Part 7General provisions

Part 7—General provisions Division 1—Power to dispense with formal proof 59J—Court's power to dispense with formal proof (1) A court may at any stage of civil or criminal proceedings— (a) dispense with compliance with the rules of evidence for proving any matter that is not genuinely in dispute; or (b) dispense with compliance with the rules of evidence where compliance might involve unreasonable expense or delay. (2) In exercising its power under subsection (1) the court may, for example, dispense with proof of— (a) a document or the execution of a document; (b) handwriting; (c) the identity of a party; (d) the conferral of an authority to do a particular act. (3) A court is not bound by the rules of evidence in informing itself on any matter relevant to the exercise of its discretion under this section. Division 2—Notice of action 60—Sufficiency of notice of action In any action or other proceeding in any court of justice in which notice of action is required, such notice shall be deemed sufficient if, in the opinion of the person presiding, such notice shall have given the defendant reasonable notice of the cause of such action, and the sufficiency of such notice shall be a question of fact and not of law; and no notice of action shall be held insufficient merely for want of form. Division 3—Facilitation of proof of certain matters 62—Proof of "public place" in certain cases Whenever in any proceedings before justices, in respect of any offence, it is an essential ingredient of the offence that the place (where any fact or matter occurred or was done) should be a public place, an allegation, in the complaint or information, that the place (specified as that in which the fact or matter charged occurred or was done) was a public place, shall be prima facie evidence of that fact, but the court may, if it thinks fit, and at any stage of the proceedings, permit evidence to be called with respect to the said fact. 62A—Proof of place being within municipality etc (1) In any complaint or information an allegation that any place is within a municipality, district council district, town or township, shall be prima facie evidence of the fact so alleged. (2) In this section the word place shall include any place, public or private, however described in the complaint or information, including any street road or other thoroughfare, or part thereof, and any building or structure or part thereof. 63—Proof of foreign law Printed books purporting to contain statutes, ordinances or other written laws in force in any country, although not purporting to have been printed or published by authority, and books purporting to contain reports of decisions of courts or judges in such country, and text books treating of the laws of such country, may be referred to by all courts for the purpose of ascertaining the laws in force in such country; but such courts shall not be bound to accept or act on the statements in any such books as evidence of such laws. 63A—Evidence as to foreign law Where upon trial of any proceedings by judge and jury it is necessary to ascertain the law of any other country or state applicable to the proceedings, any question as to the effect of evidence given with respect to that law shall, instead of being submitted to the jury, be decided by the judge. 64—Proof of matters of history, science etc All courts may, in matters of public history, literature, science, or art, refer, for the purposes of evidence, to such published books, calendars, maps, or charts as such courts consider to be of authority on the subjects to which they respectively relate: Provided that nothing herein contained shall be deemed to require any such court to accept or act upon any such evidence when tendered, unless it thinks fit. 65—Reference by court to books, official certificates etc (1) In any matter relating to— (a) the ordinary course of the post between any place within the Commonwealth and any other place, whether within or without the Commonwealth, or to the public business and transactions of the Australian Postal Commission; or (b) the territorial limits of the area controlled by any municipal or district council or other local governing body, or of any other area designated or proclaimed or appointed by or under any statute or to the inclusion in any such area or the exclusion therefrom of any particular place; or (c) the distance between any two places in the State; every court may refer to— (d) any such published book, map, chart, or document as the court considers to be of authority upon the subject to which it relates; or (e) any certificate purporting to be signed by some person occupying any official position which, in the opinion of the court, qualifies him to certify to the fact in question. (2) However nothing herein contained shall be deemed to require any such court to accept or act upon any such evidence when tendered unless it thinks fit. 65A—Proof of age If— (a) the age of a person is relevant to proceedings before a court; and (b) a document that appears to be a certified copy of, or extract from, a register of births kept under an Australian law, or under the law of the country in which the person was born, is produced to the court; and (c) the name of the person to whom the document relates is the name or a former name of the person whose age is to be established, it will be presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, that the person whose age is to be established is the person named in the document produced to the court and that the date of his or her birth is the date of birth shown in that document. Division 4—Taking affidavits etc outside the State 66—Taking of affidavits out of the State (1) Any oath or affidavit required for the purpose of any court or matter in the State may be taken or made, in any place out of the State, before— (a) a commissioner for taking affidavits in the Supreme Court empowered and authorised to act in that place; or (b) a British diplomatic or consular agent exercising his function in that place; or (ba) any person appointed to hold or act in any of the following offices of the Commonwealth in that place: (i) ambassador; (ii) high commissioner; (iii) minister; (iv) head of mission; (v) commissioner; (vi) charge d'affaires; (vii) counsellor or secretary at an embassy, high commissioner's office, legation or other post; (viii) consul-general; (ix) consul; (x) vice-consul; (xi) trade commissioner; (xii) consular agent; or (bb) an employee of the Commonwealth, or the Australian Trade Commission, authorised under section 3 of the Consular Fees Act 1955 (Commonwealth) and exercising his or her function in that place; or (c) any person having authority to administer an oath in that place. (2) Judicial and official notice may be taken— (a) of the signature or seal of any such commissioner or agent or of any person appointed as aforesaid, or of any person having authority as aforesaid if he purports to have such authority, otherwise than by the law of a foreign country not under the dominion of His Majesty; and (b) of the fact that any particular place is under the dominion of His Majesty. (3) In the case of a person purporting to have such authority by the law of a foreign country not under the dominion of His Majesty, such authority may be verified by any of the persons mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b) and (ba) of subsection (1) hereof, or by the certificate of the superior court of such place, and if such authority purports to be so verified the oath or affidavit may be admitted or received without further proof of the signature or seal, or of the judicial, official, or other character of such first mentioned person. oath includes affirmation and declaration; affidavit includes any statutory or other declaration, acknowledgment, or examination; diplomatic agent means ambassador, envoy, minister, charge d'affaires, or secretary of embassy or legation; consular agent means consul-general, consul, vice-consul, or consular agent, or acting consul-general, acting consul, acting vice-consul, or acting consular agent. 66A—Taking of affidavits out of the State by sailors, soldiers and airmen (1) Any oath or affidavit required to be made by any member of a fighting force, for the purpose of any court or matter in the State, may be taken or made in any place out of the State before any officer of any naval, military or air force of any part of His Majesty's dominions who holds a rank not below the following, namely: (a) in the case of a naval officer, lieutenant; (b) in the case of a military officer, captain; (c) in the case of an officer of an air force, flight-lieutenant, or before any person having authority to administer an oath in the State. (2) An officer administering an oath or taking an affidavit by virtue of the powers conferred by this section shall state in the jurat or attestation to the oath or affidavit the following matters, namely: (a) the date on which the oath or affidavit is taken or sworn; (b) the full name and rank of the officer. (3) An apparently genuine signature purporting to be the signature of a person administering an oath or taking an affidavit, and purporting to be the signature of an officer of a naval, military or air force of any part of His Majesty's dominions who holds a rank not below that specified in subsection (1) of this section, may be deemed to be the signature of such an officer unless the contrary is shown. affidavit includes any statutory or other declaration, acknowledgment, or examination; His Majesty's dominions includes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and all self-governing dominions, dependencies, colonies, protectorates, protected states, and mandated territories of His Majesty; member of a fighting force includes any man or woman who is a member of a naval, military or air force of any country, and any person who, as a representative or employee of any charitable, religious or other organisation for promoting the welfare of members of any such force, is attached to any such force; oath includes affirmation and declaration. 67—Extension of provisions relating to affidavits to attestation etc of other documents (1) The provisions of section 66 and 66A shall, as far as applicable, extend to every attestation, verification, acknowledgment, or signature in relation to any document required, authorised, or permitted by or under any statute or by custom or otherwise to be attested, verified, acknowledged, or signed, and to the doing of all notarial acts as if such provisions had been re-enacted in this section, excluding words relating to the administration of oaths or affirmations and the taking of affidavits and substituting therefor words relating to attestation, verification, acknowledgment, or signature, as the case may be. (1a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 66 of this Act as affected by subsection (1) of this section, judicial and official notice may be taken of the signature or seal of a person who, in connection with any of the matters to which those provisions so extend, appears to have signed that signature or affixed that seal while acting in the capacity of a notary public under the law for the time being in force in any country state or territory that is declared by proclamation to be a place within the Commonwealth of Nations to which this subsection applies, whether or not his authority for so acting has been verified in accordance with the provisions of subsection (3) of section 66 as so extended. (1b) A proclamation referred to in subsection (1a) of this section may be made, and may be varied or cancelled by subsequent proclamation, as the Governor thinks fit. (2) Notarial act includes any act, matter, or thing which in South Australia or elsewhere a notary public can attest or verify or otherwise do by or under any Act of Parliament or custom or otherwise for the purpose of being used in the State. (3) The provisions of this section apply to documents required, authorised, or permitted by or under the Real Property Act 1886. Division 5—Admission of official documents in evidence 67A—Admissibility of documents without proof of seal etc Every document admissible in evidence for any purpose in any court of justice in England or Wales without proof of the seal, or stamp, or signature authenticating the document, or of the judicial or official character of the person appearing to have signed it, shall be admissible in evidence for the like purpose in any court of the State or before any person acting judicially under any law of the State, without proof of the seal, or stamp, or signature authenticating the document, or of the judicial or official character of the person appearing to have signed it. Division 6—Power of foreign authority to take evidence 67AB—Taking of evidence in this State by foreign authorities (1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, a foreign authority may— (a) take evidence; and (b) administer an oath or affirmation to any witness for the purpose of taking evidence, in this State. (2) Where— (a) the foreign authority is not a court constituted of a person who holds judicial office under the laws of the place in which the court is established; or (b) the evidence to be taken by the foreign authority relates to criminal proceedings, it shall not be lawful for the foreign authority to take evidence, or to administer an oath or affirmation, in this State without the authority of the Attorney-General. foreign authority means— (a) a court established under the law of a place outside this State; or (b) any body or person authorised under the law of a place outside this State to take evidence; or (c) any person commissioned or otherwise authorised by any such court, body or person to act on its behalf in taking evidence in this State. Division 7—Select Committee evidence 67B—Evidence before the Parliamentary Select Committee of Inquiry into Prostitution (1) Where a person in evidence, or in a submission, to the Select Committee makes a statement tending to incriminate himself of an offence, no proceedings in respect of that offence shall be commenced against him in respect of that offence except upon the authorisation of the Attorney-General. (2) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary no Minister or other person shall have power to give an authorisation under subsection (1) of this section on behalf of or in place of the Attorney-General. (3) An apparently genuine document purporting to be under the hand of the Attorney-General and to authorise the commencement of proceedings in respect of an offence shall be accepted, in the absence of proof to the contrary, as proof of the authorisation required by subsection (1) of this section. (4) A person who, without the authority of the Select Committee, publishes— (a) the name of any person who gives evidence, or makes a submission, to the Select Committee; or (b) any information or material tending to identify any person who gives evidence, or makes a submission, to the Select Committee, shall be guilty of an offence and liable, upon summary conviction, to a penalty not exceeding $5 000. the Select Committee means the Parliamentary Select Committee of Inquiry into Prostitution.