Public Prosecutions Act 1994

to provide for the appointment of a Chief Crown Prosecutor, Crown Prosecutors, Associate Crown Prosecutors and a Solicitor for Public Prosecutions and set out their respective functions and powers;

to set out the functions and powers of the Director of Public Prosecutions;

to require that certain decisions be made by the Director of Public Prosecutions only after obtaining the advice of a Committee on the decision;

to establish an Office of Public Prosecutions;

to establish a Director's Committee;

to repeal the Director of Public Prosecutions Act 1982.

This Part comes into operation on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.

Subject to subsection (3), the remaining provisions of this Act come into operation on a day or days to be proclaimed.

If a provision referred to in subsection (2) does not come into operation before 1 July 1994, it comes into operation on that day.

In this Act—

a person who is, or was at the time of the person's death, in a registered domestic relationship with the person; or

a person to whom the person is not married but with whom, in the opinion of the Minister, the person is, or was at the time of the person's death, living as a couple on a genuine domestic basis (irrespective of gender);

in relation to a person who became entitled to benefits under this Act before the commencement of section 9 of the Constitution Amendment (Judicial Pensions) Act 2008—

the person's husband, wife, widower or widow; or

a person of the opposite sex who, though not married to the person, in the opinion of the Minister lives with the person, or lived with the person at the date of the person's death, on a bona fide domestic basis as the person's husband or wife;

in any other case, the person's spouse or domestic partner;

the Director of Public Prosecutions; and

the Chief Crown Prosecutor; and

Crown Prosecutors; and

Associate Crown Prosecutors; and

the Solicitor for Public Prosecutions; and

the Office of Public Prosecutions;

to file a direct indictment against a person for an offence except where—

the person, or a legal practitioner representing the person, has consented in writing to an indictment being filed for that offence; or

the person, or a legal practitioner representing the person, has indicated in writing an intention to plead guilty to that offence; or

subject to guidelines established by the Director's Committee under section 45A(1)(b), to discontinue a prosecution, or not to file an indictment within the period specified in section 163(1), (2) or (3) of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009, as the case requires, in relation to the charge or all the charges on which a person was committed for trial; or

to file an indictment against a person for an offence if a Crown Prosecutor has declined to file, or an Associate Crown Prosecutor or another legal practitioner briefed to advise the Director has advised against filing, an indictment against that person for that offence or for an offence that is not materially different from that offence; or

to discontinue a prosecution in relation to a charge if a Crown Prosecutor, Associate Crown Prosecutor or another legal practitioner briefed to advise the Director has advised against discontinuing the prosecution in relation to that charge or has advised that that charge should be proceeded with; or

to appeal against, or seek any relief or remedy in respect of, an order of the Supreme Court or the County Court quashing, or granting a permanent stay of, an indictment or of a charge or charges on an indictment on the ground that for the person to be tried for the offence or offences charged in the indictment or in the charge or charges on the indictment (as the case requires) would constitute an abuse of process; or

to establish guidelines under section 26(1); or

of any other kind that, in the opinion of the Director, should be treated as a special decision for the purposes of this Act;

For the purposes of the definition of domestic partner in subsection (1)—

registered domestic relationship has the same meaning as in the Relationships Act 2008; and

in determining whether persons who are not in a registered domestic relationship are domestic partners of each other, all the circumstances of their relationship are to be taken into account, including any one or more of the matters referred to in section 35(2) of the Relationships Act 2008 as may be relevant in a particular case.

The Governor in Council may appoint a person who is eligible for appointment as the Director to act as the Director during any period when—

the office of Director is vacant; or

the Director is absent from duty or is, for any reason, unable to carry out the duties of the office.

The Governor in Council may at any time terminate the appointment of the Acting Director.

The Acting Director has, during the period of the appointment, the same powers and duties as the Director and may perform any of the functions of the Director.

The Acting Director is entitled to the remuneration and allowances (if any) fixed in respect of him or her by the Governor in Council.

The office of Acting Director is not an authority within the meaning of section 104(1) of the Public Administration Act 2004.

The Director is responsible to the Attorney-General for the due performance of his or her functions and exercise of his or her powers under this or any other Act.

Subject to this Act, nothing in subsection (1) affects or takes away from the authority of the Director in respect of the institution, preparation and conduct of proceedings under this or any other Act.

The Director must, in respect of each financial year, prepare an annual report on his or her operations during that year and submit the report to the Attorney-General not later than 31 October next following the financial year.

The report must—

be prepared in a form and contain information determined by the Director to be appropriate; and

contain a copy of any statement submitted to the Attorney-General under section 45F(1) that is laid before the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly by the Attorney-General during that year; and

contain a copy of any statement submitted to the Attorney-General under section 45F(1) during that year in relation to which the Director did not act under section 45F(2); and

contain any other information required by the Attorney-General.

The Attorney-General must cause each annual report submitted to him or her under this section to be laid before the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly within 7 sitting days of the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, after the report has been received by the Attorney-General.

If the Director fails to submit an annual report to the Attorney-General by 31 October in any year, the Attorney-General must report or cause to be reported that failure and the reasons for that failure to each House of the Parliament.

The Governor in Council may appoint as Chief Crown Prosecutor a person who is an Australian lawyer of not less than 8 years' standing.

Subject to this Part, a person appointed as Chief Crown Prosecutor holds office for a term of 10 years or for the longer term, not exceeding 20 years, that is specified in his or her instrument of appointment and is eligible for re-appointment.

subject to the general direction and control of the Director, has control of the day to day management of the Crown Prosecutors and Associate Crown Prosecutors so as to ensure that they perform their functions and duties in an effective, economic and efficient manner; and

has, in addition to the functions and powers given to the Chief Crown Prosecutor by or under this or any other Act, all the functions and powers of a Crown Prosecutor.

The Chief Crown Prosecutor is entitled to be paid the same salary as that payable to a judge of the County Court (other than the Chief Judge or the Deputy Chief Judge) under section 10 of the County Court Act 1958.

The Chief Crown Prosecutor must not, without the consent of the Director and in accordance with any conditions attached to that consent, engage in the practice of the law or in any paid employment (whether within or outside Victoria) outside the duties of his or her office.

The office of Chief Crown Prosecutor is not an authority within the meaning of section 104(1) of the Public Administration Act 2004.

The Chief Crown Prosecutor may by notice in writing to the Attorney-General enter into an arrangement under which the Chief Crown Prosecutor agrees to receive the whole or part of his or her total amount of future salary as a Chief Crown Prosecutor as non-salary benefits of an equivalent value.

The notice must specify a date from which the arrangement is to take effect which must be the date on which the notice is given or a later date.

The Chief Crown Prosecutor may vary or revoke a notice he or she has given under subsection (1) by notice in writing to the Attorney-General.

The notice of variation or revocation must specify a date from which the variation or revocation is to take effect which must be the date on which the notice is given or a later date.

If, before the commencement of section 20 of the Salaries Legislation Amendment (Salary Sacrifice) Act 2008 (the 2008 Act), a Chief Crown Prosecutor entered into an arrangement under which the Chief Crown Prosecutor agreed to receive the whole or part of his or her total amount of salary as Chief Crown Prosecutor as non-salary benefits of an equivalent value, that arrangement, by virtue of this subsection, has and is deemed always to have had full effect according to its tenor as if it had been authorised under this section.

On and after the commencement of section 20 of the 2008 Act, an arrangement referred to in subsection (5) may only be varied or revoked in accordance with subsection (3).

In subsection (1) non-salary benefits has the same meaning as it has in clauses 3(5) and 3(6) of Schedule 1A to the Public Administration Act 2004.