{"id":"torrens-university-australia-act-2013","name":"Torrens University Australia Act 2013","slug":"torrens-university-australia-act-2013","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110565,"registerId":"sa-torrens-university-australia-act-2013-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Torrens University Australia Act 2013","content":"South Australia\nTorrens University Australia Act 2013\nAn Act to recognise and provide for the operation of Torrens University Australia.\n\nContents\nPreamble\n1\tShort title\n2\tCommencement\n3\tInterpretation\n4\tRecognition of University\n5\tPrinciples to be observed by the University\n6\tDeclaration of logo\n7\tProtection of proprietary interests of University\n8\tGifts etc to University\n9\tMinor's legal capacity in relation to contracts etc\n10\tGoverning body of University to notify Minister of certain events\n11\tAnnual report\n12\tRegulations\nLegislative history\n\n\nPreamble\n1\tOn 17 October 2011 LEI Higher Education Holdings Pty Ltd was authorised by the South Australian Government to establish a private university (Torrens University Australia) in South Australia bearing the unmodified university title.\n2\tTorrens University Australia Limited is registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission as an Australian public company limited by shares.\n3\tIn July 2012 Torrens University Australia Limited was registered as an Australian university under the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 of the Commonwealth.\n4\tIt is intended that Torrens University Australia Limited establish a campus in the State, offering academic awards in selected disciplines.\n5\tThe purpose of this Act is to recognise Torrens University Australia, and, insofar as it is within the legislative power of the State, to facilitate the provision of higher education services by the university.\n\nThe Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows:\n1—Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the Torrens University Australia Act 2013.\n2—Commencement\nThis Act will come into operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation.\n3—Interpretation\nIn this Act—\nlogo means a design (the copyright of which is vested in the University) declared under this Act to be a logo;\nminor means a person of or above the age of 16 years and under 18 years;\nofficial insignia means a logo, an official symbol or an official title;\nofficial symbol means a combination of a logo and an official title;\nofficial title means a business name registered by the University under, or otherwise authorised by, the Business Names Registration Act 2011 of the Commonwealth;\nUniversity means Torrens University Australia.\n4—Recognition of University\n\t(1)\tThe University is a body corporate invested with full juristic capacity and unfettered discretion, subject to the laws of this State, to conduct its affairs in the manner it thinks fit.\n\t(2)\tThe University is not an instrumentality or agency of the Crown.\n5—Principles to be observed by the University\nPrinciples for the sound and fair management of the University and its staff should be established and regularly reviewed by the governing body of the University, and those principles should be observed at all times in the administration of the University.\n6—Declaration of logo\nThe Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, declare a design to be a logo in respect of the University.\n7—Protection of proprietary interests of University\n\t(1)\tThe University has a proprietary interest in all official insignia.\n\t(2)\tA person must not, without the consent of the University, in the course of a trade or business—\n\t(a)\tuse a name in which the University has a proprietary interest under this section for the purpose of promoting the sale of services or the provision of any benefits; or\n\t(b)\tsell goods marked with official insignia; or\n\t(c)\tuse official insignia for the purpose of promoting the sale of goods or services.\nMaximum penalty: $20 000.\n\t(3)\tA person must not, without the consent of the University, assume a name or description that consists of, or includes, official insignia.\nMaximum penalty: $20 000.\n\t(4)\tA consent under this section—\n\t(a)\tmay be given with or without conditions (including conditions requiring payment to the University); and\n\t(b)\tmust be given in writing addressed to the applicant for the consent; and\n\t(c)\tmay be revoked by the University for a breach of a condition by notice in writing given personally or by post to a person who has the benefit of the consent.\n\t(5)\tThe Supreme Court may, on the application of the University, grant an injunction to restrain a breach of this section.\n\t(6)\tThe court by which a person is convicted of an offence against this section may, on the application of the University, order the convicted person to pay compensation of an amount fixed by the court to the University.\n\t(7)\tSubsections (5) and (6) do not derogate from any civil remedy that may be available to the University apart from those subsections.\n8—Gifts etc to University\n\t(1)\tDespite any other Act or law, the University may acquire property on trust by gift, devise or bequest to apply for the benefit of a school, college, chair, centre, institution, or other body established within, or associated with, the University (despite the fact that the beneficiary is not a legal person).\n\t(2)\tThe University—\n\t(a)\tmay exercise any power, or perform any act, that the beneficiary could perform as if the University were the beneficiary; and\n\t(b)\tmust apply the property, or any income derived in relation to the property, in accordance with the terms of the gift, devise or bequest.\n9—Minor's legal capacity in relation to contracts etc\n\t(1)\tDespite any other Act or law, a minor has full legal capacity—\n\t(a)\tto contract for the provision of the minor's education at the University; and\n\t(b)\tto contract in relation to any other matter prescribed in the regulations.\n\t(2)\tA contract under this section may be enforced by, or against, the minor as if he or she were of full legal capacity.\n\t(3)\tSubsection (1) does not apply if the University ceases to be registered as an Australian university under the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 of the Commonwealth.\n10—Governing body of University to notify Minister of certain events\n\t(1)\tThe governing body of the University must, as soon as is reasonably practicable after any change in the composition of the governing board, notify the Minister of the change.\n\t(2)\tThe governing body of the University must, as soon as is reasonably practicable after an event of a kind prescribed by the regulations occurring, notify the Minister of the occurrence of the event.\n11—Annual report\n\t(1)\tThe governing body of the University must, not later than 30 June in each year, present to the Minister a report on the operation of the University during the year ending on the preceding 31 December.\n\t(2)\tThe Minister must, within 12 sitting days of receiving a report under this section, cause a copy of the report to be laid before each House of Parliament.\n12—Regulations\nThe Governor may make such regulations as are contemplated by, or necessary or expedient for the purposes of, this Act.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal Act\nYear\nNo\nTitle\nAssent\nCommencement\n2013\n43\nTorrens University Australia Act 2013 \n3.10.2013\n1.11.2013 (Gazette 24.10.2013 p4088)\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"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":false,"description":"The Act implements the purpose stated in its preamble: recognising Torrens University and facilitating its operation within State power. It grants corporate status, protects official insignia, allows acceptance of gifts on trust, gives limited contracting capacity to 16–17 year olds (subject to Commonwealth registration), and sets reporting/notification duties. It does not expand beyond those facilitative measures or alter Commonwealth regulatory arrangements for universities."},"complexity_factors":["Short, focused statute with limited number of provisions and plain language","Interplay with Commonwealth registration requirement (minor's contracting capacity contingent on TEQSA registration) adds cross-jurisdictional dependency (s9(3))","Intellectual-property-like protections and civil/criminal remedies for insignia use, including penalties and injunctive relief (s7)","Delegated powers and administrative duties: Minister may declare logos (s6) and Governor may make regulations (s12), creating room for secondary rule‑making","Uncommon substantive change to legal capacity for minors to contract for education (s9) with enforcement implications","Reporting and notification obligations on the governing body impose ongoing compliance tasks (s10–11)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act recognises Torrens University Australia as a corporate legal entity and puts in place basic legal scaffolding for its operation — protecting its logo and other insignia, allowing the university to accept gifts on trust, permitting 16–17 year olds to contract for their education, and imposing reporting/notification duties to the Minister. It changes who decides and who bears costs: the University controls use of its marks and may charge or revoke consent; businesses and individuals must not use insignia commercially without consent and face penalties; the Minister and Governor receive specified information and may make regulations."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as the legislative text was not successfully retrieved. No comparison between original intent and current provisions is possible."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was retrievable — the source URL returned a 404 error","Cannot assess provisions, definitions, schedules, or cross-references without the actual text","Complexity score is set to minimum (1) as a placeholder only, not a reflection of the Act's true complexity"],"plain_english_summary":"**What happened here?**\n\nThe link provided did not successfully retrieve the text of the *Torrens University Australia Act 2013* (SA). Instead, it returned a **404 Page Not Found** error from the South Australian legislation website, likely due to a broken or outdated hyperlink following a website update in March 2026.\n\n**What is known about this Act?**\n\nThe *Torrens University Australia Act 2013* is a South Australian law that established the legal framework for Torrens University Australia to operate as a recognised higher education provider in South Australia. It would typically cover matters such as the university's governance structure, its powers, how it can award degrees, and any regulatory obligations it must meet.\n\n**Who does it affect?**\n\nIt primarily affects students enrolled at Torrens University Australia, the university's administration and staff, and anyone dealing with the institution in an official capacity.\n\n**What should you do?**\n\nTo access the actual legislation, visit [www.legislation.sa.gov.au](https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au) and search directly for *Torrens University Australia Act 2013*, or email OPCWeb@sa.gov.au to report the broken link. No substantive legal analysis can be provided without the actual legislative text."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: recognising Torrens University Australia as a private university and providing a basic operational framework. The scope has not expanded beyond facilitating the provision of higher education services by this specific institution."},"complexity_factors":["Only 12 sections, with minimal cross-referencing","Just 4 defined terms in the interpretation section (logo, minor, official insignia, University)","Straightforward conditional logic—no nested exceptions or complex provisos","Single-layer penalty provisions with flat $20,000 maximum penalties","No delegated legislative powers beyond standard regulation-making (section 12)","Preamble provides helpful context but doesn't create enforceable obligations"],"plain_english_summary":"This South Australian law formally recognises **Torrens University Australia** as a private university and sets out the basic rules for how it operates.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Gives the university legal status** as an independent body corporate (meaning it can own property, sue and be sued, and operate like a legal person), but makes clear it is **not** a government agency.\n- **Protects the university's brand** by giving it exclusive rights to its name, logo, and official symbols. Others can't use these for commercial purposes without permission, with fines up to $20,000 for breaches.\n- **Allows the university to accept gifts and donations** on behalf of specific schools, colleges, or centres within the university—even if those internal bodies aren't legal entities themselves.\n- **Lets 16 and 17-year-olds sign binding contracts** for their education at the university (normally, people under 18 have limited legal capacity to enter contracts).\n- **Requires transparency**: the university must tell the Minister about changes to its governing board and submit an annual report to Parliament.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Students (especially those aged 16–17), staff, and donors of Torrens University Australia.\n- Businesses that might want to use the university's name or branding.\n- The South Australian Government, which keeps oversight through reporting requirements.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis was South Australia's first private university, established in 2011–2013. The law creates the state-level legal framework that allows it to function alongside public universities, while maintaining its independence as a private institution."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013","history":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013/history","analysis":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/torrens-university-australia-act-2013/documents"}}