Criminal Assets Confiscation Act 2005

For the purposes of this Act, the following principles apply when determining whether property is subject to the effective control of a person:

property may be subject to the effective control of a person whether or not the person has an interest in the property;

property that is held on trust for the ultimate benefit of a person is taken to be subject to the effective control of the person;

if a person is one of 2 or more beneficiaries under a discretionary trust, the following undivided proportion of the trust property is taken to be subject to the effective control of the person:

if property is initially owned by a person and, within 6 years (whether before or after) of—

an application for a restraining order or a confiscation order being made; or

the person becoming a prescribed drug offender, is disposed of to another person without sufficient consideration, then the property is taken still to be subject to the effective control of the first person;

property may be subject to the effective control of a person even if one or more other persons have joint control of the property.

In determining whether or not property is subject to the effective control of a person, regard may be had to—

shareholdings in, debentures over or directorships of a company that has an interest (whether direct or indirect) in the property;

a trust that has a relationship to the property; and

family, domestic and business relationships between persons having an interest in the property, or in companies of the kind referred to in paragraph (a) or trusts of the kind referred to in paragraph (b), and other persons.