Australia, July 9 -- New South Wales Land and Environment Court issued text of the following judgement:

1. On 23 December 2024, the Applicant filed an application in this Tribunal seeking the orders by way of final and interim relief in the following terms:

What orders am I seeking?

Final

1) To exempt from reporting obligations under CPORA - S16

2) A declaration that the applicant/appellant is not a registrable person under the Act - ab initio

Interim

1) I plead for a pseudonym "TGR24" be applied.

2) I plead for an injunction order - To suspend from reporting obligations under the Act - CPORA with immediate effect.

3) I plead for a mediation order with my two children, who currently reside with the mother, step-father and step brother.

2. The reference to CPORA in the application is a reference to the Child Protection (Offenders Registration) Act 2000 (NSW). The objects of that Act are set out at s 2A include:

(c) to monitor persons who are registrable persons, and

(d) to ensure that registrable persons comply with this Act.

3. The Tribunal, of its own motion, listed the application for an interim hearing to determine whether it had jurisdiction to make any of the orders sought.

4. At the interim hearing, the Applicant appeared in person and made submissions orally in chief and in reply. He also submitted written submissions after the hearing that he had intended to hand up. The Respondent also appeared and provided written submissions, supplemented by oral submissions. The submissions of both parties have been taken into consideration for the purposes of this decision.

5. The Applicant was found guilty and convicted by the Local Court at Manly in June 2016 of an offence under the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), s 61L, being an indecent assault with an act of indecency. He was released on condition that he be of good behaviour for a period of 18 months pursuant to the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), s 9. The offence was committed against a person who was aged 17.

6. Because of the nature of the offence and the fact that it was committed against a person under 18 years of age, it was a registrable offence under Child Protection (Offenders Registration) Act, s 3. Being convicted of a registrable offence, the Applicant met the definition of a registrable person under the Child Protection (Offenders Registration) Act, s 3A and he was automatically placed on the Child Protection Register for a period of eight years.

7. The Applicant would have been removed from the Child Protection Register in June 2024 were it not for the fact that he subsequently spent time in custody for other offences. Arising from the period he spent in custody, and pursuant to Child Protection (Offenders Registration) Act, s 15 his eight-year reporting period will now expire in June 2027.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://www.caselaw.nsw.gov.au/decision/19743a32e26362a7450ae375)

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