{"id":"F2021L00181","name":"Witness Protection (Complementary Witness Protection Laws) Declaration 2021","slug":"witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":440764,"registerId":"F2021L00181-fast-fetch-1775956285974","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Witness Protection (Complementary Witness Protection Laws) Declaration 2021","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nWitness Protection (Complementary Witness Protection Laws) Declaration 2021 (LIN 20/269)\n\nI, PETER DUTTON, Minister for Home Affairs, make the following declaration.\n\nDated  23 February 2021  \n\nPeter Dutton\n\nMinister of Home Affairs\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1— Preliminary\n\n1  Name\n\n2  Commencement\n\n3  Authority\n\n4  Schedules\n\n5  Complementary Witness Protection Laws\n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\n \n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n1.     This instrument is the Witness Protection (Complementary Witness Protection Laws) Declaration 2021.\n2.     This instrument may be cited as LIN 20/269.\n\n\n2  Commencement\n\n  This instrument commences the day after it is registered.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under section 3AA of the Witness Protection Act 1994.\n\n4  Schedules\n\n  Each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to this instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms.\n\n5  Complementary Witness Protection Laws\n\n  For the purposes of the Witness Protection Act 1994, each law mentioned in the following table is a complementary witness protection law.   \n\n| Item | Law |\n| --- | --- |\n| 1 | Witness Protection Act 1995 (NSW) |\n| 2 | Witness Protection Act 1991 (Vic) |\n| 3 | Witness Protection Act 2000 (Qld) |\n| 4 | Witness Protection (Western Australia) Act 1996 (WA) |\n| 5 | Witness Protection Act 1996 (SA) |\n| 6 | Witness Protection Act 2000 (Tas) |\n| 7 | Witness Protection Act 1996 (ACT) |\n| 8 | Witness Protection (Northern Territory) Act 2002 (NT) |\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\n1  Repeal of Instrument\n\n \n\nThe Witness Protection (Complementary witness protection laws) Declaration 2011 is repealed.\n\n \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":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument replaces the 2011 declaration (Schedule 1—Repeals) and restates which state and territory witness protection laws are treated as complementary for the purposes of the Commonwealth Act (cl.5, table). It updates the formal list but does not by itself alter the substantive operation or reach of the Commonwealth Witness Protection Act 1994; substantive rules remain governed by that Act and the listed state/territory statutes."},"complexity_factors":["Short, single-purpose instrument (5 substantive clauses plus one schedule).","Primary legal effect is declaratory: designates listed state/territory Acts as complementary (cl.5, table).","Repeals earlier instrument (Schedule 1—Repeals), so effect is administrative updating rather than substantive policy change.","Relies on external statute for substantive rules (Witness Protection Act 1994, s 3AA), creating cross‑reference dependency.","Cross-jurisdictional legal interaction increases practical coordination needs despite low drafting complexity."],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument declares specified state and territory witness protection Acts to be “complementary” to the Commonwealth Witness Protection Act 1994 and repeals the 2011 complementary-laws declaration. It mechanically updates which local witness-protection statutes the Commonwealth recognises as working with its scheme.\n\nIt affects federal and state/territory law enforcement, agencies administering witness protection, and protected witnesses by formalising cross-jurisdictional recognition; implementation costs are primarily administrative coordination and ensuring agencies apply the recognised list correctly."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument maintains the same scope as its 2011 predecessor. It continues to serve the narrow, specific purpose of declaring which state and territory witness protection laws are complementary to the federal scheme. The 2021 version lists the identical 8 jurisdictions as the 2011 version, indicating no expansion of scope."},"complexity_factors":["Very short instrument (approximately 1 page of substantive content)","Only 5 operative sections, with minimal conditional language","No defined terms section (relies on definitions in the parent Witness Protection Act 1994)","Simple tabular format for listing the 8 complementary laws","Single repeal in Schedule 1 with no transitional or savings provisions","No cross-references beyond the empowering section (s 3AA of the parent Act)"],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument remakes the Minister for Home Affairs' declaration of eight state and territory witness protection laws as \"complementary\" to the federal Witness Protection Act 1994, repealing the 2011 version but keeping the same eight laws.  \n\nThat designation lets federal and state/territory schemes cooperate—sharing information, transferring witnesses, and coordinating protection—affecting protected witnesses, law enforcement agencies, and courts handling witness protection."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021","history":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/witness-protection-complementary-witness-protection-laws-declaration-2021/documents"}}