Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) This section restricts what a person (the entrusted person ) may do with any information, document or other thing (the protected material ) the person obtains as the result of a disclosure under this Subdivision.
(2) The entrusted person commits an offence if the person discloses any protected material to another person.
Penalty: Imprisonment for 2 years.
(3) Each of the following is an exception to the prohibition in subsection (2):
(a) the disclosure is for the purposes of the proceedings for which the entrusted person obtained the protected material;
(b) the Court has given leave for the disclosure;
(c) the disclosure happens for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance of the duties of the entrusted person's official employment;
(d) the disclosure is of protected material that has already been lawfully disclosed in proceedings in open court.
Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to a matter in subsection (3) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code ).
(4) The entrusted person is not to be required:
(a) to produce to a court or tribunal any document that is or contains protected material; or
(b) to disclose protected material to a court or tribunal.
(5) In this section:
"disclose" means divulge or communicate.
"official employment" means:
(a) service as:
(i) the Director of Public Prosecutions; or
(ii) a member of the staff of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions; or
(iii) a Special Prosecutor under the Special Prosecutors Act 1982 ; or
(iv) the Attorney - General; or
(v) a person appointed by the Governor - General in relation to the prosecution for which the entrusted person obtained the protected material; or
(b) representing, or otherwise performing services for, a person referred to in paragraph (a); or
(c) exercising the powers, or performing the functions, of the Director of Public Prosecutions.