In this Part, judicial body means:(a) the Tribunal, or(b) (Repealed)(c) a court.
189 Functions of Director-General
(1) The Director-General has, in addition to any other functions conferred or imposed on the Director-General, the following functions:(a) the functions of investigating and carrying out research into matters relating to or affecting retirement villages,(b) the functions of investigating and attempting to resolve complaints by residents and operators of retirement villages and of taking such action, including prosecution for any offence, as the Director-General thinks appropriate,(c) the functions of distributing information about the services provided by the Director-General and the Tribunal in relation to residents of retirement villages and of promoting awareness of the rights and responsibilities of residents and persons involved in the retirement village industry,(d) the functions of investigating and reporting on any matters, or making inquiries in relation to any matters, referred to the Director-General by the Minister or by the Tribunal in connection with this Act.(2) The Director-General may delegate to a person any of the Director-General’s functions under this Act, other than this power of delegation.
190 Director-General may take or defend proceedings
(1) The Director-General may take or defend proceedings before a judicial body on behalf of a resident of a retirement village if:(a) the resident has made a complaint to the Director-General, and(b) after investigating the complaint, the Director-General:(i) is satisfied that the resident may have a right to take or defend the proceedings, and(ii) is of the opinion that it is in the public interest that the Director-General should take or defend those proceedings, and(c) the resident consents to the Director-General’s taking the proceedings.(2) The Director-General must take or defend proceedings before a judicial body on behalf of a resident of a retirement village if:(a) the Minister directs the Director-General to do so, and(b) the resident consents to the Director-General’s taking the proceedings.
191 Conduct of proceedings by Director-General
(1) If the Director-General takes or defends proceedings before a judicial body on behalf of a resident of a retirement village, the Director-General:(a) is to have the conduct of those proceedings on behalf of the resident, and(b) may appear personally or by a legal practitioner or an agent, and(c) may do all such things as are necessary or expedient to give effect to an order or a decision of the judicial body, and(d) is liable to pay the costs (if any) of the resident.(2) The resident is liable to pay any other amount that the judicial body orders the resident to pay.
192 Intervention by Director-General
(1) Without limiting section 191, the Director-General may, if he or she is of the opinion that it would be in the public interest to do so, intervene in any proceedings arising under this Act.(2) The Director-General must intervene in such proceedings if directed to do so by the Minister.(3) On intervening in any proceedings, the Director-General:(a) becomes a party to the proceedings and has all the rights of such a party, and(b) has a right to be heard personally or by a legal practitioner or agent.
193 Power of investigator to obtain information, documents and evidence
(1) If an investigator believes on reasonable grounds that a person is capable of giving information, producing documents or giving evidence in relation to a matter that constitutes, or may constitute, an offence against this Act or the regulations, the investigator may, by notice in writing given to the person, require the person:(a) to provide an investigator, by writing signed by the person (or, in the case of a body corporate, by a competent officer of the body corporate) and given to the investigator within the time and in the manner specified in the notice, with any such information, or(b) to produce to an investigator, in accordance with the notice, any such documents, or(c) to appear before an investigator at a time and place specified in the notice and give any such evidence, either orally or in writing, and produce any such documents.(2) If an investigator believes on reasonable grounds that a person has engaged, or is engaging, in conduct that constitutes, or may constitute, an offence against this Act or the regulations, the investigator may, for the purpose of ascertaining by the examination of documents in the possession or under the control of the person whether the person has engaged, or is engaging, in that conduct:(a) enter any retirement village, residential premises or other premises, and(b) inspect any documents in the possession or under the control of the person, and(c) make copies of, or take extracts from, those documents.(3) A person must not:(a) without reasonable excuse, refuse or fail to comply with a notice under this section to the extent that the person is capable of complying with it, or(b) in purported compliance with such a notice, provide information, or give evidence, that the person knows is false or misleading, or(c) hinder or obstruct an investigator exercising his or her functions under subsection (2).Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
194 Limitation on power of investigator
(1) Section 193 does not authorise any person to enter a part of any premises that is being used for residential purposes without the consent of the occupier of that part of the premises.(2) An investigator may not exercise in any premises a function conferred by section 193 unless the investigator produces his or her certificate of identification if requested to do so by a person apparently in charge of those premises or apparently in charge of any work being performed on those premises.(3) A person is not required to give to an investigator information or evidence, or to produce a document, in compliance with a notice under section 193 unless the investigator produces, if requested to do so, his or her certificate of identification.(4) A natural person is excused from providing information, giving evidence or producing or permitting the inspection of a document in accordance with section 193 on the ground that the information, evidence or document may tend to incriminate the person.(5) In this section, certificate of identification of an investigator means the certificate referred to in section 18 (1) of the Fair Trading Act 1987.
195 Inspection of documents by Director-General and others
(1) The Director-General, a person authorised by the Director-General or an investigator may inspect a document produced in accordance with a notice under section 193 and may make copies of, or take extracts from, the document.(2) For the purposes of this Act or the regulations, the Director-General or an investigator may:(a) take possession, and(b) retain possession for as long as is necessary for those purposes,of a document produced in accordance with a notice under section 193.(3) A person who is otherwise entitled to possession of a document retained under this section is entitled to be supplied, as soon as practicable, with a copy certified (by a person authorised in writing by the Director-General for the purposes of this section) to be a true copy, and the certified copy is admissible as evidence in all courts as if it were the original document.
196 Exclusion of personal liability
A matter or thing done or omitted to be done by the Director-General, an investigator, other authorised officer or any person acting under the direction of the Director-General does not, if the matter or thing was done or omitted in good faith for the purpose of executing this or any other Act, subject the Director-General, investigator, other authorised officer or person so acting personally to any action, liability, claim or demand.