Criminal Code Act 1899

A person is not criminally responsible for an act or omission, if the person does or omits to do the act under any of the following circumstances, that is to say—

in execution of the law;

in obedience to the order of a competent authority which he or she is bound by law to obey, unless the order is manifestly unlawful;

when the act is reasonably necessary in order to resist actual and unlawful violence threatened to the person, or to another person in the person’s presence;

when—

the person does or omits to do the act in order to save himself or herself or another person, or his or her property or the property of another person, from serious harm or detriment threatened to be inflicted by some person in a position to carry out the threat; and

the person doing the act or making the omission reasonably believes he or she or the other person is unable otherwise to escape the carrying out of the threat; and

doing the act or making the omission is reasonably proportionate to the harm or detriment threatened.

However, this protection does not extend to an act or omission which would constitute the crime of murder, or an offence of which grievous bodily harm to the person of another, or an intention to cause such harm, is an element, nor to a person who has by entering into an unlawful association or conspiracy rendered himself or herself liable to have such threats made to the person.

Whether an order is or is not manifestly unlawful is a question of law. sch 1 pt 1 ch 5 s 31 amd 1922 13 Geo 5 No. 2 s 3(iii); 1971 No. 41 s 7; 1997 No. 3 s 13; 2000 No. 43 s 16; 2008 No. 55 s 5