Division 2Requirements under laws of
this jurisdiction
8Writing
(1)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
required to give information in writing, that requirement is taken to have
been met if the person gives the information by means of an electronic
communication, where—
(a)
at the time the information was given, it was
reasonable to expect that the information would be readily accessible so as to
be useable for subsequent reference, and
(b)
the person to whom the information is required to
be given consents to the information being given by means of an electronic
communication.
(2)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
permitted to give information in writing, the person may give the information
by means of an electronic communication, where—
(a)
at the time the information was given, it was
reasonable to expect that the information would be readily accessible so as to
be useable for subsequent reference, and
(b)
the person to whom the information is permitted
to be given consents to the information being given by means of an electronic
communication.
(3)
This section does not affect the operation of any
other law of this jurisdiction that makes provision for or in relation to
requiring or permitting information to be given, in accordance with particular
information technology requirements—
(a)
on a particular kind of data storage device,
or
(b)
by means of a particular kind of electronic
communication.
(4)
This section applies to a requirement or
permission to give information, whether the expression give, send or serve, or any other expression, is
used.
(5)
For the purposes of this section, giving information includes, but is
not limited to, the following—
(a)
making an application,
(b)
making or lodging a claim,
(c)
giving, sending or serving a
notification,
(d)
lodging a return,
(e)
making a request,
(f)
making a declaration,
(g)
lodging or issuing a
certificate,
(h)
making, varying or cancelling an
election,
(i)
lodging an objection,
(j)
giving a statement of
reasons.
s 8: Am 2010 No 68,
Sch 1 [6].
9Signatures
(1)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, the
signature of a person is required, that requirement is taken to have been met
in relation to an electronic communication if—
(a)
a method is used to identify the person and to
indicate the person’s intention in respect of the information
communicated, and
(b)
the method used was either—
(i)
as reliable as appropriate for the purpose for
which the electronic communication was generated or communicated, in the light
of all the circumstances, including any relevant agreement,
or
(ii)
proven in fact to have fulfilled the functions
described in paragraph (a), by itself or together with further evidence,
and
(c)
the person to whom the signature is required to
be given consents to that requirement being met by way of the use of the
method mentioned in paragraph (a).
(2)
This section does not affect the operation of any
other law of this jurisdiction that makes provision for or in relation to
requiring—
(a)
an electronic communication to contain an
electronic signature (however described), or
(b)
an electronic communication to contain a unique
identification in an electronic form, or
(c)
a particular method to be used in relation to an
electronic communication to identify the originator of the communication and
to indicate the originator’s intention in respect of the information
communicated.
(3)
The reference in subsection (1) to a law that
requires a signature includes a reference to a law that provides consequences
for the absence of a signature.
s 9: Am 2010 No 68,
Sch 1 [7]–[11].
10Production of
document
(1)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
required to produce a document that is in the form of paper, an article or
other material, that requirement is taken to have been met if the person
produces, by means of an electronic communication, an electronic form of the
document, where—
(a)
having regard to all the relevant circumstances
at the time the communication was sent, the method of generating the
electronic form of the document provided a reliable means of assuring the
maintenance of the integrity of the information contained in the document,
and
(b)
at the time the communication was sent, it was
reasonable to expect that the information contained in the electronic form of
the document would be readily accessible so as to be useable for subsequent
reference, and
(c)
the person to whom the document is required to be
produced consents to the production, by means of an electronic communication,
of an electronic form of the document.
(2)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
permitted to produce a document that is in the form of paper, an article or
other material, then, instead of producing the document in that form, the
person may produce, by means of an electronic communication, an electronic
form of the document, where—
(a)
having regard to all the relevant circumstances
at the time the communication was sent, the method of generating the
electronic form of the document provided a reliable means of assuring the
maintenance of the integrity of the information contained in the document,
and
(b)
at the time the communication was sent, it was
reasonable to expect that the information contained in the electronic form of
the document would be readily accessible so as to be useable for subsequent
reference, and
(c)
the person to whom the document is permitted to
be produced consents to the production, by means of an electronic
communication, of an electronic form of the
document.
(3)
For the purposes of this section, the integrity
of information contained in a document is maintained if, and only if, the
information has remained complete and unaltered, apart from—
(a)
the addition of any endorsement,
or
(b)
any immaterial change,
which arises in the normal course of communication,
storage or display.
(4)
This section does not affect the operation of any
other law of this jurisdiction that makes provision for or in relation to
requiring or permitting electronic forms of documents to be produced, in
accordance with particular information technology requirements—
(a)
on a particular kind of data storage device,
or
(b)
by means of a particular kind of electronic
communication.
s 10: Am 2010 No 68,
Sch 1 [12].
11Retention of information and
documents
(1)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
required to record information in writing, that requirement is taken to have
been met if the person records the information in electronic form,
where—
(a)
at the time of the recording of the information,
it was reasonable to expect that the information would be readily accessible
so as to be useable for subsequent reference, and
(b)
if the regulations require that the information
be recorded on a particular kind of data storage device—that requirement
has been met.
(2)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person is
required to retain, for a particular period, a document that is in the form of
paper, an article or other material, that requirement is taken to have been
met if the person retains, or causes another person to retain, an electronic
form of the document throughout that period, where—
(a)
having regard to all the relevant circumstances
at the time of the generation of the electronic form of the document, the
method of generating the electronic form of the document provided a reliable
means of assuring the maintenance of the integrity of the information
contained in the document, and
(b)
at the time of the generation of the electronic
form of the document, it was reasonable to expect that the information
contained in the electronic form of the document would be readily accessible
so as to be useable for subsequent reference, and
(c)
if the regulations require that the electronic
form of the document be retained on a particular kind of data storage
device—that requirement has been met throughout that
period.
(3)
For the purposes of subsection (2), the integrity
of information contained in a document is maintained if, and only if, the
information has remained complete and unaltered, apart from—
(a)
the addition of any endorsement,
or
(b)
any immaterial change,
which arises in the normal course of communication,
storage or display.
(4)
If, under a law of this jurisdiction, a person
(the first
person) is required to retain, for a particular period,
information that was the subject of an electronic communication, that
requirement is taken to have been met if the first person retains, or causes
another person to retain, in electronic form, the information throughout that
period, where—
(a)
at the time of commencement of the retention of
the information, it was reasonable to expect that the information would be
readily accessible so as to be useable for subsequent reference,
and
(b)
having regard to all the relevant circumstances
at the time of commencement of the retention of the information, the method of
retaining the information in electronic form provided a reliable means of
assuring the maintenance of the integrity of the information contained in the
electronic communication, and
(c)
throughout that period, the first person also
retains, or causes the other person to retain, in electronic form, such
additional information obtained by the first person as is sufficient to enable
the identification of the following—
(i)
the origin of the electronic
communication,
(ii)
the destination of the electronic
communication,
(iii)
the time when the electronic communication was
sent,
(iv)
the time when the electronic communication was
received, and
(d)
at the time of commencement of the retention of
the additional information covered by paragraph (c), it was reasonable to
expect that the additional information would be readily accessible so as to be
useable for subsequent reference, and
(e)
if the regulations require that the information
be retained on a particular kind of data storage device—that requirement
has been met throughout that period.
(5)
For the purposes of subsection (4), the integrity
of information that was the subject of an electronic communication is
maintained if, and only if, the information has remained complete and
unaltered, apart from—
(a)
the addition of any endorsement,
or
(b)
any immaterial change,
which arises in the normal course of communication,
storage or display.
s 11: Am 2010 No 68,
Sch 1 [13].
12
s 12: Rep 2010 No 68,
Sch 1 [14].