Printers and Newspapers Act 1984

This Act may be cited as the Printers and Newspapers Act 1984.

The Acts specified in the Schedule are repealed.

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

duplicating machine does not include an offset duplicating machine.

newspaper means a paper:

(a) that contains public news, reports of occurrences or remarks or observations on public news, occurrences or political matters; and

(b) that is printed for sale or gratuitous distribution and published periodically or in parts or numbers at intervals not exceeding 36 days between each publication,

but does not include a paper that is printed or published by the authority of a department or statutory corporation.

paper includes a book, periodical, pamphlet, handbill, sheet of letterpress and paper of any description, but does not include:

(a) a paper that is printed or published by the Government Printer in the course of his duty;

(c) a paper containing only an impression from an engraving not intended for publication;

(g) a bill of lading, policy of insurance, letter or power of attorney, deed or agreement;

(j) a paper used in proceedings in a court, including a writ, summons, complaint, plaint and warrant; or

(k) a paper declared by the Minister, by notice in the Gazette, not to be a paper for the purposes of this Act.

printer, in relation to a newspaper, means the person having the management and control of a printing press by which the newspaper is printed.

printing includes representing or reproducing in a paper words, symbols or pictures in visible form.

printing press means a machine or contrivance with which a newspaper is printed, and includes types, blocks, plates, stencils and lithographic stones, if any, that are used with the machine or contrivance for the purpose of printing, but does not include:

(a) a machine or contrivance that is the property of the Territory; or

proprietor, in relation to a newspaper, means the person having the management or control of the newspaper.

publisher, in relation to a newspaper, means the proprietor or other person who arranges for the distribution of the newspaper from the place where it is printed.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.

A person who prints for or in the expectation of hire, gain or profit a paper other than a newspaper, shall keep not less than one copy of the paper for a period of not less than 6 months after it has been printed and shall, as soon as practicable after it has been printed, print or write on the copy the name and address of the person on whose behalf that paper was printed.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.

The printer of a newspaper shall, at the time of the printing:

"Published by", and followed by the word "of" and the address of the publisher,

to be printed in legible characters upon the front of that newspaper or, where that newspaper has more than one page, upon the first or last page of that newspaper.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.

A paper on which is printed a name purporting to be the name of:

(b) where the paper is a paper other than a newspaper – the person for whom or on whose instructions the paper was printed; or

(c) where the paper is a newspaper – the publisher of the newspaper,

shall be received by all courts and tribunals in any proceedings, whether criminal or civil, as prima facie evidence that the person whose name is so printed is:

(e) the person for whom or on whose instructions the paper was printed; or

as the case may be.

Where a person commences an action in a court for the discovery of the name of a person concerned in a newspaper as printer, publisher or otherwise, or a matter relating to the printing or publishing of the newspaper, in order to enable him the more effectively to bring or carry on an action for damages by him alleged to have been sustained by reason of a libellous matter concerning him contained in the newspaper, the defendant shall not be permitted to plead or demur to the claim, but shall be compellable to make the discovery required, but such discovery shall not be used for a purpose in a proceeding other than that in which the discovery is made.

A person shall not sell, offer for sale, gratuitously deliver, offer so to deliver, leave in a public place, or otherwise expose to public view a paper other than a newspaper upon which the name and address at which the business is carried on of the printer is not printed as required by section 4, or upon which a fictitious or false name or address at which the business is carried on is printed.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.

(1) An executive officer of a body corporate commits an offence if the body corporate commits an offence by contravening a declared provision (a relevant offence).

Maximum penalty: The maximum penalty that may be imposed on an individual for the relevant offence.

(3) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (1) if the defendant:

(a) was not in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate in relation to the contravention; or

(c) did not know, and could not reasonably have been expected to know, that the contravention would happen.

(4) In deciding whether the defendant took (or failed to take) reasonable steps to prevent the contravention, a court must consider the following:

(a) any action the defendant took directed towards ensuring the following (to the extent the action is relevant to the contravention):

(i) the body corporate arranged regular professional assessments of the body corporate's compliance with the declared provision;

(ii) the body corporate implemented any appropriate recommendation arising from an assessment under subparagraph (i);

(iii) the body corporate's employees, agents and contractors had a reasonable knowledge and understanding of the requirement to comply with the declared provision;

(b) any action the defendant took when the defendant became aware that the contravention was, or could be, about to happen.

(5) Subsection (4) does not limit the matters the court may consider.

(6) This section does not affect the liability of the body corporate.

(7) This section applies whether or not the body corporate is prosecuted for, or found guilty of, the relevant offence.

(8) This section does not apply if the body corporate would have a defence to a prosecution for the relevant offence.

declared provision means:

executive officer, of a body corporate, means a director or other person who is concerned with, or takes part in, the management of the body corporate.

Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.