Domestic Violence Orders (National Recognition) Act 2016

Domestic Violence Orders (National Recognition) Act 2016

This Act may be cited as the Domestic Violence Orders (National Recognition) Act 2016.

This Act commences on a day to be proclaimed.

This Act establishes, in conjunction with the corresponding laws, a national recognition scheme for DVOs or domestic violence orders.

In this Act – corresponding law means a law of another jurisdiction that – contains provisions that substantially correspond with this Act; or is declared by the regulations to be a corresponding law for the purposes of this Act; defendant means the person against whom a DVO is made; domestic violence concern– see section 8;DVO(or domestic violence order) means a local DVO, an interstate DVO or a foreign order; final DVO means a DVO that is not an interim DVO; foreign order means a New Zealand DVO; general violence order means – an intervention order under the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 of South Australia; or a violence restraining order under the Restraining Orders Act 1997 of Western Australia, other than – a violence restraining order made under section 11B of that Act; or a police order under that Act; interim DVO means a DVO that is of an interim or provisional nature and, to avoid doubt, includes the following:any DVO made by a police officer (other than a police family violence order (PFVO) under the Family Violence Act 2004); an emergency order under the Domestic Violence and Protection Orders Act 2008 of the Australian Capital Territory; a temporary protection order under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 of Queensland; any DVO declared by the regulations to be an interim DVO; interstate DVO– see section 6; interstate law enforcement agency means – the Police Force of another jurisdiction; or any other agency of another jurisdiction responsible for the enforcement of DVOs in that jurisdiction; issuing authority means a court or person with power to make, vary or revoke a DVO under the law of a participating jurisdiction; issuing jurisdiction for a DVO means the jurisdiction in which the DVO is made; jurisdiction means a State or Territory; local DVO– see section 5; local law enforcement agency means – the Police Service of Tasmania; or any other agency responsible for the enforcement of DVOs in Tasmania; make includes issue;New Zealand DVO means an order made under the Domestic Violence Act 1995 of New Zealand or under an Act repealed by that Act; non-local DVO means an interstate DVO or a foreign order; participating jurisdiction means the following jurisdictions:Tasmania; a jurisdiction in which a corresponding law is enacted; properly notified– see section 16; protected person means a person for whose protection or benefit a DVO is made; recognised DVO– see sections 10 and 39; recognised variation– see section 11; registered foreign order– see section 7; revoke includes cancel; vary a DVO includes the following:amend or modify the DVO; add further conditions, prohibitions or restrictions to the DVO or vary or delete conditions, prohibitions or restrictions; extend or reduce the period in which the DVO remains in force.

Notes included in this Act do not form part of this Act.

A local DVO means – a family violence order (FVO) under the Family Violence Act 2004; or an interim FVO under the Family Violence Act 2004; or a police family violence order (PFVO) under the Family Violence Act 2004.

A registered foreign order is not a local DVO.

Each of the following orders is an interstate DVO:a domestic violence order under the Domestic Violence and Protection Orders Act 2008 of the Australian Capital Territory; a family violence order under the Family Violence Act 2016 of the Australian Capital Territory; an apprehended domestic violence order or an interim apprehended domestic violence order under the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 of New South Wales; a domestic violence order under the Domestic and Family Violence Act of the Northern Territory; a domestic violence order, police protection notice or release conditions under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 of Queensland; an intervention order under the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 of South Australia that addresses a domestic violence concern; a family violence intervention order or a family violence safety notice under the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 of Victoria; the following orders under the Restraining Orders Act 1997 of Western Australia:a violence restraining order that addresses a domestic violence concern; a family violence restraining order; a police order; any order, notice or other thing declared by the regulations to be an interstate DVO.

The regulations may amend the list of interstate DVOs specified in subsection (1), by omitting an order from that list or adding a new order to that list.

A registered foreign order is not an interstate DVO.

A registered foreign order means a foreign order that is – a registered foreign order under the Family Violence Act 2016 of the Australian Capital Territory; or a registered external protection order under Part 13 of the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 of New South Wales; or a registered external order under the Domestic and Family Violence Act of the Northern Territory; or a registered New Zealand order under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 of Queensland; or a foreign intervention order registered under Part 4 of the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 of South Australia, other than an order that is declared by the regulations made under that Act not to be a foreign intervention order for the purposes of Part 3A of that Act; or an external family violence order registered under section 27 of the Family Violence Act 2004 of Tasmania; or a corresponding New Zealand order registered under Part 10 of the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 of Victoria; or a foreign restraining order registered under Part 7A of the Restraining Orders Act 1997 of Western Australia; or any order declared by the regulations to be a registered foreign order.

The regulations may amend the list of registered foreign orders specified in subsection (1), by omitting a foreign order from that list or adding a new foreign order to that list.

An intervention order under the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 of South Australia addresses a domestic violence concern if the order is made because it is reasonable to suspect that the defendant will, without intervention, commit an act of domestic abuse (within the meaning of that Act).

A violence restraining order under the Restraining Orders Act 1997 of Western Australia addresses a domestic violence concern if the order is made because the defendant has committed, or because it is feared the defendant will commit, an act of family and domestic violence (within the meaning of section 6 of that Act).

A general violence order is taken, for the purpose of this Act, to be an order that addresses a domestic violence concern if – it is declared to be an order that addresses a domestic violence concern by the issuing authority that makes the order; or a registrar of a court of the jurisdiction in which the order was made makes an order declaring the DVO to be a recognised DVO in that jurisdiction.

The regulations may prescribe circumstances in which an order made in a participating jurisdiction is taken, for the purposes of this Act, to be an order that addresses a domestic violence concern.

For the purpose of this Act, a registered foreign order – is taken to be made in the jurisdiction in which it is registered as a registered foreign order; and is taken to be made when it becomes a registered foreign order in that jurisdiction.

A registered foreign order is varied or revoked, for the purpose of this Act, if its registration as a registered foreign order is varied or revoked.

A power conferred by this Act to vary or revoke a registered foreign order is a power to vary or revoke registration of the order as a registered foreign order.

Each of the following DVOs is a recognised DVO in Tasmania:a local DVO; an interstate DVO made in a participating jurisdiction; a foreign order that is a registered foreign order in any participating jurisdiction. Recognition can also extend to DVOs made in jurisdictions that are not, or are not yet, participating jurisdictions. See Part 6.

A DVO becomes a recognised DVO when it is made. A foreign order is taken to be made when it is registered as a registered foreign order.

A DVO is a recognised DVO, subject to this Act, for the period for which it remains in force in the jurisdiction in which it is made.

A variation to a recognised DVO that is done in Tasmania or another jurisdiction is a recognised variation in Tasmania in the circumstances provided for by this section.

A variation to a local DVO is a recognised variation in Tasmania if the variation is done – in Tasmania by a court or any other person authorised to do so under the Family Violence Act 2004; or in another participating jurisdiction by a court under a corresponding law.

A variation to an interstate DVO or foreign order is a recognised variation in Tasmania if the variation is done – in the issuing jurisdiction by a court or any other person authorised to do so under the law of the issuing jurisdiction; or in any participating jurisdiction by a court under this Act or a corresponding law. The issuing jurisdiction for a foreign order is the jurisdiction in which the order is registered.

A variation is recognised from the time that it is made.