Australian Capital Territory Current Acts

AUSTRALIAN CRIME COMMISSION (ACT) ACT 2003 - SECT 31

    (1)     If, on application by an examiner, a judge of the Federal Court sitting in chambers is satisfied by evidence on oath that—

        (a)     in connection with a special ACC operation/investigation, a summons has been issued under this Act requiring a person to appear before an examiner at an examination (whether or not the summons has been served), or a person has appeared before an examiner at an examination, to give evidence or to produce documents or other things; and

        (b)     there are reasonable grounds for believing that the person can give to the examiner evidence or further evidence that is, or to produce to the examiner documents or other things or further documents or other things that are, relevant to the special ACC operation/investigation and could be of particular significance to the special ACC operation/investigation; and

        (c)     there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the person intends to leave Australia and has in his or her possession, custody or control a passport issued to the person;

the judge may make an order requiring the person to appear before a judge of the Federal Court on a stated date, and at a stated time and place, to show cause why the person should not be ordered to give the passport to the examiner.

    (2)     If a person appears before a judge of the Federal Court under an order made under subsection (1), the judge may make an order—

        (a)     requiring the person to give the examiner any passport issued to the person that is in the person's possession, custody or control; and

        (b)     authorising the examiner to keep the passport until the end of a stated period (not longer than 1 month).

    (3)     A judge of the Federal Court may, on application by the examiner, extend for a further period (not longer than 1 month) or further periods (not longer than 1 month in each case) the period for which the examiner is authorised to keep a passport under an order made under subsection (2), but so that the total period for which the examiner is authorised to keep the passport is not longer than 3 months.

    (4)     A judge of the Federal Court may, at any time while the examiner is authorised under an order made under this section to keep a passport issued to a person, on application made by the person, revoke the order and, if the order is revoked, the examiner must immediately return the passport to the person.

    (5)     In this section:

Australia includes the external Territories.