Anglo-Persian Oil Company Limited's (Private) Act 1919

The Act operates through a small set of connected legal concepts. These are: the Company as a statutory actor; the undertaking; works; the local authority; notice and plan deposit; reinstatement and maintenance obligations; compensation and penalties; rate substitution; and limits of jurisdiction.

• Company and assigns, defined in section 2. The Act binds and benefits the named corporate entity and its assigns. Section 2’s definition language "and shall include its assigns" allows rights and obligations to pass by assignment, subject to usual legal constraints. That is the identity anchor for the rest of the Act.

• Undertaking, defined in section 2, is a statutory description of the permitted commercial activity: storage, supply and distribution of oil and liquid fuel and the making of associated works. The Act authorises the undertaking within the spatial limits of section 3 and defines what physical elements are encompassed by works in section 2. The undertaking is the permitted activity; works are the tangible infrastructure to carry it out.

• Works, defined in section 2, is a broad enumerated category: buildings, reservoirs, plant, machinery, pipes, mains and connections. The definition anticipates both above and below ground infrastructure and related apparatus.

• Limits of application, set out in section 3. The Act is geographically confined to the Municipality of Fremantle and specified lands of port and transport authorities adjoining it. The Act’s scope is territorial rather than industry‑wide.

• Entrenchment of powers to interfere with public infrastructure, in section 4. The Company may open and break up streets, railways, wharves and sewers and place mains, conduits and service pipes in, on, or under them. The section contains three provisos: a restriction about footpaths (pipes may cross but not run along footpaths), a requirement for Ministerial consent for work affecting railways or wharves, and a requirement that all plans and specifications for works in streets be submitted to and approved by the Minister for Works.

• Pre‑work controls and the emergency exception, in section 5. The Company must give the local authority at least 3 clear days written notice and deposit a plan setting out extent and manner of works and intended commencement time. Works must be under the local authority’s superintendence and in accordance with the plan unless the local authority does not supply an officer to attend, in which case the Company may proceed without superintendence. Emergency repairs are permitted without prior notice and plan deposit but require both as soon as practicable after the emergency begins.

• Reinstatement and temporary safety duties, in section 6. The Company must reinstate with all convenient speed, remove rubbish, properly guard and sufficiently light opened works for public warning, and, if required by the local authority, keep the repaired area in good repair for six months.

• Enforcement mechanics: penalties, damages, and recovery. Section 7 prescribes summary offence penalties for breaches of ss 5 and 6 up to $10 plus $2 per day while a breach continues after notice. Section 8 allows the local authority to carry out delayed reinstatement and recover expenses from the Company. Section 11 creates additional offences (unauthorised connections, damaging works, meter tampering, unauthorised apparatus to obtain oil) with penalties up to $10. Section 12 preserves the Company’s civil remedy to recover full compensation for wrongful or unlawful damage to its works. Section 13 directs that penalties are recoverable in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction.

• Financial substitution and reporting. Section 14 deems the Company’s mains and service pipes rateable but replaces ordinary rate valuation rules with a bespoke payment in lieu regime: an annual payment to the Council equal to 1/8 of one percent of amounts actually received by the Company for oil delivered through the service pipes during the prior 12 months, or $200, whichever is greater, payable in two half‑yearly instalments. The clause displaces ordinary municipal rates and is the tax/revenue mechanism by which municipal authorities are compensated for public space occupation.

• Public Act status and deposit mechanics. Section 15 deems the Act a Public Act for judicial notice. Section 16 provides that money deposited by the Company with the Treasurer under Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills is to be held until completion of the works and then returned to the Company. Section 17 contains a time‑of‑performance condition that would render the Act void if no authorised works commenced by 1 January 1922.

These concepts allocate decision making. Ministers (the Minister for Works and Ministers administering the Government Railways Act 1904 or the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 as to their respective jurisdictions) have consent and plan approval powers under the provisos to section 4. Local authorities have operational supervision and enforcement roles under sections 5, 6, 7 and 8. The Company bears the principal financial burden of construction, reinstatement and compensation, and must make annual payments in lieu of rates.

Mechanically binding duties are precise and limited in scope. Many operational details and modern regulatory controls commonly associated with hazardous installations or petroleum storage (for example explicit safety standards, environmental controls, licensing regimes, emergency planning, insurance mandates) are not set out in the Act; the Act’s controls are primarily about location, work procedure, reinstatement and municipal compensation.

The Act sets out a compact set of affected parties and allocates costs and decision rights among them.

• The Company. The primary regulated party is the Anglo‑Persian Oil Company, Limited and its assigns (s 2). The Company obtains explicit statutory rights to construct and operate the undertaking and to interfere with public infrastructure within the prescribed area (s 4). In return the Company assumes financial and operational obligations: constructing and maintaining works at its own expense (preamble, s 4), giving notice and depositing plans (s 5), reinstating work promptly and keeping repaired areas in good repair if required (s 6), paying compensation for damage caused (s 9, s 12), making the annual payment in lieu of rates to the municipal council (s 14), furnishing a deposit held by the Treasurer under Joint Standing Orders pending completion (s 16), and complying with any ministerial conditions attached to consent to work affecting railways and wharves (s 4 proviso).

• The local authority. Defined in section 2, that term covers the mayor and councillors of the Municipality of Fremantle (the Council), the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia and the Fremantle Port Authority (s 2). The local authority receives notice and a plan (s 5), supervises and may require the work to be carried out to the deposited plan, and can require lighting, guarding and temporary continued repair for six months (s 6). The local authority may execute delayed reinstatement works and recover expenses from the Company (s 8). Section 10 empowers the local authority to require the Company to raise, sink or otherwise alter works within 10 days of written notice; if the local authority causes alteration for reasons other than the Company’s breach, then the local authority bears the expense, otherwise the Company does.

• Municipal Council (Council). For rate substitution under section 14 the Council is the mayor and councillors of the Municipality of Fremantle and is the recipient of the annual payment in lieu of rates. The Council’s administrative role includes accepting payment and enforcing non‑payment remedies available under other law or the Act.

• Ministerial offices. The Minister for Works must approve plans and specifications for construction of necessary works in streets (s 4 proviso). The Minister administering the Government Railways Act 1904 must consent to interference with railways, and the Minister administering the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 must consent to interference with wharves, subject to conditions as the Minister may deem expedient (s 4 proviso). Those Ministers are the decision points for interference with state rail and port infrastructure.

• The Treasurer. Under section 16 the Treasurer holds deposits paid under Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills until completion of the authorised works, acting as escrow.

• The general public and private third parties. The Act affects any member of the public encountering open works, because the Company is obliged to guard and light works, and the public is protected by the Company’s reinstatement and maintenance obligations (s 6), and by summary criminal law for offences against the Act (s 7, s 11). Third parties who want to connect to the Company’s pipes must first obtain the Company’s consent (s 11(a)). Conversely, third parties who unlawfully damage Company works are liable to pay full compensation to the Company (s 12).

• Courts and enforcement bodies. All penalties under the Act are recoverable in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction (s 13). This locates enforcement and fine recovery in the local criminal or summary civil jurisdiction.

Who pays. Financial burdens fall principally on the Company: construction costs, reinstatement and remedial costs, compensation, penalties, and the payment in lieu of rates. The local authority pays only in limited circumstances: where it chooses to alter the situation of works for reasons other than Company breach it bears expenses (s 10), and the local authority is not required to perform delayed reinstatement (s 8 proviso).

Who decides. The Act gives decision rights to Ministers (plan approval, railway/wharf consent), the local authority (superintendence, requirement to keep in repair for six months, power to require repositioning), and the Company (whether to proceed when no officer attends). The Treasurer holds deposit monies but has limited discretion other than as escrow.

Net effect on private actors. The Act privileges the Company with statutory rights to intrude on public infrastructure but imposes a compact regulatory regime focusing on local procedural controls, reinstatement, and financial compensation. The Company’s statutory right to place infrastructure in public spaces is conditional on compliance with the Act’s procedural, supervisory and financial provisions.

This section summarises the primary legal obligations the Company must observe and the principal rights it enjoys under the Act, together with the decision and remedial powers given to local authorities and Ministers.

Rights conferred on the Company

• Right to construct and operate the undertaking. Section 4(a) authorises the Company to erect, construct, lay down and establish all necessary works for storing, supplying and distributing oil and liquid fuel in or under any street, or in, on, or under any railway, or wharf.

• Right to open and interfere with public infrastructure. Section 4(b) permits the Company to open, break up and interfere with streets, railways, wharves and associated sewers, drains and tunnels for the purpose of laying down mains, conduits, and service pipes and to remove or use earth and materials necessary for those purposes.

• Right to proceed without local superintendence where no officer attends. Section 5 provides that if no officer appointed by the local authority attends at the time fixed in the notice and remains during the works, the Company may perform the work without such superintendence.

Duties imposed on the Company

• Notice and plan deposit. Section 5 requires the Company, except in emergency repairs, to give the local authority at least 3 clear days written notice of intention to open, break up or interfere, and to deposit a plan setting out the extent and manner of the proposed work and the intended commencement time.

• Works must comply with the deposited plan and local superintendence. Section 5 requires adherence to the deposited plan and superintendence by the local authority unless the local authority does not supply an officer, per the previous paragraph.

• Ministerial approvals and consents for certain classes of works. Section 4 requires that plans and specifications for construction of necessary works in streets be submitted to and approved by the Minister for Works. Section 4 also requires consent of the Minister administering the Government Railways Act 1904 to interfere with railways and of the Minister administering the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 to interfere with wharves, subject to conditions the Minister considers expedient.

• Reinstatement and public safety obligations. Section 6 requires the Company to complete works with all convenient speed, fill in excavations and reinstate and make good to the local authority’s satisfaction, remove rubbish, guard and light works while open, and, when required, keep the repaired portion in good repair for six months.

• Compensation and indemnity obligations. Section 9 requires the Company to make compensation for any damage done in executing its powers. Section 12 requires persons who unlawfully damage Company works to pay full compensation, recoverable by the Company; that is a civil liability in the Company’s favour. Section 8 allows the local authority to undertake reinstatement at the Company’s cost where the Company delays, neglects or omits necessary work.

• Payment in lieu of rates. Section 14 requires an annual payment to the Council equal to 1/8 per cent of the amount actually received for oil conveyed through the Company’s service pipes during the prior 12 months, or $200, whichever is greater, payable by half‑yearly instalments on 1 January and 1 July. This payment is in full satisfaction and discharge of all rates and rents payable to the Council in respect of the mains, service pipes, lands, buildings and works used exclusively in connection with the undertaking.

• Compliance with alteration requests. Section 10 requires the Company to raise, sink or otherwise alter the situation of any works within 10 days after being required in writing by the local authority. If the Company defaults, the local authority may carry out the works; the costs fall on the Company when the work was rendered necessary by breach or default.

Criminal and civil enforcement rights and duties

• Offences and penalties. Sections 7 and 11 make certain omissions and acts offences, punishable by fines. Section 7 addresses failure to comply with notice and reinstatement obligations in ss 5 and 6 with penalties not exceeding $10 and $2 per day for continuing breaches after notice. Section 11 creates separate offences for unauthorised pipe connections, wilful or negligent damage to Company property, meter tampering, and erecting apparatus to obtain oil without consent, each punishable by up to $10. Section 13 designates the Court of Summary Jurisdiction as the forum for recovering penalties.

• Remedies in damages. Section 12 preserves the Company’s right to recover full compensation for wrongful or unlawful damage to its works in any Court of competent jurisdiction.

Administrative and procedural rights of others

• Local authority supervision and recourse. The local authority controls superintendence, sets satisfaction standards for reinstatement, can demand continued repair for six months, and may execute delayed works and recover expenses (ss 5, 6, 8). Section 10 allows the local authority to require repositioning of works.

• Ministerial conditioning. The Ministerial consent mechanism in section 4 allows Ministers to impose conditions on the Company’s exercise of its rights where works affect railways and wharves, and the Minister for Works must approve street works plans and specifications.

Practical implications of duties and rights

• Temporal obligations. The 3 clear days notice requirement (s 5) and the 10 day cure requirement for altering works (s 10) impose specific timeframes that trigger rights to act (for the Company to commence) and obligations to comply (for the Company to alter).

• Financial and transaction monitoring duties. The payment in lieu regime in section 14 requires accurate accounting of revenue derived from oil conveyed through service pipes during the preceding 12 months. The Company must support the calculation with proper records to determine whether 1/8 per cent of receipts or $200 is greater.

• Administrative compliance with older office titles. The Act contemplates historical ministerial offices (Minister for Works; Ministers administering historical railway and harbour Acts). In practice those powers will be exercised by current officeholders or agencies exercising successor functions, as evidenced by compilation notes that update references under the Reprints Act and by amendments listed in the compilation table.

In summary, the Act grants the Company targeted statutory powers to operate an oil distribution undertaking in specified Fremantle areas and couples those powers to procedural approvals, safety and reinstatement duties, financial payments to the municipal council, and a narrow summary criminal and civil enforcement regime.

The Act establishes a compact enforcement architecture combining summary fines, civil damages and administrative cost recovery, and designates the Court of Summary Jurisdiction as the enforcement forum for penalties.

Criminal or summary offences and fines

• Breaches of notice and reinstatement duties. Section 7 makes it an offence for the Company to commit, permit or suffer any act, delay, neglect or omission contrary to sections 5 and 6. The penalty is set at not exceeding $10 for every such offence, together with an additional penalty of $2 for each day the neglect, omission or delay continues after notice by the local authority. The section preserves third party rights, expressly not limiting civil claims by others.

• Specific wrongful acts. Section 11 creates offences for: laying a pipe to connect with Company pipes without the Company’s consent (s 11(a)); wilfully or negligently removing, destroying or damaging any part of the Company’s works (s 11(b)); altering the index of any meter or measuring apparatus registering oil supplied (s 11(c)); and erecting or keeping apparatus by which oil may be obtained from any part of the Company’s works without written consent (s 11(d)). The penalty for each such offence is not exceeding $10. The constitution of the penalties is summary and modest in quantum, as expressed in the text.

• Forum for penalties. Section 13 prescribes that all penalties in respect of offences under the Act may be recovered in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction. That places enforcement within the local magistrates’ court regime and absent express statutory authorisation does not create higher court criminal proceedings.

Civil remedies and cost recovery

• Recovery of reinstatement costs. Section 8 empowers the local authority, if the Company delays, neglects or omits necessary reinstatement work, to carry out the work and recover all expenses from the Company. The section also states that the local authority is not compelled to do so and will not be liable if it declines.

• Compensation for damage. Section 9 requires the Company to make compensation for any damage caused in execution of its powers. Section 12 provides that any person who unlawfully or wrongfully damages Company works must pay full compensation to the Company, recoverable in any Court of competent jurisdiction. These provisions create reciprocal civil liability: the Company must pay for damage it causes; others must pay for damage they cause to Company property.

Administrative enforcement and discretion

• Ministerial conditions and approvals. A form of administrative control arises through the Ministerial consents and the Minister for Works’ approval of plans required by section 4. Those functions allow ministers to impose conditions that may be enforced through the statutory rights and remedies available to local authorities and the criminal provisions if conditions are breached.

• Local authority supervisory role. Sections 5 and 6 allocate supervisory and satisfaction functions to local authorities. Where a local authority is dissatisfied with reinstatement the Act gives it recourse to require remediations or to undertake work itself and recover expenses, and allows it to issue notices whose effect can trigger continuing penalties of $2 per day under section 7.

Practical enforcement features and observations (source‑grounded)

• Fixed nominal fines. Penalties are expressed as fixed dollar amounts in the text: $10 for many offences and $2 per day for continuing defaults after notice. The reprint history shows the Decimal Currency Act 1965 made currency adjustments that affected nominal amounts (see compilation notes). The Act itself does not provide automatic inflation indexing, so the monetary caps remain as statutorily fixed sums unless later amended.

• Summary process and speed. Recovery in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction indicates a relatively streamlined enforcement process for fines and for seeking orders for payment, though civil recovery for full compensation (s 12) may proceed in any competent court and so could reach higher courts for larger claims.

• Local authority remedies as practical enforcement. Section 8 and section 10 provide practical enforcement levers for local authorities. The ability to carry out required work and pass the cost back to the Company is a direct way of ensuring compliance, subject to the local authority’s discretion and resource capacity.

• Interaction between criminal fines and civil claims. The Act preserves civil rights: section 7 expressly provides that penalties do not relieve the Company from liability in respect of rights of action or remedies of any person affected by the Company’s act, delay, neglect or omission. Section 12 allows the Company to recover full compensation for wrongful damage. Thus criminal fines operate alongside civil remedies rather than substituting for them.

• Deposit held by Treasurer as assurance. Section 16 requires a deposit with the Treasurer under Joint Standing Orders for Private Bills, held until completion of works. That creates an escrowed assurance of funds to secure completion, though the Act does not prescribe draw‑down mechanisms by local authorities; the deposit is governed by the Joint Standing Orders procedure.

Enforcement risk and capacity

The Act relies heavily on local authority vigilance and the local summary process to produce compliance. Local authorities must inspect, supervise and issue notices to trigger daily penalties and to decide whether to carry out remedial works under section 8. The Act sets out remedies but also places the initiative on local authority and ministerial offices to exercise supervisory powers and consents. The fixed monetary penalties may be modest relative to the physical and economic scale of oil infrastructure, and the Act does not create escalating sanctions or automatic administrative fines other than the $2 per day continuing penalty for non‑reinstatement after notice.

For these reasons the practical enforceability of the Act depends on administrative capacity, the vigour of local authorities and ministers in exercising their supervisory and consent functions and on the ability and willingness to pursue civil claims for compensation and debt recovery through summary courts.

The Act is embedded in a statutory network. The reprint and the Act’s text itself reference several other Acts and administrative instruments; the compilation table indicates subsequent amendments and formal references that matter for interpretation and administration.

Statutes and provisions explicitly referenced in the Act

• Government Railways Act 1904. Section 4 proviso requires the consent of the Minister administering the Government Railways Act 1904 before the Company exercises the power to open, break up or interfere with any railway. That creates an interlock between this private Act and State railway governance. The Government Railways Act is a source of ministerial administrative control over railway land. The compilation table confirms the historic reference.

• Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902. Section 4 proviso requires the consent of the Minister administering the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 to exercise powers affecting wharves. The compilation notes explain that the short title of that Act changed to the Fremantle Port Authority Act 1902 and that later broader port authority legislation has superseded it. The reprint comment notes that the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 was repealed and consequential provisions were enacted in the Port Authorities (Consequential Provisions) Act 1999, and that the Fremantle Port Authority continues under the Port Authorities Act 1999. Those changes affect who now performs the consent functions described in section 4.

• Municipal Corporations Act 1906. Section 14 originally interacts with the Municipal Corporations Act 1906 in relation to valuation and making of rates, but the compilation notes indicate that the Municipal Corporations Act is now effectively replaced by the Local Government Act 1995. Section 14 itself sets out a bespoke payment in lieu regime which displaces the ordinary municipal valuation provisions for the Company’s mains and works.

• Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills. Section 16 requires the deposit of money with the Treasurer in accordance with Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills. That links the Act to Parliamentary practice and Treasury custody mechanisms for private bill deposits.

Subsequent statutory amendments and cross‑references

• Decimal Currency Act 1965. The compilation table records that the Decimal Currency Act 1965 amended the Act; the textual marginal notes to sections 7, 11 and 14 show amendments referencing No. 113 of 1965 s 8. Those amendments converted historic currency figures to decimal currency amounts. The Act as reprinted therefore shows penalties and sums in dollars.

• Ministers’ Titles Act 1925. Section 16 was amended by the Ministers’ Titles Act 1925 s 2. The compilation table records that change. That Act changed ministerial titles and may have reallocated some formal references in the Act to updated ministerial names.

• Public Transport Authority Act 2003. The reprint records an amendment by Public Transport Authority Act 2003 s 142 that altered section 2 definitions, and changed the list of local authority entities to include the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia. The compilation table records the commencement date for that amendment. That amendment broadens the class of local authorities in whose jurisdiction the Act operates.

• Port Authorities Act 1999 and Port Authorities (Consequential Provisions) Act 1999. The compilation notes record that the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 was repealed and that references were updated accordingly. The reprint under the Reprints Act 1984 altered historical references to the Fremantle Port Authority. Operationally, decisions required by section 4 that formerly sat with the Minister administering the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 will now involve the Minister or agency responsible for port authorities under the Port Authorities Act 1999.

Practical interaction points and interpretive considerations

• Successor agency effect. The Act’s delegated powers and consents to Ministers and local authorities must be located in contemporary office‑holders and agencies occupying the successor functions of those named in 1919. The reprint notes assist in this regard by updating names under the Reprints Act 1984 and by listing more recent amending statutes such as the Public Transport Authority Act 2003. Practitioners must identify which current Minister or agency exercises the consent roles formerly allocated to historical Acts, for example the Minister responsible for ports and the Minister responsible for rail‑related infrastructure.

• Local Government Act 1995 interaction. Section 14’s payment in lieu of rates displaces valuation and rating rules in earlier municipal legislation. Where the Act refers to "rates" and valuation machinery formerly in the Municipal Corporations Act 1906, modern rating powers and enforcement will instead be implemented alongside or in light of the Local Government Act 1995 and related secondary legislation and policies, subject to section 14’s bespoke formula and payment dates.

• Environmental, safety and modern licensing regimes. The Act is a discrete private authorization for works and does not on its face replace or extinguish modern regulatory regimes applicable to petroleum storage, environmental protection, hazardous substances, development approvals, building standards, occupational health and safety, or petroleum licensing. Practitioners should note that the Act authorises certain works and interference with public ways but does not expressly state that the undertaking is exempt from other statutory requirements. Those contemporary statutory regimes will interact with this Act and may impose additional approvals, licences, environmental impact obligations and standards of care.

• Deposit and Parliamentary procedures. Section 16’s deposit requirement anchors the Act in Parliamentary private bill practice. The money is to be held by the Treasurer according to Joint Standing Orders. That procedural tie could be relevant for any historical or ongoing disputes about completeness of security or the availability of funds to meet reinstatement obligations.

• Temporal limitation and continuity. Section 17 conditionally voids the Act if no works commenced by 1 January 1922. The reprint confirms the Act continues in force; therefore either works were commenced or later legal developments validated the Act’s continued operation. Nevertheless the temporal clause remains part of the statute and could be relevant in a legal argument about availability or continuance of rights if historical performance was not clear, although the practical import is historical.

Summary of interaction dynamics

The Act sits alongside and intersects with a range of State statutes governing railways, ports, local government and Parliamentary procedure. While the Act grants narrow statutory rights to the Company, modern administration of those rights must be reconciled with successor statutes and agencies, and the Company must comply with contemporaneous statutory regimes governing safety, environmental protection and building works. The reprint and compilation notes are essential when mapping the historic nomenclature and ministerial roles to present day agencies and offices.

The reprint includes a compilation table and marginal notes that identify formal amendments and the timeline of the Act’s statutory history. The compilation table provides the authoritative summary of the Act’s amendments up to the reprint date of 18 March 2016. The following is a source‑grounded chronology and description of amendments and reprint adjustments recorded in the compilation notes.

Original enactment

• Anglo‑Persian Oil Company Limited’s (Private) Act 1919. Assented to 17 December 1919 and commenced on that date. The Act was passed as a private Act to authorise specified works for the Company in Fremantle.

Subsequent amendments and formal changes recorded in the compilation table

• Ministers’ Titles Act 1925, No. 8 of 1925, s 2 (assent 24 September 1925, commenced 24 September 1925). Section 16 of the 1919 Act was amended by the Ministers' Titles Act 1925 s 2. This change reflects ministerial title adjustments and affects the operation of section 16 which addresses deposits with the Treasurer.

• Decimal Currency Act 1965, No. 113 of 1965 (assent 21 December 1965). The compilation table indicates that the Decimal Currency Act amended the Anglo‑Persian Act, with the majority of the Decimal Currency Act coming into force on 21 December 1965 and operative provisions affecting sections 4-9 commencing 14 February 1966. The marginal notes beside sections 7 and 11 and 14 record amendments by No. 113 of 1965 s 8. Those amendments converted monetary figures into decimal currency equivalents, resulting in references in the reprint to dollar amounts such as $10 and $200. The marginal note for section 14 specifically records that change.

• Public Transport Authority Act 2003, No. 31 of 2003, s 142 (assent 26 May 2003, commenced 1 July 2003). Section 2 was amended to update the definition of local authority and to include the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia. The compilation table records the amendment and commencement dates. The marginal notes beside sections 2 and 3 indicate amendment by No. 31 of 2003 s 142(2) and s 142(3) respectively.

Reprint and editorial adjustments

• Reprint under the Reprints Act 1984 as at 18 March 2016. The Act was reprinted as part of Western Australia’s statutory reprint program. The reprint includes editorial adjustments pursuant to the Reprints Act 1984 such as updating references: the note at the end of the compilation table explains that the Municipality of Fremantle is called the City of Fremantle as of the reprint date; and that references to the Fremantle Harbour Trust Commissioners were changed to Fremantle Port Authority under Reprints Act 1984 s 7(3)(h). The compilation notes also record the repeal of the Fremantle Harbour Trust Act 1902 and indicate the continuation of the Fremantle Port Authority under the Port Authorities Act 1999.

Practical import of amendments

• Currency conversion. The Decimal Currency Act 1965 updates the monetary amounts used as fines and minimum payments to present currency units, but the Act does not provide automatic indexation. Practitioners must therefore work with the Act’s fixed monetary caps unless further amending legislation has altered the figures since the reprint date. The marginal amendment notes identify which sections were affected.

• Terminology and administrative update. The Public Transport Authority Act 2003 amendment broadens the set of entities described as local authorities in section 2. Reprint editorial changes under the Reprints Act 1984 replace obsolete entity names with their contemporary equivalents where appropriate. Those reprint changes do not alter substantive rights but are necessary for proper administrative identification of responsible authorities.

• Survival of original operative clauses. The core operative provisions of the 1919 Act, including the powers granted in section 4, notice and plan obligations in section 5, reinstatement and maintenance duties in section 6, and payment in lieu arrangement in section 14, remain as the structural backbone of the Act. Amendments have been technical and administrative rather than reworking the Act’s original allocation of rights and duties.

Limitations of the published amendment history in the reprint

• The compilation table records formal amendments noted in the reprint up to 18 March 2016. It does not purport to record any subsequent legislative changes post‑reprint nor to describe non‑statutory administrative practice. Practitioners should consult current legislative databases to confirm whether any further amendments have occurred since the reprint date.

• The compilation table and marginal notes do not supply a historical narrative beyond listing amending Acts and commencement dates. They do not document any orders, ministerial instruments or administrative determinations that might have been made under the Act.

In sum, the Act’s amendment history as recorded in the reprint comprises currency conversion, ministerial title updates, and an update to the definition of local authority to include the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia. The 1919 Act’s core structure and its grant of powers to the Company remain intact in the reprint.

The text of the reprinted Act and its compilation notes do not record any judicial decisions or litigation history connected to the statute. The Act itself prescribes enforcement mechanisms,summary penalties recoverable in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction (s 13) and civil remedies for damages recoverable in "any Court of competent jurisdiction" (s 12),but the reprint contains no annotated case law or statutory notes indicating that courts have construed or adjudicated its provisions.

What the source does and does not provide

• No cases are named in the Act or in the reprint’s marginal notes. The reprint contains statutory text and compilation annotations but does not include judicial interpretations, precedents, or references to reported decisions.

• The Act’s enforcement design relies upon summary process for fines and ordinary civil action for compensation. The practical operation of those remedies in court,issues such as how courts have interpreted the 3 clear days notice requirement, the sufficiency of deposited plans, the meaning of "all convenient speed" in reinstatement, or the application of section 17’s voidance provision,are matters that would be settled in case law if disputes reached the courts. That material is not contained in the reprint.

Advisory note for research

• If litigation history is required, a targeted search in contemporary legal databases and court registries is necessary. Relevant places to search include decisions of the Magistrates Court (historically Courts of Summary Jurisdiction), the Supreme Court of Western Australia for any civil claims that may have escalated, and archival reporting of local government proceedings if enforcement was administered through municipal channels. Given the Act’s age and private nature, historical local court files may contain contested applications or contested compensation claims.

• Practitioners should also be alert to administrative enforcement actions or agreements made between the Company (or its assigns) and local authorities under the Act that may have been resolved by consent or by payment and therefore never proceeded to reported judicial decisions; such administrative resolutions will not appear in the reprint.

• The reprint’s absence of litigation does not mean there has been none. It only means that the reprint text and compilation notes themselves contain no litigation history. Confirming judicial engagement with the Act requires external case law and court record searches.

In conclusion, the statutory source provides the enforcement framework but contains no embedded judicial history. For legal advice that depends on judicial interpretation, obtain and review case law and court records applying the Act or related municipal and developer disputes in Fremantle.

This section identifies specific provisions and drafting features that commonly produce compliance traps or require careful operational interpretation. All points are grounded in the Act’s wording.

1. "3 clear days" notice (s 5) is a technical timeframe. The Act requires notice "not less than 3 clear days before commencing" the work. Practitioners should treat "clear days" as excluding both the day the notice is given and the day work commences. Operationally this requires early scheduling and awareness of weekends and public holidays that may affect the computation. Failure to observe the exact notice period exposes the Company to section 7 penalties.

2. Local authority attendance exception (s 5). The Company may proceed without local authority superintendence only if "no officer appointed by the local authority attends at the time fixed in such notice and remains during the opening". That is fact sensitive. If an officer attends but is not present throughout, the Company may still be required to comply with superintendence obligations. Practical risk arises if the Company assumes absence and proceeds when an officer was present, exposing it to liability under s 7.

3. Emergency repair carve‑out requires prompt follow-up (s 5). The Act allows emergency repair without prior notice and plan deposit but requires notice and plan deposit "as soon as possible after the commencement of the work or the necessity for the same has arisen". Failure to submit required plans promptly may attract penalty risk and disputes about whether the situation was indeed an emergency.

4. Footpath piping limitation (s 4 proviso). Mains, conduits and service pipes "laid down or placed in or under any footpath shall only be laid down and placed across such footpath and not along the length thereof". This is a substantive spatial constraint. Installing pipes along the length of a footpath rather than crossing it is an explicit breach of the Act’s proviso and could lead to orders under s 10 to alter the works, with the company liable for the expense if the alteration is necessary because of the breach.

5. Ministerial consents and Minister for Works approval (s 4 provisos). Interference with railways and wharves requires ministerial consent subject to conditions. All plans and specifications for street works must be approved by the Minister for Works. Practically this means that works adjacent to or affecting rail and port land may require additional approvals and conditions. The ministerial authority named in 1919 may now be a modern successor agency; practitioners must identify the current responsible Minister or body. Failure to obtain consent or approval permits the local authority to require alteration under s 10 and may expose the Company to penalties.

6. Fixed monetary penalties and absence of indexation (ss 7, 11, 14). The Act sets dollar amounts for fines and the minimum payment in lieu ($200). The Decimal Currency Act 1965 converted currency, but the Act itself does not contain any indexing mechanism. Over time the fixed amounts can become nominal relative to actual damages or the economic value of non‑compliance. That creates a potential mismatch between the seriousness of an infraction and the statutory fine available. It also means that the section 14 "greater of 1/8 per centum of receipts or $200" should be scrutinised in current value terms.

7. Payment in lieu calculation and record keeping (s 14). The payment due is calculated on the "amount actually received by the Company for the sale of the oil and liquid fuel conveyed through the said service pipes during the 12 months ending 31 December immediately preceding". The operative base is revenue actually received for oil conveyed through specified pipes. Companies must maintain accurate, auditable records of revenue tied to those particular pipes and the temporal cut‑off to compute the annual sum. Failure to maintain appropriate records could produce disputes with the Council about the correct amount payable.

8. The Act contains a conditional voidance clause (s 17). Section 17 states that if the Company did not commence any of the authorised works before 1 January 1922 the Act would cease and determine. That is a time‑bound provision whose practical relevance is historical. However the presence of that clause in the statute raises a potential archival issue: if there were any failure to commence works historically, one might question the ongoing validity of the Act or the factual basis for continued exercise of its powers. The reprint indicates the Act remains on the statute book, so either works were commenced or subsequent legal events validated continuation. Where title to rights under the Act is in question, confirming historical commencement is a prudent step.

9. Deposit mechanics are controlled by Joint Standing Orders (s 16). The Act requires funds to be deposited with the Treasurer under Parliamentary Joint Standing Orders for Private Bills. The Act delegates the detailed mechanics to Parliamentary procedure, not to the statute. Practitioners must consult the relevant standing orders and Treasury practices for the effect and availability of those deposits, and for whether the deposit can be applied to municipal reinstatement claims if the Company defaults.

10. Modern statutory overlays are not spelled out. The Act grants particular permissions for physical works but does not address modern environmental regulation, petroleum regulation, dangerous goods handling or workplace safety licensing. Practitioners must not assume the Act creates a blanket exemption from contemporary regulatory regimes; those regimes will interact with the Act and may impose additional approvals, licences or compliance conditions. The Act itself does not assert primacy over other modern statutes.

11. Local authority definitions and successor bodies (s 2; compilation notes). The Act defines local authority to include the mayor and councillors of the Municipality of Fremantle, the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia, and the Fremantle Port Authority. The compilation notes state that the Municipality is now the City of Fremantle and that the Fremantle Port Authority continues under the Port Authorities Act 1999. Practitioners must map original terminology to current entities to ensure notices and approvals are served on the correct administrative bodies.

12. Limited dispute resolution language. The Act prescribes remedies but does not create modern administrative review or appeal pathways for ministerial decisions. Disagreements about approvals, conditions or the sufficiency of reinstatement will likely be litigated in courts or resolved administratively by agreement. The Act does not provide a statutory appeal ladder for ministerial or local authority decisions.

In short, the "gotchas" are procedural timing issues, the spatial footpath constraint, the ministerial consent and plan approval requirements, nominal monetary caps, record keeping for revenue‑based payments, and the need to map historical administrative references to current agencies. All arise directly from the Act’s text and the reprint annotations.

This checklist is a practical, source‑grounded compliance guide for an entity operating under or acquiring rights that derive from the Anglo‑Persian Oil Company Limited’s (Private) Act 1919. It assumes the reader engages in works authorised by the Act within the geographic limits specified in section 3.

A. Pre‑work compliance steps

1. Confirm title and assignment. Verify that the person or entity proposing to exercise the Act’s powers is the Company described in section 2 or a valid assign, and that any rights have been properly assigned and recorded. The Act’s definitions include "its assigns" (s 2).

2. Identify the applicable local authority and ministerial offices. Map historical references to current agencies. Section 2 and compilation notes indicate that the local authority list includes the mayor and councillors of the Municipality of Fremantle (now City of Fremantle), the Public Transport Authority and the Fremantle Port Authority. Determine which contemporary Minister administers railway and port consents (s 4 proviso) and who exercises the Minister for Works function for plan approval (s 4 proviso).

3. Prepare detailed plans and specifications. For any works in streets, preparing plans and specifications is mandatory and they must be submitted to and approved by the Minister for Works before work proceeds (s 4 proviso). For other works, prepare a plan that sets forth the extent and manner of proposed work and the intended commencement time to deposit with the local authority under section 5.

4. Account and record revenue streams. Establish accounting procedures to record the "amount actually received" for oil and liquid fuel conveyed through the service pipes so the annual payment in lieu under section 14 can be computed and substantiated. Maintain auditable records covering the 12 month period ending 31 December.

B. Notice and plan deposit

5. Serve written notice at least 3 clear days before commencing work. Section 5 requires the Company to give the local authority written notice not less than 3 clear days before commencing to open, break up or interfere with any street, railway or wharf. Ensure the computation of "3 clear days" excludes the day of service and the day of commencement and adjusts for weekends and public holidays.

6. Deposit the plan with the local authority at the same time as serving notice. Include the intended commencement time and sufficient detail to enable the local authority to supervise adherence to the plan (s 5).

7. Confirm whether a local authority officer will attend. If an officer will not attend at the time fixed in the notice and remain during the works, the Company may proceed without superintendence (s 5). If an officer is scheduled to attend, be prepared to work under local authority superintendence.

C. Emergency works

8. For emergency repairs, act immediately to protect public safety. The Act permits immediate repair without prior notice and plan deposit in cases of emergency arising from accidents or defects (s 5). However, submit notice and deposit the plan as soon as possible after the commencement of the emergency work. Document the emergency circumstances contemporaneously to support the exercise of the emergency exception.

D. During works and reinstatement

9. Adhere to the deposited plan and local superintendence. Do not deviate from the deposited plan unless approved by the local authority or approved Ministers. Section 5 conditions the Company’s right to proceed on adherence to the plan and supervision.

10. Reinstate with all convenient speed and remove rubbish. Section 6 requires prompt completion of work, filling in excavations, reinstatement to the satisfaction of the local authority and removal of rubbish. Maintain records and photographic evidence of pre‑ and post‑works conditions.

11. Guard and light open works. While any street, railway or wharf is opened or interfered with, the Company must cause it to be properly guarded and sufficiently lighted for public warning (s 6). Implement temporary traffic management and public safety measures.

12. Prepare for 6 month maintenance obligations. If required by the local authority, the Company must keep the repaired area in good repair for six months after reinstatement (s 6). Budget for potential maintenance costs and monitor the repaired area during the period.

E. Consent conditions and alterations

13. Obtain ministerial consent for railway and wharf interference. For works affecting railways or wharves consent is required from the relevant Minister, and may be subject to conditions (s 4 proviso). Factor in time for ministerial consideration and the possibility of conditions that may impose additional costs or technical requirements.

14. Ensure footpath works only cross not run along length. If laying pipes in or under a footpath, lay them only across the footpath and not along it, per the s 4 proviso. Non‑compliance risks orders under s 10 and expense where alteration is required due to breach.

15. Comply with local authority requests to alter works within 10 days. Section 10 requires the Company to raise, sink or otherwise alter the situation of works if required in writing by the local authority. The Company has a 10 day cure period. If default results from the Company’s breach, the Company bears the cost of alteration; where the local authority causes the alteration for other reasons the local authority bears the cost. Implement procedures to respond rapidly to written requests.

F. Financial compliance

16. Make the annual payment in lieu of rates on schedule. Section 14 requires payment of an amount equal to 1/8 per centum of the amount actually received for sales of oil conveyed through the service pipes during the prior 12 months, or $200, whichever is greater. The amount is payable in two half yearly instalments on 1 January and 1 July each year. Ensure timely payments to avoid municipal recourse.

17. Maintain insurance and contingency funds. Although the Act does not mandate specific insurance, the Company will commonly incur liability exposure for damage, injury or environmental harm. Ensure adequate insurance coverage and a contingency fund for potential costs recoverable by local authorities under section 8 or other claims.

G. Enforcement and dispute preparedness

18. Keep records and evidence to defend against penalties. Given the availability of summary penalties under sections 7 and 11, maintain records showing compliance with notice, plan deposit, reinstatement and safety obligations to defend against any alleged breaches.

19. Prepare for civil claims and summary court process. The local authority may recover expenses under section 8 and the Company may be sued for compensation under section 9. Have litigation and dispute resolution plans in place and identify counsel experienced in local government and public works disputes.

H. Interaction with contemporary regulation

20. Obtain all necessary environmental, building, petroleum and workplace safety approvals. The Act’s powers do not on their face displace modern licensing and regulatory obligations. Secure all necessary contemporary approvals and comply with modern standards for hazardous substances, storage tanks, bunding, spill response, pollution control and occupational safety.

I. Administrative housekeeping

21. Comply with deposit requirements under Joint Standing Orders. If a Parliamentary deposit remains relevant (s 16), ensure funds are lodged with the Treasurer in accordance with the applicable Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills.

22. Monitor statutory successors and legislative changes. Because ministerial and agency responsibilities named in the Act have changed over time, keep abreast of which contemporary agencies exercise the powers formerly assigned to historical Ministers and authorities. Use the reprint compilation notes as a starting point to map successor responsibilities.

Final operational checks

• Before commencing any physical works referenced in the Act, run a compliance checklist that includes: validated title or assignment, ministerial consents and plan approval where required, local authority notice and plan deposit in compliance with timing rules, current insurance and contingency funds, an environmental and safety compliance plan, documented procedures for guarding and lighting, and an accounting system for revenue records to calculate the section 14 payment in lieu.

Following these steps aligns practical operations with the Act’s requirements and reduces the primary sources of enforcement and dispute risk identified in the statute.