Competition and Consumer (Designated Shipper Bodies) Declaration 2018

The instrument structures its effect around four categorical labels: “outwards peak shipper body”, “outwards secondary shipper body”, “inwards peak shipper body” and “inwards secondary shipper body” (s 5(1)-(4) and the Schedules). The instrument itself supplies only two defined terms: “Act” (defined as the Competition and Consumer Act 2010) and “Part X” (defined as Part X of the Act) (s 4). The instrument does not define the substantive meaning of the categorical labels it uses; those meanings, and the significance of being “designated … for the purposes of Part X”, must be derived from Part X and section 10.03 of the Act, because the instrument operates by reference to that Part (s 3 and s 5).

The legal form is a legislative instrument: the compilation identifies the instrument by name (s 1) and records registration and amendment history in the endnotes (Endnote 3). The instrument is therefore part of the framework of subordinate legislation under the Act. Section 6 is a revocation clause that expressly revokes “all previous instruments made under subsections 10.03(1), 10.03(2), 10.03(2A) and 10.03(2B) of the Act”. That language is broad; it replaces any earlier legislative instruments made under those specific paragraphs of s 10.03. The compilation notes that uncommenced amendments and modifications may affect the compiled law and signals where those are recorded (the ordinary compilation boilerplate at the front).

The Schedules are the operative lists. Practically, Schedule 1 contains the single entry Australian Peak Shippers Association Inc. (APSA) with an address; Schedule 2 contains Australian Horticultural Exports Association Ltd. (AHEIA) with an address; Schedule 3 contains APSA again; Schedule 4 contains AHEIA and the Australian Federation of International Forwarders (AFIF) with addresses. The instrument therefore designates a small set of named associations rather than sweeping categories of organisations. The Schedules include typographic and HTML fragments in the published compilation; while these are formatting artefacts, the substantive content of names and addresses is the legal record in the instrument.

Because the instrument operates “for the purposes of Part X”, the main conceptual linkage is to Part X’s rules and processes. The instrument is not a stand‑alone regulatory regime; it is an administrative declaration whose legal effects are channelled through the Act. The compilation’s endnotes record that the instrument was registered 8 May 2018 and commenced 1 October 2018, and that an amendment declaration was registered 7 March 2019 with effect 8 March 2019 (Endnote 3).

Directly and explicitly, the instrument affects the organisations named in the Schedules. Those associations are the only entities the text declares; they are made “designated” in one or more specific categories under s 5. The named entities (as recorded in the Schedules) are:

• Australian Peak Shippers Association Inc. (APSA), listed in Schedule 1 (Designated Outwards Peak Shipper Bodies) and Schedule 3 (Designated Inwards Peak Shipper Bodies). Address recorded: Suite 6.01, 365 Little Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 (Schedules 1 and 3).
• Australian Horticultural Exports Association Ltd. (AHEIA), listed in Schedule 2 (Designated Outwards Secondary Shipper Bodies) and Schedule 4 (Designated Inwards Secondary Shipper Bodies). Address recorded: L2, B1, WC, South Gate East, Brisbane Markets Qld 4106 (Schedules 2 and 4).
• Australian Federation of International Forwarders (AFIF), listed in Schedule 4 (Designated Inwards Secondary Shipper Bodies). Address recorded: Suite 403, Level 3, The Office Tower, 152 Bunnerong Rd East Gardens NSW 2036 (Schedule 4).

Those three named associations are therefore the immediate legal subjects of the declaration. The instrument identifies each association by name and gives an address, which is typical for legislative instruments that designate named bodies.

Indirectly, the instrument can affect other parties only to the extent that Part X of the Act ties rights, procedural access or obligations to the status of being a “designated” shipper body. The instrument itself does not state any direct obligations for shippers, carriers, ports, or regulators; whether shippers, carriers, or third-party businesses are advantaged, restricted or otherwise affected depends on how Part X uses the designation. Because the instrument expressly binds its designation to Part X (“for the purposes of Part X”, s 5), any collateral effects on private businesses or market participants flow from that Part, not from the declaration text.

Finally, s 6 revokes previous instruments made under subsections 10.03(1), (2), (2A) and (2B). That revocation affects whoever relied on prior designation instruments , administrators, associations, legal advisers and any third parties that took a legal position based on a prior declaration. The revocation replaces the earlier legal list with the list in this instrument, so compliance and standing that was tied to prior instruments must be re‑checked against the current Schedules.

The Declaration itself does not create detailed duties or rights; it confers the status of “designated … shipper body” as an administrative fact by listing particular associations in the Schedules (s 5(1)-(4)). The instrument therefore operates as an enabling declaration: the legal consequences of designation , whether they be the ability to perform a particular Part X function, to access a Part X process, to invoke exemptions, or to act as a bargaining or representative body under the Act , are determined by the substantive provisions of Part X of the Act and by s 10.03, which is the statutory power under which this instrument is made (s 3).

The instrument’s own provisions that could be read as duties or constraints are limited. Section 4 defines the two internal terms it uses: Act and Part X. Sections 1 and 2 record the name and commencement date. Section 6 imposes a revocation of prior instruments, which is a legal operation that may change the rights of entities previously designated under earlier instruments: the duty on administrators to apply the updated list is implicit in the revocation. There are no operative procedural steps imposed on the named associations within the instrument text itself; no reporting obligations, registration duties or performance standards are included in the instrument.

Because the instrument is subordinate legislation under the Act, any duties or rights attached to the status of a “designated shipper body” are located in Part X. If Part X confers the right to engage in certain conduct (for example, collective bargaining mechanisms; the instrument does not say this explicitly) or imposes duties (for example, notification, record-keeping or limits on conduct), those obligations would be enforceable under the Act. Practitioners must therefore read the instrument together with Part X and s 10.03 of the Act to identify specific duties and rights. The composition of the instrument indicates that designation is categorical and association‑based; accordingly, any rights or duties that hinge on designation will be tied to the named associations and not to unspecified individuals or firms.

A compliance consequence that does flow directly from the instrument is administrative: regulators and legal advisers should treat the Schedules as the authoritative list for the purposes identified in Part X. Section 6’s revocation means that prior lists should no longer be relied upon for any decisions that are tied to the s 10.03 instrument series. The endnotes record an amendment (F2019L00265) that changed s 4 and Schedule 3, so practitioners must consider the amended text where relevant (Endnote 4).

The declaration contains no penalty provisions and no enforcement mechanism within its own text. The instrument is declaratory in effect , it names and classifies associations , and contains no offence provisions, pecuniary penalties, enforcement powers or administrative sanctioning powers. The only enforcement-related operative clause is the revocation in s 6, which supersedes prior instruments; that is a legal operation rather than a sanction.

Because the instrument is made under s 10.03 of the Act (s 3) and expressly operates “for the purposes of Part X” (s 5), any penalties, prohibitions or enforcement processes that relate to the status of designated shipper bodies must be located in the Act, in particular in Part X and in the body of the Act that supplies penalties and enforcement for contraventions of statutory provisions. The instrument itself does not state what Part X permits, prohibits, or penalises. Therefore: to identify enforceable penalties or sanctions connected to being a designated shipper body, consult the text of Part X and the enforcement and penalty provisions elsewhere in the Act.

The compilation notes and endnotes do not record any litigation or enforcement actions arising from this instrument (Endnotes 3 and 4 set out registration and amendment history only). The absence of litigation entries in the compilation does not prove the absence of legal disputes in the courts, but the instrument’s text does not create any immediate enforcement triggers beyond its revocation of earlier instruments (s 6). Any enforcement risk thus depends on how Part X is applied and enforced by the relevant regulator(s) under the Act.

Practically, regulators, named associations and third parties who think their legal rights flow from (or are limited by) designation should identify the relevant parts of the Act that invoke designation as a condition or prerequisite. Formal enforcement mechanisms and penalties will be found in those provisions, not in the declaration itself.

This instrument is expressly subordinate to and interlinked with the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. Section 3 states that the instrument is made under section 10.03 of the Act, and section 5 declares associations “for the purposes of Part X” of that Act. The instrument therefore operates as a subordinate legislative instrument that fills a list‑making function authorised by the parent Act. Any cross‑legal effects , whether procedural, substantive or regulatory , arise from the way Part X and s 10.03 incorporate the presence of a “designated shipper body” into the Act’s legal framework.

The compilation notes draw attention to the ordinary features of legislative compilations: uncommenced amendments, modifications, self‑repealing provisions and the Legislation Register (the boilerplate at the front). The endnotes set out the instrument’s registration and amendment history (Endnote 3), and the amendment history at provision level (Endnote 4) indicates that s 4 and Schedule 3 were changed by the 2019 amendment (F2019L00265). Those history notes mean that users must consult the consolidated and current text, including any modifications or uncommenced amendments recorded on the Legislation Register, to determine the instrument’s current state vis‑à‑vis other laws.

The instrument does not reference other Commonwealth Acts directly within its operative text. However, the abbreviation key in the compilation lists the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (LIA), the Legislation Act 2003 (LA) and other statutory compilation tools, indicating that this instrument is published and maintained in the context of the Commonwealth legislative instrument regime. Practitioners should therefore expect that procedural requirements for the making, registration and amendment of this instrument follow the statutory and administrative rules applicable to legislative instruments.

Crucially, if Part X of the Act refers to or requires interaction with state laws, contract law, industrial relations regimes, customs law, maritime law, or other specific statutes, this designation instrument will interact with those regimes only insofar as the Act itself requires designation as a precondition or component. The declaration does not create cross‑jurisdictional rights independently of the Act: it is an instrument that makes a fact finder’s list available to the Act’s mechanisms.

The revocation in s 6 also interacts with prior subordinate legislation: any earlier declarations under the specified subsections of s 10.03 are revoked. That replacement effect can alter the legal landscape for parties who had rights or expectations based on previous instruments, and those parties must look to the current Schedules and to the Act to understand the current legal configuration.

The compilation includes an endnote record of the instrument’s registration and subsequent amendment. The original declaration, Competition and Consumer (Designated Shipper Bodies) Declaration 2018, was registered 8 May 2018 (F2018L00593) and commenced on 1 October 2018 (Endnote 3). A subsequent instrument, the Competition and Consumer (Designated Shipper Bodies) Amendment Declaration 2019, was registered 7 March 2019 (F2019L00265) and commenced on 8 March 2019 (Endnote 3). The amendment history at provision level (Endnote 4) lists how the 2019 declaration affected this instrument: s 4 was revised (rs F2019L00265), Schedule 3 (note) was repealed (rep F2019L00265) and Schedule 3 was added (ad F2019L00265).

The compilation header also records the compilation number (Compilation No. 1) and the compilation date (8 March 2019). It contains the standard compilation boilerplate that explains how uncommenced amendments and modifications are handled in the compiled text. That boilerplate warns that uncommenced amendments are not shown in the compiled text and that modifications by other laws may alter the operation of the compiled law without changing its text in the compilation. Practitioners must therefore check the Legislation Register for any uncommenced or later amendments beyond those recorded in this compilation.

The amendment history shows that the instrument has been adjusted since its initial registration. Specifically, the 2019 amendment affected the Definitions provision (s 4) and Schedule 3; consult Endnote 4 for the notation that s 4 was “rs” (revised) and Schedule 3 was “ad” (added) with a note repute. That indicates the Schedules and defined terms have been subject to post‑registration modification; for any legal analysis that depends on the precise text of s 4 or the content of Schedule 3, the amended (post‑8 March 2019) text is the operative version reflected in the compilation.

Finally, the instrument contains an explicit revocation clause (s 6) that revokes all previous instruments made under particular subsections of s 10.03. If those prior instruments had their own amendment histories or transitional provisions, those provisions may contain saving or transitional rules practitioners need to consult. The compilation warns that application, saving and transitional provisions that are not included in the compilation will be recorded in the endnotes; there are none recorded here beyond the registration and amendment entries in Endnote 3 and the provision‑level notes in Endnote 4.

The compilation does not record any litigation history connected with this instrument. The endnotes supply the instrument’s registration and amendment record (Endnote 3) and the amendment history at the provision level (Endnote 4), but there are no entries in the compilation or the endnotes that identify court proceedings, tribunal determinations, or reported challenges to the instrument itself.

That absence should be read narrowly and literally: the compilation and its endnotes are a record of the instrument’s text, registration and amendments, and they do not purport to be a comprehensive database of all litigation that might refer to, rely upon, or challenge the instrument or the underlying Part X provisions. The compilation’s content does not include case law citations, judicial commentary, or enforcement judgments. If a practitioner requires a litigation history for the instrument or for the legal consequences of designation under Part X, a search of the federal court and state court databases, tribunal decisions and legal databases is necessary; the compilation does not supply that material.

Where persons have brought litigation that turns on whether a particular association was properly treated as a “designated shipper body”, the substance of such litigation would depend on the provisions of Part X and on the statutory instrument series made under s 10.03 of the Act. Because this instrument contains an express revocation clause (s 6 revoking earlier instruments), disputes about status could arise where parties rely on earlier instruments; but again the compilation does not show any such disputes. The instrument’s amendment history shows changes in 2019 to s 4 and Schedule 3 (Endnote 4), and amendments to designation lists can be the factual basis for litigation in other contexts; no such cases are recorded in this compilation.

In short, the compilation records registration and amendment information but does not provide judicial or tribunal history. For litigation research and precedent, consult court and tribunal databases and the published case law that interprets Part X of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

1. The instrument itself does not explain the substantive effect of being “designated” , everything hinges on Part X. Section 5 declares bodies “for the purposes of Part X”, but the declaration does not define what Part X then allows, requires or prohibits. Practitioners must not assume substantive privileges or immunities from the declaration alone; the effect is determined by the Act and Part X. See s 4 and s 5.

2. Section 6 revokes earlier instruments made under multiple subsections of s 10.03 (10.03(1), (2), (2A) and (2B)). That is broad language: any rights or reliance based on those earlier instruments may be displaced. If a client’s activities or legal positions depended on a prior declaration, verify the transition from the prior instrument to this one and whether any saving or transitional provisions apply. See s 6 and the compilation endnotes.

3. The Schedules appear in the published compilation with HTML and formatting artefacts. The names and addresses are the operative record, but copying or re‑using the text without verification may introduce typographic errors. Cross‑check addresses and names against the authoritative instrument text on the Legislation Register, particularly after the 2019 amendment that altered Schedule 3. See the Schedules and Endnote 4.

4. The instrument names a small number of associations. Do not assume that these labels constitute exhaustive categories of “peak” or “secondary” organisations across the sector , the instrument lists only the specific associations named. If a client claims to be a similar association with comparable functions, the mere similarity does not confer designation; designation requires being named in a s 10.03 instrument. See s 5 and the Schedules.

5. Amendment history shows that s 4 was revised and Schedule 3 was changed by the 2019 amendment declaration (F2019L00265). This can create confusion if different sources or copies refer to the pre‑2019 or post‑2019 versions. Always check the date of the instrument version being relied upon. See Endnotes 3 and 4.

6. The instrument’s legal relevance depends on Part X procedures and definitions. If Part X draws on other statutory regimes (for example, definitions elsewhere in the Act, or interaction with other Commonwealth or state statutes), those cross references will determine outcome more than the declaration itself. The instrument does not include cross‑references; consult the Act. See s 3 and s 5.

7. No penalties, obligations or enforcement provisions are contained in the instrument itself. If advisers advise clients about compliance consequences of being designated, they must ground their advice in Part X and not in this declaration alone. See s 5 and s 6.

8. The revocation clause revokes instruments made under multiple subsections of s 10.03; if earlier instruments contained transitional or saving clauses governing the effect on third‑party rights, those provisions may still be relevant. The compilation notes that application, saving and transitional provisions may be set out in endnotes if they are not included in the compilation. Check the Legislation Register for complete records. See s 6 and the compilation boilerplate.

This instrument is primarily administrative; the immediate compliance task is to treat the Schedules as authoritative for designation under s 10.03 of the Act and to align any processes that depend on designation with the current list. Concrete compliance steps, grounded in what the instrument itself does and what it points to, are as follows:

1. Confirm current text and amendment status. Obtain the current consolidated instrument text from the Legislation Register and confirm whether later amendments or uncommenced changes exist beyond the compilation dated 8 March 2019. The compilation warns that uncommenced amendments are not shown in the text. See the compilation boilerplate and Endnote 3.

2. Check Part X and s 10.03 of the Act for substantive obligations and entitlements. The declaration is operative only “for the purposes of Part X” (s 5). Any compliance obligations, rights to access procedures, or limits on conduct will be found in Part X and in the associated provisions of the Act referenced by s 10.03. Practitioners should read the declaration together with Part X to identify precise operational steps.

3. For the associations named in the Schedules, update organisational records and public materials. The Schedules give the formal designation and addresses for APSA, AHEIA and AFIF. Those associations should update internal governance and external communications to reflect their designation where relevant, and retain records that confirm the date and text of the declaration in case of audit or regulatory inquiry. See Schedules 1-4 and s 5.

4. For regulators and administrators, replace prior instrument lists with the current Schedules. Section 6 revokes earlier instruments made under specified subsections of s 10.03. Administrative systems that relied on older lists need to be updated so that eligibility, notification and other processes use the current declaration. See s 6.

5. If contracts or agreements reference “designated shipper bodies”, verify whether they refer to the instrument by date or to the concept in Part X. Where specific bodies are named in contracts, ensure the contract language aligns with the names in the Schedules and consider amendment if the contract’s operation depends on designation status. The instrument lists specific associations rather than generic categories. See s 5 and the Schedules.

6. Monitor for ancillary legal consequences. Because the declaration’s legal effect is determined by Part X, associations and third parties should monitor for regulatory or enforcement guidance, administrative determinations or any procedural rules that implement Part X. Those secondary materials may impose timelines, notification duties or evidence requirements for parties relying on designation. The instrument itself contains none of those detail provisions; their existence must be confirmed in Part X. See s 5.

7. Keep a record of the revocation and amendment history. The compilation’s endnotes show a 2019 amendment that revised s 4 and Schedule 3 (Endnote 4). Maintain a version‑control record that notes which instrument (and which version) was current at any relevant date for contractual or regulatory purposes.

8. Advise clients on scope and limits: do not infer rights or immunities from the declaration alone. Any advice that assumes a particular regulatory outcome because an association is listed must be tied to the relevant Part X provision authorising that outcome. The declaration is the fact of designation; it is not, by itself, a grant of procedural powers or penalties. See s 4 and s 5.

9. Where a party believes it should be designated but is not listed, advise application only through the statutory route provided by s 10.03 of the Act. The instrument does not create an open category; designation requires instrumented action under the Act. See s 3 and s 5.

10. Check addresses and entity names carefully. The Schedules include formatted text and HTML artefacts in the published compilation; for legal documents, copy the exact official name and address from the instrument on the Legislation Register to avoid typographical mistakes. See the Schedules.

Following those steps will align administrative practice with the instrument’s limited but concrete function: to list by name which organisations are designated shipper bodies for the purposes of Part X of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. The remainder of compliance , how to act once designated, what procedures to invoke, what notifications to make , depends on the content of Part X and the Act, which must be consulted in conjunction with this declaration.