b) the Australian Federal Police;\n\n(c) the Australian Crime Commission;\n\n(d) the Police Force of another State or a Territory; or\n\n(e) any other regulatory, revenue collecting, or prosecuting body or authority whether in the State or elsewhere;\n\n  Royal Commission means the Royal Commission constituted by the persons appointed by the commission issued by the Governor on 8 January 1991;\n\nState archives collection  has the same definition as in the *State Records Act 2000*;\n\n  terms of reference means the terms of reference of the Royal Commission set out in the commission issued by the Governor on 8 January 1991 and amended from time to time;\n\n  transcript record means a record of evidence taken by the Royal Commission whether taken in private or not.\n\n(2) A reference in this Act to the delivery of the Royal Commission’s report shall be read as a reference to the delivery of its final report.\n\n[Section 4 amended: No. 67 of 1992 s. 4; No. 53 of 2000 s. 24; No. 74 of 2004 s. 71.]\n\n[**5‑12.** Deleted: No. 53 of 2000 s. 25.]\n\n##### 13. Copies\n\n(1) If the records of the Royal Commission include a copy of or extract from a record, that copy or extract shall be dealt with in the same way as the record.\n\n[(2), (3) deleted]\n\n[Section 13 amended: No. 53 of 2000 s. 26.]\n\n##### 14. Availability of records as State archives\n\n(1) This section applies to all records of the Royal Commission that form part of the State archives collection, having been transferred under section 14(2) of the *State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act 2000* to that collection by the Library Board.\n\n(1a) Subject to this section, the Director of State Records shall keep the records to which this section applies as State archives in accordance with the *State Records Act 2000*.\n\n(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), no access shall be provided to —\n\n(a) a confidential record, internal working document or private submission to which this section applies; or\n\n(b) a transcript record to which this section applies that is the subject of a direction by the Royal Commission prohibiting its publication,\n\nexcept to the State, for the purposes of the investigation and prosecution of offences, or to the former Commissioners for any purpose arising from the performance of their public functions as members of the Royal Commission.\n\n(3) Access to —\n\n(a) a transcript record referred to in subsection (2)(b); or\n\n(b) a prescribed exhibit that is a confidential record and a record to which this section applies,\n\nshall be provided to the State for the purposes of the conduct of civil litigation involving the State.\n\n(4) Access to a record referred to in subsection (2)(a) or (b) shall be provided to a person if the Supreme Court so orders.\n\n(5) An order shall not be made under subsection (4) unless the Supreme Court is satisfied —\n\n(a) that it is in the public interest for the confidentiality or restriction on publication applicable to the document to be dispensed with to the extent provided by the order;\n\n(b) that it is in the public interest for the person concerned to be provided with access to the record;\n\n(c) that at least 5 years have elapsed since the completion of all civil and criminal proceedings relating to events the subject of the terms of reference; and\n\n(d) that in the case of a record that is a restricted access archive under the *State Records Act 2000*, the provision of access to the record would not contravene or be inconsistent with the restrictions on access to the record under that Act.\n\n(6) An order under subsection (4) may be made on such conditions as the Supreme Court thinks fit.\n\n(7) An application to the Supreme Court for an order under subsection (4) may be made in accordance with Rules of Court.\n\n(8) Without limiting section 3(1), the prohibition in subsection (2) has effect notwithstanding Part 6 of the *State Records Act 2000*.\n\n(9) This section ceases to have effect in relation to a confidential record, internal working document, private submission or transcript record, as the case may be, when it becomes 75 years old as determined under section 3(6) of the *State Records Act 2000* unless under section 48 of that Act, the State Records Commission has directed that it is an exceptionally sensitive archive in which case that section applies to it.\n\n[Section 14 amended: No. 67 of 1992 s. 7; No. 53 of 2000 s. 27.]\n\n##### 15. Performance of Royal Commission’s functions under this Act\n\n[(1)‑(7) deleted]\n\n(8) No action of the Royal Commission or the former Commissioners, or failure or omission of the Royal Commission or the former Commissioners to act, under section 6, 7, 8, 9 or 13, or under the Library Act as applied by section 10 or 14, or under this section (as this Act and that Act operated before the commencement of the *State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act 2000*) is liable to be challenged, appealed against, reviewed, quashed or called in question in or by any court on any account.\n\n[Section 15 amended: No. 67 of 1992 s. 8; No. 53 of 2000 s. 28.]\n\n##### 16. Protection relating to publication\n\n(1) In this section **“prescribed person”** means —\n\n(a) the Crown in right of the State;\n\n(b) the Royal Commission;\n\n(c) a person who is or has been —\n\n(i) a member of the Royal Commission;\n\n(ii) an officer of the Royal Commission; or\n\n(iii) a person appointed, employed or engaged by the Crown in right of the State;\n\nor\n\n(d) a person to whom a function has been delegated under section 15.\n\n(2) No action for defamation or breach of confidence lies against a prescribed person in respect of the publication of any record of the Royal Commission —\n\n(a) in the ordinary course of the conduct of the inquiry of the Royal Commission under the terms of reference; or\n\n(b) in the performance of functions under this Act.\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of the *Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992* and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table. The table also contains information about any reprint.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Short title** | **Number and year** | **Assent** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| *Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992* | 43 of 1992 | 27 Oct 1992 | 27 Oct 1992 (see s. 2) |\n| *Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Amendment Act 1992* | 67 of 1992 | 11 Dec 1992 | 27 Oct 1992 (see s. 2) |\n| *State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act 2000* Pt. 9 | 53 of 2000 | 28 Nov 2000 | 1 Dec 2001 (see s. 2 and *Gazette* 30 Nov 2001 p. 6067) |\n| **Reprint 1: The** ***Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992* as** **at 6 Feb 2004** (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n| *Australian Crime Commission (Western Australia) Act 2004* s. 71 | 74 of 2004 | 8 Dec 2004 | 1 Feb 2005 (see s. 2 and *Gazette* 31 Dec 2004 p. 7130) |\n\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\nadministrative record 4(1)\n\nconfidential record 4(1)\n\ncopy 4(1)\n\nDirector of State Records 4(1)\n\nDPP 4(1)\n\nformer Commissioners 4(1)\n\ninternal working document 4(1)\n\nLibrary Act 4(1)\n\nLibrary Board 4(1)\n\nofficer of the Royal Commission 4(1)\n\nprescribed exhibit 4(1)\n\nprivate submission 4(1)\n\nrecord 4(1)\n\nrecord of the Royal Commission 4(1)\n\nregulatory body 4(1)\n\nRoyal Commission 4(1)\n\nState archives collection 4(1)\n\nterms of reference 4(1)\n\ntranscript record 4(1)\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original Act appears to have been more comprehensive, containing sections 5-12 and detailed subsections in 13 and 15 that have since been deleted. The 2000 amendments by the State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act significantly streamlined the Act, removing what appear to have been detailed procedural provisions about record transfer and management, replacing them with references to the general State Records Act regime. The current version is essentially a 'wrapper' that preserves specific confidentiality protections and access restrictions for this particular Royal Commission's records while delegating general archival management to the State Records Act 2000."},"complexity_factors":["15 defined terms in section 4, including nested definitions (e.g., 'confidential record' excludes 'transcript record')","Multiple cross-references to other Acts (Royal Commissions Act 1968, State Records Act 2000, Library Board of Western Australia Act 1951)","Deleted sections (5-12, and subsections 13(2)-(3), 15(1)-(7)) indicating significant legislative surgery in 2000","Conditional access provisions with multiple cumulative requirements in section 14(5) (public interest test, 5-year waiting period, consistency with State Records Act)","Sunset provision for restrictions at 75 years with exception for 'exceptionally sensitive' archives (section 14(9))","Notwithstanding clauses that override other laws (section 3)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Western Australian law deals with what happens to the records of a specific Royal Commission (the one appointed on 8 January 1991) after it finished its work.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Takes precedence over other laws**: This Act overrides other legislation, including the general Royal Commissions Act and State Records Act, to ensure these specific records are handled in a particular way (Section 3).\n- **Defines different types of records**: It categorises the Commission's materials into types like confidential records (things given under promises of secrecy), transcript records (official evidence), internal working documents, private submissions, and administrative records (Section 4).\n- **Restricts access**: Most sensitive records—confidential material, internal working documents, and private submissions—cannot be accessed by the public. Transcript records that the Commission said couldn't be published are also restricted (Section 14(2)).\n- **Allows limited access**: The State can access these records for investigating and prosecuting crimes, or for civil court cases involving the State. Former Commissioners can access them for their public duties. The Supreme Court can order access for other people, but only if it's in the public interest, at least 5 years have passed since all related court cases finished, and the record is at least 75 years old (unless it's deemed \"exceptionally sensitive\") (Sections 14(2)-(9)).\n- **Protects people from lawsuits**: People involved in publishing these records—whether during the inquiry or afterwards under this Act—can't be sued for defamation (damaging someone's reputation) or breach of confidence (breaking secrecy promises) (Section 16).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- The State of Western Australia and its agencies (who hold and sometimes access the records)\n- Former Commissioners of the 1991 Royal Commission\n- People who gave evidence or submissions to that Commission\n- Researchers or historians (who might eventually get access after 75 years)\n\n**Why it matters:**\nRoyal Commissions often deal with sensitive, controversial, or traumatic material. This law creates a special regime to balance transparency with protecting witnesses who gave evidence confidentially, while ensuring the material remains available for legitimate legal purposes like prosecutions."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Unable to assess whether the scope changed from original intent — the legislative text was not accessible. The title suggests a focused, administrative purpose (records custody) with little indication of scope creep, but this cannot be confirmed without reviewing the actual Act and any amendments."},"complexity_factors":["Actual legislative text was not retrievable — analysis based on title only","Acts governing custody of records are typically narrow and procedural in nature","Limited cross-referencing or interaction with other legislation can be inferred from the title alone","1992 vintage legislation may have been amended since, adding unknown complexity"],"plain_english_summary":"The Royal Commission (Custody of Records) Act 1992 (WA) appears to set rules for who holds, preserves and controls records produced by a Western Australian royal commission. It matters to people who gave evidence, researchers or journalists seeking access, and government agencies that archive official inquiry material because it determines storage, access and retention of those records."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"Yes. Amendments and consequential provisions transferred custody and practical decision‑making to the Director of State Records and integrated the records into the State archives regime (see s14(1)–(1a) and the compilation notes referencing the State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act 2000). Several original provisions were deleted (ss 5–12), and access rules were reworked to add judicial gates, timing limits (5 years) and long‑term closures (75 years), changing how and when third parties can obtain records."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple cross‑statutory references and precedence rules (Royal Commissions Act 1968; State Records Act 2000; Library Act) creating overlapping regimes (s3; s14(1a)).","A dense definitions section that differentiates record types (confidential record, transcript record, internal working document, private submission) affecting access rules (s4).","Detailed access exceptions and conditions, including State access for prosecutions, civil‑litigation exception, Supreme Court discretion with public‑interest and 5‑year delay tests, and 75‑year archival rule (s14(2)–(5), (9)).","Transfer of custody mechanics driven by consequential amendments and reprints (State Records (Consequential Provisions) Act 2000) altering operational control (compilation notes; s14(1)).","Non‑justiciability/saving clause preventing challenge to past Royal Commission actions and decisions on custody (s15(8)).","Amendments and deletions (notably repeal of ss 5–12) mean historical and present‑day operation differ, requiring attention to amendment history (compilation table; note on ss 5–12 deleted)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act sets who holds and who may see the records of the Royal Commission appointed 8 January 1991, and on what conditions. It makes the Director of State Records the custodian of records transferred into the State archives (s14(1a)), limits access (generally to the State for prosecutions or to former Commissioners) and permits the Supreme Court to order release only after public‑interest and timing tests (s14(2)–(5)). 75‑year archival closures and non‑review protections also apply (s14(9); s15(8))."},"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"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992","history":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992/history","analysis":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/royal-commission-custody-of-records-act-1992/documents"}}