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Crown Proceedings Act 1993
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NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
CROWN PROCEEDINGS ACT 1993
As in force at 18 June 2009
Table of provisions
Part 1 Preliminary
1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1
2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1
3 Act binds Crown .............................................................................. 1
4 Definitions ........................................................................................ 1
Part 2 Proceedings by and against Crown
generally
5 Proceedings by and against Crown generally.................................. 2
6 Crown immunities, &c. ..................................................................... 2
7 Corresponding law of other States .................................................. 2
8 Injunctive relief................................................................................. 2
9 Protection of confidentiality on grounds of public interest ................ 2
10 Costs ............................................................................................... 3
11 Enforcement of judgments against Crown ....................................... 3
12 Enforcement of judgments by Crown ............................................... 3
Part 3 Provisions of special application to
Territory Crown
13 Service on Territory Crown .............................................................. 4
14 Service of subpoenas, &c., on Ministers .......................................... 4
15 Judicial notice of Attorney-General's appointment, &c..................... 4
16 Right of Attorneys-General to appear in proceedings, &c. ............... 5
17 Right of Attorney-General to intervene ............................................ 5
18 Notice to Attorney-General .............................................................. 5
19 Cases where right of Crown to legal representation is
restricted .......................................................................................... 6
Part 4 Miscellaneous
20 Exclusion of certain proceedings ..................................................... 6
22 Regulations...................................................................................... 7
23 Repeal ............................................................................................. 7
ENDNOTES
NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
____________________
As in force at 18 June 2009
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CROWN PROCEEDINGS ACT 1993
An Act to provide for suits by and against the Crown and for related
purposes
Part 1 Preliminary
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Crown Proceedings Act 1993.
2 Commencement
This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the
Administrator by notice in the Gazette.
3 Act binds Crown
This Act binds the Crown, not only in right of the Territory but, to the
extent that the legislative power of the Legislative Assembly
permits, in all its other capacities, but does not extend to the Crown
in right of the Commonwealth.
4 Definitions
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:
Crown includes a Minister, an instrumentality or agency of the
Crown and a prescribed person.
judgment means a judgment or order of a court.
proceedings means civil proceedings.
State includes a Territory of the Commonwealth other than the
Northern Territory.
Territory Crown means the Crown in right of the Territory.
Part 2 Proceedings by and against Crown generally
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 2
Part 2 Proceedings by and against Crown generally
5 Proceedings by and against Crown generally
(1) Subject to this Act and any relevant rules of court, and subject to
the Judiciary Act 1903 of the Commonwealth:
(a) proceedings may be brought by or against the Crown in the
same way as proceedings between subjects; and
(b) the same procedural and substantive law applies to
proceedings by or against the Crown as in proceedings
between subjects.
(2) Subject to the Regulations, proceedings may be brought by or
against the Crown:
(a) in the case of the Territory Crown, under the name "Northern
Territory of Australia"; or
(b) in any other case, under the name in which the Crown could
sue or be sued in the courts of its own jurisdiction.
6 Crown immunities, &c.
This Act does not affect an immunity from, or a limitation on, liability
that the Crown or an officer, employee or agent of the Crown enjoys
by statute.
7 Corresponding law of other States
(1) The Regulations may prescribe a law of a State relating to
proceedings against the Crown to be a corresponding law for the
purposes of this section.
(2) The corresponding law of a State binds the Territory Crown.
8 Injunctive relief
(1) Subject to subsection (2), injunctive relief may be granted against
the Crown.
(2) A mandatory injunction is not to be made against the Crown.
9 Protection of confidentiality on grounds of public interest
This Act does not affect a rule of law under which a person may
refuse to:
(a) discover or produce documents; or
Part 2 Proceedings by and against Crown generally
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 3
(b) answer an interrogatory or other question,
on the ground that to do so would be prejudicial to the public
interest.
10 Costs
(1) The Crown is not required to pay court fees in proceedings.
(2) Costs to which the Crown is entitled are to be calculated as if the
Crown were liable to pay, and had paid, the fees from which it is
exempt under subsection (1).
11 Enforcement of judgments against Crown
(1) A writ, warrant or similar process is not to be issued out of a court
to enforce a judgment against the Territory Crown or the Crown in
right of a State.
(2) If a final judgment is given against the Territory Crown or the Crown
in right of a State, unless the court orders otherwise, the registrar of
the court shall, at the expiration of the period during which an
appeal may be lodged, transmit a copy of the judgment to the
Administrator, the Governor of the State or, in the case of the
Australian Capital Territory, the Chief Minister of that Territory, as
the case may be.
(3) If the Administrator receives a final judgment from a court, including
of a State, the Administrator shall give directions as to the manner
in which the judgment is to be satisfied.
(4) A Minister, agency or instrumentality of the Territory Crown to which
a direction is given under subsection (3) is authorised and required
to carry out the direction.
(5) A direction under this section is sufficient authority for payment from
the public moneys of the Territory and the appropriation for that
purpose is established or increased to the extent necessary.
12 Enforcement of judgments by Crown
Subject to this Act and any relevant rules of court, a judgment
recovered by the Crown may be enforced in the same manner as a
judgment in proceedings between subjects, and in no other way.
Part 3 Provisions of special application to Territory Crown
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 4
Part 3 Provisions of special application to Territory
Crown
13 Service on Territory Crown
Service on the Territory Crown of a process or document relating to
proceedings is to be effected by service on the Solicitor for the
Northern Territory except in the following cases:
(a) if special provision relevant to the service of the process or
document is made by or under this Act, service is to be
effected in accordance with that special provision;
(b) if the party by whom or on whose behalf the process or
document is to be served has notice that a legal practitioner
other than the Solicitor for the Northern Territory is acting for
the Territory Crown in relation to the proceedings, service is to
be effected on that legal practitioner.
14 Service of subpoenas, &c., on Ministers
(1) A subpoena or other process is not to be issued by a court, tribunal
or other authority requiring a Minister to appear, in the Minister's
official capacity, to give evidence or produce documents without the
leave of the court, tribunal or other authority.
(2) Leave pursuant to subsection (1) is not to be granted except after
the Solicitor for the Northern Territory has been given reasonable
notice in writing of the application and a reasonable opportunity to
be heard on the application.
(3) A court, tribunal or other authority which grants leave pursuant to
subsection (1) shall, at the same time, give directions as to the
manner in which service is to be effected on the Minister.
15 Judicial notice of Attorney-General's appointment, &c.
(1) In proceedings, a document apparently signed by the Attorney-
General is, in the absence of proof to the contrary, to be presumed
to have been duly signed by the Attorney-General.
(2) The Attorney-General's instrument of appointment as Attorney-
General is, on its production to the Supreme Court, to be noted in
the records of the Court.
(3) Proceedings (whether civil or criminal) by or against the Attorney-
General do not abate and are not affected by any change of office-
holder.
Part 3 Provisions of special application to Territory Crown
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 5
16 Right of Attorneys-General to appear in proceedings, &c.
(1) The Attorney-General of a State may, on behalf of that State,
represent the Crown in any proceedings (whether civil or criminal)
in which the Crown in right of that State is a party.
(2) The Attorney-General of the Commonwealth may, on behalf of the
Commonwealth, represent the Crown in any proceedings (whether
civil or criminal) in which the Crown in right of the Commonwealth is
a party.
17 Right of Attorney-General to intervene
(1) The Attorney-General may, on behalf of the Crown, intervene in
proceedings:
(a) that relate to a matter arising under, or involving the
interpretation or validity of, a law of the Territory or the
Commonwealth;
(b) in which:
(i) legislation or executive powers of the Territory or the
Commonwealth, or an instrumentality or agency of the
Territory or the Commonwealth, are in question; or
(ii) judicial powers of a court or tribunal established under
the law of the Territory or Commonwealth are in
question; or
(c) in which the court grants leave to intervene,
for the purpose of submitting argument on the question in issue.
(2) The Attorney-General has the same right of appeal in proceedings
in which he or she intervenes under subsection (1) as a party to
those proceedings.
(3) If the Attorney-General intervenes in proceedings under this
section, the court may make an order for costs against the Crown to
reimburse the parties to the proceedings for costs occasioned by
the intervention, but the court shall not make such an order unless
there are special circumstances which in the opinion of the court
make it appropriate to do so.
18 Notice to Attorney-General
(1) Where proceedings relate to a matter arising under, or involving the
interpretation of, a law of the Territory or the Commonwealth, a
court may, on the application of a party or the Attorney-General or
Part 4 Miscellaneous
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 6
of its own motion, adjourn the proceedings and may direct a party
to give notice of the proceedings to the Attorney-General.
(2) If a court grants an adjournment under subsection (1), the court
may make such order as to costs in relation to such an
adjournment, including an order against the Territory, as the court
thinks fit.
19 Cases where right of Crown to legal representation is
restricted
(1) This section applies to proceedings where an Act removes or
restricts the right of a party to be represented in the proceedings by
a legal practitioner.
(2) In proceedings to which this section applies the Territory Crown or
the Attorney-General, if a party to the proceedings, may be
represented by an officer, employee or agent of the Crown (not
being a legal practitioner) authorised to conduct the proceedings on
behalf of the Crown or the Attorney-General.
(3) In proceedings to which this section applies, a document apparently
signed by a Minister or the person having chief executive authority
in an agency, instrumentality, department or unit of administration
of the Territory Crown that appears to be an authorisation of the
kind contemplated by subsection (2) is, in the absence of proof to
the contrary, to be accepted as such an authorisation.
Part 4 Miscellaneous
20 Exclusion of certain proceedings
This Act does not affect:
(a) proceedings for the recovery or enforcement of a fine, penalty
or forfeiture (including the estreatment of a recognizance)
imposed in criminal proceedings; or
(b) a law, custom or procedure under which the Attorney-General
is entitled or liable to sue, or be sued, or to intervene in
proceedings, on behalf of the Crown, on the relation, or on
behalf of, any other person or persons or in any other capacity
or for any other purposes.
Part 4 Miscellaneous
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 7
22 Regulations
(1) The Administrator may make regulations, not inconsistent with this
Act, prescribing matters:
(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or
giving effect to this Act.
(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the Regulations
may regulate the service of process or other documents under this
Act.
23 Repeal
The Claims by and against the Government Act 1978, comprising
Act No. 46 of 1978 and Act No. 59 of 1982, is repealed.
ENDNOTES
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 8
ENDNOTES
1 KEY
Key to abbreviations
amd = amended od = order
app = appendix om = omitted
bl = by-law pt = Part
ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule
cl = clause rem = remainder
div = Division renum = renumbered
exp = expires/expired rep = repealed
f = forms s = section
Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule
hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision
ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation
lt = long title sub = substituted
nc = not commenced
2 LIST OF LEGISLATION
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 (Act No. 51, 1993)
Assent date 27 September 1993
Commenced 1 January 1994 (Gaz G48, 1 December 1993, p 2)
Statute Law Revision Act 1999 (Act No. 27, 1999)
Assent date 18 June 1999
Commenced 18 June 1999
Crown Proceedings Amendment Act 2002 (Act No. 72, 2002)
Assent date 11 December 2002
Commenced 11 December 2002
Legal Profession (Consequential Amendments) Act 2007 (Act No. 7, 2007)
Assent date 17 May 2007
Commenced s 10: 1 July 2007 (Gaz G26, 27 June 2007, p 3);
rem: 17 May 2007
Financial Management Amendment Act 2009 (Act No. 15, 2009)
Assent date 18 June 2009
Commenced 18 June 2009
3 GENERAL AMENDMENTS
General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table
of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation
Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22 of 2018) to: ss 1 and 23.
4 LIST OF AMENDMENTS
s 4 amd No. 7, 2007, s 16
s 11 amd No. 27, 1999, s 15; No. 15, 2009, s 16
s 13 amd No. 72, 2002, s 2; No. 7, 2007, s 16
s 19 amd No. 7, 2007, s 16
ENDNOTES
Crown Proceedings Act 1993 9
s 21 rep No. 72, 2002, s 3