{"id":"tas:act-1993-076","name":"Statutory Authorities (Protection from Liability of Members) Act 1993","slug":"statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"tas","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"76 of 1993","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":106267,"registerId":"tas-act-1993-076-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title","content":"### 1 Short title\n\n> This Act may be cited as the [Statutory Authorities (Protection from Liability of Members) Act 1993](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-1993-076) .","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"### 2 Commencement\n\n> This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Interpretation","content":"### 3 Interpretation\n\n> In this Act –\n> \n> > ***member***, in relation to a statutory authority, includes any deputy, alternate or acting member of the statutory authority;\n> \n> > ***statutory authority*** means a body or authority, whether incorporated or not, which is established or constituted by or under an Act or under the royal prerogative, being a body or authority which, or of which the governing authority, wholly or partly comprises a person or persons appointed by the Governor, a Minister or another statutory authority and includes the governing authority of a statutory authority.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Protection from liability","content":"### 4 Protection from liability\n\n> > (1)  A member of a statutory authority does not incur any personal liability in respect of any act done or omitted to be done by the member in good faith in the performance or exercise, or purported performance or exercise, of any function or power of the statutory authority or in the administration or execution, or purported administration or execution, of the Act under which the statutory authority is established.\n> \n> > (2)  [Subsection (1)](#GS4@Gs1@EN) does not preclude the Crown or statutory authority from incurring liability that a member of the statutory authority would, but for [subsection (1)](#GS4@Gs1@EN) , incur.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Provisions of this Act to prevail","content":"### 5 Provisions of this Act to prevail\n\n> Where there is an inconsistency between a provision of this Act and a provision of any other Act, the provision of this Act prevails.","sortOrder":4}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"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":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The supplied text establishes a narrow, focused immunity for members of statutory authorities and specifies who bears institutional liability; there is no material in the text indicating a change from the Act’s original scope or intent."},"complexity_factors":["Concise text with limited provisions reduces structural complexity.","Key definitional reliance on 'statutory authority' and 'member' creates interpretive questions about which bodies and persons are covered.","The 'good faith' standard is legally familiar but fact-sensitive, creating case-by-case uncertainty.","Use of 'purported' performance extends protection to contested acts, raising scope/abuse questions.","Subsection preserving Crown/statutory authority liability creates allocation-of-liability issues between individuals and institutions.","Operative clause that this Act prevails over inconsistent Acts may produce conflicts with other legislation needing judicial resolution."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act immunises members (including deputies, alternates and acting members) of statutory authorities from personal liability for acts or omissions done in good faith while performing, or purportedly performing, the authority’s functions. It preserves any liability of the Crown or the statutory authority itself and takes precedence over inconsistent provisions in other Acts. It affects appointed board members by reducing personal financial risk when acting on the authority’s business."},"summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available information, the Act appears to have remained focused on its original purpose of protecting statutory authority members from personal liability since its enactment in 1993. The version has been current since 1 February 1997 with no indication of significant scope changes. However, the absence of the operative provisions in the provided text limits a full assessment."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow, single-purpose legislation focused on one specific legal concept (personal liability protection)","Applies to a defined class of persons (statutory authority members) rather than the general public","The concept of 'statutory authority' requires some background knowledge of Australian public law","Potential complexity in determining which bodies qualify as 'statutory authorities' under the Act","Exceptions or qualifications to the liability protection (e.g. bad faith, fraud) could add nuance, but the operative provisions were not available for review","Has remained largely unchanged since 1997, suggesting it is a relatively settled and simple piece of law"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act shields individual members of Tasmanian government statutory authorities (boards, commissions, etc.) from personal lawsuits or financial liability for actions taken in their official capacity, shifting responsibility to the authority or government. It affects appointees and those who might sue them, and matters because it encourages public service by reducing personal risk. The supplied text is only the Act’s header/status, so any exceptions or limits aren’t visible here."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose of providing personal liability protection for members of statutory authorities. The definitions of 'member' and 'statutory authority' are broad but necessary to achieve the Act's intended coverage, and the core protection mechanism in section 4 has not been expanded beyond this original scope."},"complexity_factors":["Only 5 sections total","Just 2 defined terms in the interpretation section ('member' and 'statutory authority')","Single operative provision (section 4) with straightforward good faith protection","No cross-references to other legislation except the general supremacy clause in section 5","Simple conditional logic: protection applies if act done 'in good faith' in official capacity","No nested exceptions or complex procedural requirements"],"plain_english_summary":"This law protects people who serve on government boards, committees, and similar bodies from being sued personally for their official actions.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Shields members from personal lawsuits**: If you're appointed to a government body (like a board or committee established by legislation), you generally can't be sued personally for decisions you make or actions you take in your official role — provided you acted honestly and in good faith.\n- **Covers a broad range of officials**: The protection applies to regular members, deputies, alternates, and acting members of these bodies.\n- **Protects the body itself, not just individuals**: While you personally are protected, the government body or the Crown (the government) can still be sued for any wrongdoing. The liability shifts from the individual to the organisation.\n- **Overrides other laws**: If another law says something different about liability, this Act wins.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Anyone appointed by the Governor, a Minister, or another statutory authority to serve on a government body\n- Members of boards, committees, commissions, and other authorities created by legislation or royal prerogative\n\n**Why it matters:**\nWithout this protection, qualified people might refuse to serve on public boards because they'd risk losing their personal assets if the body made a mistake. This law encourages public service by ensuring that honest mistakes in governance don't destroy individuals financially — while still allowing wronged parties to sue the government body itself for compensation."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993","history":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993/history","analysis":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/statutory-authorities-protection-from-liability-of-members-act-1993/documents"}}