Judicial Conduct Commissioner Act 2015

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—

Commissioner means the Judicial Conduct

Commissioner appointed under section 7, or the person from time to time acting as the Judicial Conduct Commissioner;

complainant means a person who makes a complaint under section 12(1);

[Note: NoteOther persons against whom the alleged conduct of a judicial officer is directed may also be complainants, despite not having made a complaint under section 12(1)—see subsection (1a).]

complaint means a complaint under section 12 about the conduct of a judicial officer and includes a referral by the Attorney‑General under section 12(6), a referral by a jurisdictional head under section 12(7) and a complaint initiated by the

Commissioner under section 12(8);

judicial conduct panel means a judicial conduct panel appointed under Part 4;

judicial office means—

the office of Judge of the Supreme Court;

the office of Master of the Supreme Court, District Court Judge or any other Judge;

the office of Supreme Court judicial registrar;

any other office involving the exercise of judicial functions that may only be occupied by a Judge or Master or by a person with other legal qualifications;

the office of District Court Judicial Registrar or Youth Court judicial registrar;

the office of Magistrate;

any other office involving the exercise of judicial functions that may only be occupied by a Magistrate or by a person with other legal qualifications;

the office of Magistrates Court Judicial Registrar;

the office of special justice;

any other office prescribed by the regulations, (and the order of the above paragraphs indicates the level of seniority of the various offices, the inclusion of reference to more than

1 office in the same paragraph indicating the same level of seniority);

judicial officer means a person appointed to hold or act in a judicial office;

jurisdictional head has the same meaning as in

Part 5A of the Courts

Administration Act 1993;

relevant jurisdictional head, in relation to a judicial officer who is, or is to be, the subject of a complaint, means a jurisdictional head who has power to issue requirements to that judicial officer in accordance with Part 5A of the Courts Administration Act 1993 or, in a case where the judicial officer who is, or is to be, the subject of a complaint is a jurisdictional head, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

For the purposes of this Act, a reference to a

complainant will, if the alleged conduct of a judicial officer that is the subject of a complaint is directed at a person or persons other than the person who makes a complaint under section 12(1), be taken to include a reference to each such person (and the Commissioner or a judicial conduct panel may, but need not, deal with the person as if they had made a complaint under that section).

For the avoidance of doubt (and without limiting the types of conduct that may be the subject of a complaint under this Act) conduct of a judicial officer that may be the subject of a complaint under this Act includes—

any act or omission of such an officer—

whether occurring in the course of carrying out functions as a judicial officer or not; and

whether resulting from an illness or incapacity or not;

and

any acts of victimisation by a judicial officer.

For the purposes of subsection (2), a judicial officer who causes detriment to another on the ground, or substantially on the ground, that the other person or a third person has made or intends to make a complaint under this Act or has provided, or intends to provide, information or other assistance to the Commissioner or a judicial conduct panel exercising functions under this Act commits an act of victimisation.