AA Pty Ltd v Australian Crime Commission [2005] FCA 1178

AA Pty Ltd v Australian Crime Commission [2005] FCA 1178

The Australian Taxation Office was not a law enforcement agency within the definition in the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth), because the words "the laws of the Commonwealth or of the States" refer to the totality of those laws, and the ATO is not responsible for enforcement of all such laws. Section 59(7) therefore did not authorise disclosure to the ATO. Section 19 could not be used to confer a general power to decide to whom information should be disseminated, because that would undermine the Act's express dissemination scheme, decision-making structure and safeguards by allowing examiners or staff to bypass powers confined to the CEO and Chair.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
25 August 2005
Procedural Posture
Administrative Law Application Concerning Powers of the Australian Crime Commission / Reasons for Judgment on the Preliminary Issue, by Consent, Whether the Australian Crime Commission Had Power to Disclose Information to the Australian Taxation Office
Outcome
The Court held that the Australian Crime Commission had no power under s 59(7) or s 19 of the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth) to provide the information to the Australian Taxation Office on the basis advanced.
Legal Topics
['australian Crime Commission Compulsory Powers' 'disclosure of Information Obtained Under Compulsory Powers' 'meaning of Law Enforcement Agency' 'incidental Statutory Powers' 'australian Taxation Office']
['administrative Law' 'statutory Construction' 'criminal Intelligence and Investigation Powers'] ['australian Crime Commission Compulsory Powers' 'disclosure of Information Obtained Under Compulsory Powers' 'meaning of Law Enforcement Agency' 'incidental Statutory Powers' 'australian Taxation Office']

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Procedural Posture

Administrative Law Application Concerning Powers of the Australian Crime Commission / Reasons for Judgment on the Preliminary Issue, by Consent, Whether the Australian Crime Commission Had Power to Disclose Information to the Australian Taxation Office

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether information obtained from the applicants by summons, examination and search warrant in an Australian Crime Commission investigation could be given to the Australian Taxation Office.' 'Whether the Australian Taxation Office was a law enforcement agency for the purposes of s 59(7) of the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth).' 'Whether s 19 of the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth) conferred an incidental power to decide to disseminate information to the Australian Taxation Office.']

Ratio Decidendi

The Australian Taxation Office was not a law enforcement agency within the definition in the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth), because the words "the laws of the Commonwealth or of the States" refer to the totality of those laws, and the ATO is not responsible for enforcement of all such laws. Section 59(7) therefore did not authorise disclosure to the ATO. Section 19 could not be used to confer a general power to decide to whom information should be disseminated, because that would undermine the Act's express dissemination scheme, decision-making structure and safeguards by allowing examiners or staff to bypass powers confined to the CEO and Chair.

Court Disposition

The Court held that the Australian Crime Commission had no power under s 59(7) or s 19 of the Australian Crime Commission Act 2002 (Cth) to provide the information to the Australian Taxation Office on the basis advanced.

Orders

  • ['The applicants should bring in short minutes to give effect to these orders.']