Oaths Act 1900

This Act may be cited as the Oaths Act 1900.

This Act shall commence on 1 January 1901.

The Acts mentioned in the First Schedule to this Act are, to the extent therein expressed, hereby repealed.

All rules made and notifications published under the authority of any Act hereby repealed shall be deemed to have been made and published under the authority of this Act.

Chapter 5 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (which relates to the summary disposal of certain indictable offences unless an election is made to proceed on indictment) applies to and in respect of an offence under section 13 (2), 20, 25, 25A, 29 or 30.

Where but for the passing of this Act or the Act twentieth Victoria number nine hereby repealed it would be necessary for any person—

to take the oaths commonly called the Oaths of Allegiance, Supremacy, and Abjuration, or any of them, or

to take the oath prescribed by the Act commonly called the Roman Catholic Relief Act, or

to make the declaration prescribed by the Imperial Act ninth George the Fourth, chapter seventeen,

it shall be sufficient for such person to take in lieu of the said several oaths and declaration the oath of allegiance in the form of the Second Schedule.

The oaths prescribed in the Second, Third, and Fourth Schedules may be taken and subscribed at any hour—

within the State of New South Wales before any Justice of the High Court of Australia or of the Supreme Court, any member of the Industrial Commission of New South Wales, any Judge of the District Court”, or before any justice of the peace who is authorised by writ of dedimus potestatem for that purpose, and

without the said State before any Justice of the High Court of Australia or of the Supreme Court of any State of the Commonwealth of Australia, or before any person who is authorised by writ of dedimus potestatem for that purpose.

Without prejudice to the operation of subsection (2) the oaths prescribed in the Second and Fourth Schedules may be taken and subscribed at any hour—

by a Judge of the Local Court—before the Chief Judge of the Local Court or the person for the time being acting in that office, or

by a justice of the peace—before a Judge or registrar of the Local Court.

A writ of dedimus potestatem for the purpose of administering any such oath may be issued for execution in any part of His Majesty’s Dominions.

The form in the Second Schedule shall, subject to section 6, be the form of oath of allegiance taken by all persons liable to take the said oath.

In this part of this Act—

Oath of allegiance, where hereinafter used, means an oath in the form in the Second Schedule.

Official oath means an oath in the form in the Third Schedule.

Judicial oath means an oath in the form in the Fourth Schedule.

The name of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland shall be substituted in the said form from time to time instead of the name of Her Majesty.

The oath of allegiance and the official oath shall be tendered to and taken by all public officers required by order of the Governor to take the same.

(Repealed)

The oath of allegiance and the judicial oath shall be tendered to and taken by Judges of the Supreme Court and justices of the peace.

(Repealed)

The oath of allegiance and the judicial oath shall be tendered to and taken by Judges of the District Court or the Local Court and other judicial officers who are required by order of the Governor to take the same.

(Repealed)