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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Act 2005
193SSecrecy
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#### 193S Secrecy
Definitions
(1) In this section:
> court includes any tribunal, authority or person having power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions.
> ILSC officer means a person:
(a) who is or has been an Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation Director or an acting Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation Director; or
(b) who is or has been the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation Chief Executive Officer or an acting Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation Chief Executive Officer; or
(c) who is or has been employed or engaged under section 192S or 192V; or
(d) who is performing, or who has performed, duties on behalf of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation under an arrangement under section 192T; or
(e) whose services are being, or have been, made available to the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation under an arrangement under section 192U; or
(f) who is or has been a director or employee of a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation.
> produce includes permit access to.
(1A) A person who was covered by the definition of ILC officer as in force immediately before this subsection commenced is covered by the definition of ILSC officer.
> Note: This is intended to make it clear that any person who held an office, or undertook any other role, covered by the definition at a time when the corporation had its original name of the Indigenous Land Corporation, is still an ILSC officer. See also subsection 25B(1) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
Information and documents to which this section applies
(2) This section applies to information acquired, or a document obtained, by an ILSC officer:
(a) in connection with the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation; or
(b) in connection with the performance by a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation of a function that corresponds to a function of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation; or
(c) in connection with the exercise of a power by a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation, where the power relates to such a corresponding function.
ILSC officer not to disclose certain information
(3) Subject to this section, an ILSC officer must not, either directly or indirectly:
(a) disclose to any person any information concerning the affairs of another person acquired by the ILSC officer, where:
(i) the information was acquired by the ILSC officer in the performance of duties in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee; or
(ii) disclosure of the information could reasonably be expected to prejudice substantially the commercial interests of the other person; or
(b) disclose to any person information acquired by the ILSC officer, where, to the knowledge of the ILSC officer:
(i) the information is considered sacred or otherwise significant by a particular group of Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; and
(ii) the disclosure would be inconsistent with the views or sensitivities of those Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; or
(c) produce to any person a document relating to the affairs of another person, where:
(i) the document was obtained by the ILSC officer in the performance of duties in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee; or
(ii) the production of the document could reasonably be expected to prejudice substantially the commercial interests of the other person; or
(d) produce to any person a document obtained by the ILSC officer, where, to the knowledge of the ILSC officer:
(i) the document contains information that is considered sacred or otherwise significant by a particular group of Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; and
(ii) the production of the document would be inconsistent with the views or sensitivities of those Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders.
Offence
(4) A person who contravenes subsection (3) commits an offence punishable on conviction by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months.
ILSC officer not required to disclose certain information to a court
(5) Subject to this section, an ILSC officer must not be required to:
(a) disclose to a court any information concerning the affairs of another person acquired by the ILSC officer, where:
(i) the information was acquired by the ILSC officer in the performance of duties in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee; or
(ii) disclosure of the information could reasonably be expected to prejudice substantially the commercial interests of the other person; or
(b) disclose to a court information acquired by the ILSC officer, where:
(i) the information is considered sacred or otherwise significant by a particular group of Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; and
(ii) the disclosure would be inconsistent with the views or sensitivities of those Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; or
(c) produce to a court a document relating to the affairs of another person, where:
(i) the document was obtained by the ILSC officer in the performance of duties in connection with an application for, or the giving of, a loan, grant or guarantee; or
(ii) the production of the document could reasonably be expected to prejudice substantially the commercial interests of the other person; or
(d) produce to a court a document obtained by the ILSC officer, where:
(i) the document contains information that is considered sacred or otherwise significant by a particular group of Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders; and
(ii) the production of the document would be inconsistent with the views or sensitivities of those Aboriginal persons or Torres Strait Islanders.
Exception—disclosure for the purposes of performance of functions etc.
(6) Subsections (3) and (5) do not apply to the disclosure of information, or the production of a document, if the disclosure or production, as the case requires, is for the purposes of:
(a) the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation; or
(b) the performance by a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation of a function that corresponds to a function of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation; or
(c) the exercise of a power by a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation, where the power relates to such a corresponding function.
Exception—prosecutions
(7) Paragraphs (3)(a), (3)(c), (5)(a) and (5)(c) do not apply to the disclosure of information, or the production of a document, if the disclosure or production, as the case requires, is for the purposes of a criminal proceeding.