5Terms used in written laws

##### 5. Terms used in written laws In this Act and every other written law — act used with reference to an offence or civil wrong includes an omission and extends to a series of acts or omissions or a series of acts and omissions; Act means any Act or Ordinance passed by the Parliament of Western Australia, or by any Council previously having authority or power to pass laws in Western Australia, such Act or Ordinance having been assented to by or on behalf of Her Majesty; affidavit means an affidavit made in accordance with the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005* or made before the commencement of that Act in accordance with law; alternative offence, when used in relation to an offence, has the meaning given by section 10B of *The Criminal Code*; amend means replace, substitute, in whole or in part, add to or vary, and the doing of any 2 or more of such things simultaneously or by the same written law; ASIC Law and ASIC Regulations have the meaning provided for by Part 11 of the *Corporations (Western Australia) Act 1990*; Auditor General means the person holding the office of Auditor General for Western Australia continued by section 6 of the *Auditor General Act 2006*; Australia means the Commonwealth of Australia; Australia Acts means — (a) the *Australia Act 1986* of the Commonwealth; and (b) the *Australia Act 1986* of the United Kingdom; bank holiday, in relation to an area, means a day that is appointed or declared a bank holiday for that area by or under the *Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972*; bankrupt and bankrupt or a person whose affairs are under insolvency laws have the meanings given in section 13D; book — (a) when used in relation to the recording of accounting or financial information, includes any method or system of recording such information that has been approved by the Treasurer; and (b) when used in relation to the recording of information other than accounting or financial information, includes any method or system of recording such information that has been approved by the Minister to whom the administration of the relevant enactment has been committed by the Governor; British possession means any part of Her Majesty’s dominions outside the United Kingdom; and where parts of such dominions are under both a central and local legislature, all parts under the central legislature are deemed, for the purposes of this definition, to be one British possession; by‑law means a by‑law made under the Act in which the term is used; chief executive officer has the meaning given by the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* and — (a) when used in relation to — (i) an agency within the meaning of that Act; or (ii) an office or employee in, or anything else connected with, an agency within the meaning of that Act, means the chief executive officer of the agency; and (b) when used in an enactment otherwise than in the circumstances referred to in paragraph (a), means the chief executive officer of the agency principally assisting the Minister administering the enactment in its administration; Children’s Court means the Children’s Court of Western Australia established by the *Children’s Court of Western Australia Act 1988*; commencement, in relation to an enactment, means the time when the enactment came or comes into operation; Commissioner of State Revenue means the Commissioner of State Revenue appointed under the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* for the purposes of the *Taxation Administration Act 2003*; Commonwealth means the Commonwealth of Australia; Commonwealth Act or Act of the Commonwealth means an Act passed by the Parliament of the Commonwealth; Consolidated Account means the Consolidated Account referred to in section 64 of the *Constitution Act 1889*; contravene, in relation to any requirement or condition prescribed in a written law or in any grant, permit, lease, licence, or other authority under a written law, includes a failure to comply with that requirement or condition; Corporations Law and Corporations Regulations have the meaning provided for by Part 3 of the *Corporations (Western Australia) Act 1990*; Court of Appeal means the Court of Appeal established under the *Supreme Court Act 1935*; court of summary jurisdiction means the Children’s Court or the Magistrates Court; death, of a person, has a meaning affected by section 13C; de facto partner and de facto relationship have the meanings given in section 13A; definition means the interpretation given by any written law to a word or expression; District Court means The District Court of Western Australia established by the *District Court of Western Australia Act 1969*; District Court judge means a judge, acting judge or auxiliary judge of the District Court; document includes any publication and any matter written, expressed, or described upon any substance by means of letters, figures, or marks, or by more than one of those means, which is intended to be used or may be used for the purpose of recording that matter; enactment means a written law or any portion of a written law; estate, in relation to land, includes any legal or equitable estate or interest, easement, right, title, claim, demand, charge, lien, or encumbrance in, over, to, or in respect of the land; Family Court or Family Court of Western Australia means the Family Court of Western Australia continued by the *Family Court Act 1997*; financial year means the period of 12 months ending on 30 June; function includes powers, duties, responsibilities, authorities, and jurisdictions; Gazette or Government Gazette means the government gazette of Western Australia (or a supplement to that gazette) — (a) published, or purporting to be published, under the authority of the Government — (i) in hard copy form; or (ii) in electronic form (whether or not originally published in hard copy form); and (b) whether published, or purporting to be published, before or after the commencement of the *Legislation Act 2021* section 48(2); Government means the Government of the State; Government Printer means a person authorised by or on behalf of the Government to publish, in hard copy or electronic form, any written law or any other instrument of the Government; Governor means the Governor of the State and includes the officer for the time being administering the Government of the State; Her Majesty, His Majesty, Queen, King, or Crown means the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, Australia and Her other Realms and Territories, and Head of the Commonwealth and includes the predecessors and the heirs and successors of the Sovereign; Imperial Act means an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom; indictable offence has the meaning given by section 67; individual means a natural person; judge means a judge, acting judge or auxiliary judge of the Supreme Court; justice of the peace or justice or JP means a justice of the peace appointed under the *Justices of the Peace Act 2004*; land includes buildings and other structures, land covered with water, and any estate, interest, easement, servitude or right in or over land; lawyer means an Australian lawyer as defined in the *Legal Profession Uniform Law (WA)* section 6(1); legal practitioner means an Australian legal practitioner as defined in the *Legal Profession Uniform Law (WA)* section 6(1); local government means a local government established under the *Local Government Act 1995*; local government district has the meaning given by section 13CA; local law means a local law made by a local government under the Act in which the term is used; magistrate means a magistrate of the Magistrates Court; Magistrates Court means the Magistrates Court of Western Australia established by the *Magistrates Court Act 2004*; Minister has the meaning given in section 12; Minister for Public Sector Management means the Minister of the Crown to whom the administration of the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* is for the time being committed by the Governor; month has the meaning given in section 62; oath means an oath or affirmation taken or made in accordance with the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005* or taken or made before the commencement of that Act in accordance with law; parent includes the following — (a) a person who is a parent within the meaning of the *Artificial Conception Act 1985*; (b) a person who is an adoptive parent under the *Adoption Act 1994*; (c) a person who is a parent in a relationship of parent and child that arises because of a parentage order under the *Surrogacy Act 2008*; Parliament means the Parliament of the State; penalty means a fine, imprisonment, or other form of punishment, including the suspension or cancellation of a licence, registration or permit and disqualification from obtaining a licence, registration or permit; perform, in relation to functions, includes the exercise of a power, responsibility, authority or jurisdiction; person or any word or expression descriptive of a person includes a public body, company, or association or body of persons, corporate or unincorporate; police officer means a person appointed under Part I of the *Police Act 1892* to be a member of the Police Force of Western Australia; power includes any privilege, authority, or discretion; prescribed means — (a) prescribed by or under the written law in which the word occurs; and (b) in a case where reference is made to anything prescribed by a written law other than the law in which the word occurs, includes anything prescribed by subsidiary legislation made under that other written law; proclamation means a proclamation made by the Governor and published in the *Gazette* or on the WA legislation website; public half‑holiday, in relation to an area, means a part of a day that is appointed or declared a public half‑holiday for that area by or under the *Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972*; public holiday, in relation to an area, means a day that is appointed or declared a public holiday for that area by or under the *Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972*; Public Sector Commissioner means the person holding the office established by the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* section 16; Public Service has the meaning given by the *Public Sector Management Act 1994*; public service holiday means a holiday prescribed as such under the *Public Service Act 1978* 2; public service officer has the meaning given in the *Public Sector Management Act 1994* section 3(1); publication means — (a) all written and printed matter; and (b) any record, tape, wire, perforated roll, cinematograph film or images or other contrivance by means of which any words or ideas may be mechanically, electronically, or electrically produced, reproduced, represented, or conveyed; and (c) anything whether of a similar nature to that described in paragraph (b) or not, containing any visible representation, or by its form, shape, or in any manner capable of producing, reproducing, representing, or conveying words or ideas; and (d) every copy and reproduction of a publication as defined in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c); regional local government means a regional local government established under the *Local Government Act 1995*; regional subsidiary means a regional subsidiary established under the *Local Government Act 1995*; regulation means a regulation made under the Act in which the term is used; repeal includes rescind, revoke, cancel, or delete; Royal Assent means assent by or in the name of Her Majesty; rule means a rule made under the Act in which the term is used; rules of court has the meaning given by section 66; sell includes barter, exchange, offer to sell and expose for sale; sign includes the affixing or making of a seal, mark or thumbprint; simple offence has the meaning given by section 67; sitting days, in relation to either House of Parliament, means days on which such House actually sits; spouse, in relation to a person, means a person who is lawfully married to that person; Standards Australia means Standards Australia International Limited (ACN 087 326 690) and includes a reference to the Standards Association of Australia as constituted before 1 July 1999; State means a State of the Commonwealth; State Administrative Tribunal means the State Administrative Tribunal established under the *State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004*; statutory declaration means a statutory declaration made in accordance with the *Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005* or made before the commencement of that Act in accordance with law; subsidiary legislation means any proclamation, regulation, rule, local law, by‑law, order, notice, rule of court, local or region planning scheme, resolution, or other instrument, made under any written law and having legislative effect; summary conviction means a conviction by a court of summary jurisdiction; summary conviction penalty, when used in relation to an indictable offence, has the effect provided for by section 5 of *The Criminal Code*; Supreme Court means the Supreme Court of Western Australia; swear includes to affirm; Territory means a Territory of the Commonwealth; the State or this State means the State of Western Australia; under, in relation to a written law or a provision of a written law, includes “by”, “in accordance with”, “pursuant to” and “by virtue of ”; United Kingdom means the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Valuer‑General means the Valuer‑General under the *Valuation of Land Act 1978*; WA legislation website has the meaning given in the *Legislation Act 2021* section 8(1); will includes a codicil and every writing making a voluntary posthumous disposition of property; words includes figures and symbols; writing and expressions referring to writing include printing, photography, photocopying, lithography, typewriting and any other modes of representing or reproducing words in visible form; written law means all Acts for the time being in force and all subsidiary legislation for the time being in force; year means a period of 12 months. [Section 5 amended: No. 98 of 1985 s. 3; No. 113 of 1987 s. 32; No. 49 of 1988 s. 41; No. 105 of 1990 s. 97; No. 15 of 1991 s. 21; No. 30 of 1992 s. 21; No. 6 of 1993 s. 11; No. 32 of 1994 s. 15; No. 73 of 1994 s. 4; No. 85 of 1994 s. 4; No. 14 of 1996 s. 4; No. 23 of 1997 s. 9; No. 41 of 1997 s. 33; No. 10 of 1998 s. 40(1); No. 26 of 1999 s. 89; No. 3 of 2002 s. 84; No. 45 of 2002 s. 16; No. 74 of 2003 s. 69(2); No. 4 of 2004 s. 58; No. 45 of 2004 s. 33(2); No. 54 of 2004 s. 175(2); No. 59 of 2004 s. 141; No. 70 of 2004 s. 36(12); No. 24 of 2005 s. 55; No. 38 of 2005 s. 15; No. 59 of 2006 s. 73; No. 60 of 2006 s. 183; No. 77 of 2006 Sch. 1 cl. 92; No. 29 of 2008 s. 35(2); No. 47 of 2008 s. 69; No. 18 of 2009 s. 4; No. 31 of 2010 s. 4; No. 39 of 2010 s. 78; No. 26 of 2016 s. 64; No. 13 of 2021 s. 48; No. 9 of 2022 s. 361.]