Non‑compliance with requirement to give evidence
202 Non‑compliance with requirement to give evidence
A person required to give evidence or to produce documents at a hearing must not:
fail to attend as required by the notice; or
fail to appear and report from day to day unless excused or released from further attendance.
Penalty: Imprisonment for one year.
A person required to give evidence or to produce documents at a hearing must not:
fail to attend as required by the notice; or
fail to appear and report from day to day unless excused or released from further attendance.
Subsection (1A) is a civil penalty provision.
A person required to answer a question, to give evidence or to produce documents under this Part must not:
when required to take an oath or make an affirmation, refuse or fail to take the oath or make the affirmation; or
refuse or fail to answer a question that the person is required to answer; or
refuse or fail to produce a document that the person is required to produce.
Penalty: Imprisonment for one year.
A person required to answer a question, to give evidence or to produce documents under this Part must not:
when required to take an oath or make an affirmation, refuse or fail to take the oath or make the affirmation; or
refuse or fail to answer a question that the person is required to answer; or
refuse or fail to produce a document that the person is required to produce.
Subsection (2AA) is a civil penalty provision.
Subsections (1), (1A), (2) and (2AA) do not apply if the person has a reasonable excuse.
In criminal proceedings, a defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (2A) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).
A person who wishes to rely on subsection (2A) in proceedings for a civil penalty order bears an evidential burden in relation to that matter.
For the avoidance of doubt, it is declared that it is a reasonable excuse for a person to refuse to answer a question or to produce a document if the answer to the question or the production of the document would tend to incriminate the person.
It is a reasonable excuse for a person to refuse to answer a question or to produce a document if:
the person is a journalist; and
the answer to the question or the production of the document would tend to disclose the identity of a person who supplied information in confidence to the journalist; and
the information has been used for the purposes of:
a television or radio program; or
datacasting content.
For the purposes of this section, journalist means a person engaged in the profession or practice of reporting for, photographing, editing, recording or making:
television or radio programs; or
datacasting content;
of a news, current affairs, information or documentary character.
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