63Responsibility for acts or omissions of representatives

63 Responsibility for acts or omissions of representatives

(1)  Subsections (2) and (3) apply in proceedings for an offence against this Act.

(2)  If it is relevant to prove a person's state of mind about a particular act or omission, it is enough to establish that –

(a) the act was done or omitted to be done by a representative of the person within the scope of the representative's actual or apparent authority; and

(b) the representative had the state of mind.

(3)  An act done or omitted to be done for a person by a representative of the person within the scope of the representative's actual or apparent authority is taken to have been done or omitted to be done also by the person, unless the person establishes that the person could not, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, have prevented the act or omission.

(4)  In this section –

executive officer, of a corporation, means a person who –

(a) is a member of the governing body of the corporation; or

(b) is concerned with, or takes part in, the corporation's management, whatever the person's position is called and whether or not the person is a director of the corporation;

representative means a representative –

(a) of a corporation, an executive officer, employee or agent of the corporation; or

(b) of an individual, an employee or agent of the individual;

state of mind of a person includes –

(a) the person's knowledge, intention, opinion, belief or purpose; and

(b) the person's reasons for the intention, opinion, belief or purpose.