Industrial Relations Commission New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Re Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association [2012] NSWIRComm 27 Hearing dates: 11 April 2012 Decision date: 13 April 2012 Jurisdiction: Industrial Court of NSW Before: Boland J, President, Haylen J, Backman J Decision: (1) The registration of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association is cancelled pursuant to the provisions of s 227(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996; (2) The cancellation of the registration of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association shall take effect seven days after 11 April 2012. Pursuant to the provisions of s 232 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996, the Industrial Registrar shall record in the register kept under Ch 5, Pt 3 the cancellation of the registration of the Association effective from the date as determined above. Catchwords: REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS - Application by Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association to cancel registration as an Industrial Organisation on two grounds: (1) the applicant has applied for its own deregistration, pursuant to s 226(f) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996; (2) The organisation is defunct, pursuant to s 226(g) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 - Court satisfied the applicant has no employees, that the financial reporting obligations of the applicant have been met and the Association does not have any claim, demand or suit against it nor any outstanding debts or liabilities - Grounds in support of application made out - Orders made cancelling registration. Legislation Cited: Industrial Relations Act 1996 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association (Applicant) Representation: M Adler, solicitor (Applicant) File Number(s): IRC 386 of 2012 Judgment of the Court 1On 11 April 2012, the Court made orders cancelling the registration of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association. What follows are the reasons for judgment. 2The Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association had made application under s 225 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 to cancel its registration as an industrial organisation. The two grounds in support of the application are that: 1.The Applicant has applied for its own deregistration, pursuant to section 226(f) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. 2.The organisation is defunct, pursuant to section 226(g) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. 3According to the application the applicant is a registered industrial organisation established in 1994 and registered on 25 March 1994 to represent the interests of its members in relation to New South Wales industrial relations matters. On 26 October 2011, the applicant's Management Committee passed a resolution: a.That the Applicant make an application to seek cancellation of the Applicant's registration under the Industrial Relations Act 1996. b.That, provided the Industrial Relations Commission approves the application for cancellation, the Applicant be dissolved as soon as practicable in accordance with Rule 76 of the rules of the Applicant. c.That any remaining assets after meeting the costs of dissolution shall be given or transferred to the Housing Industry Association Ltd, as Association having objects similar to the objects of the Applicant. 4It was asserted in the application that: No members of the Applicant will be disadvantaged as a consequence of cancellation of registration as the members of the Applicant are common to both the Applicant and the Housing Industry Association Ltd. The Applicant has no employees and accordingly there can be no employees who would be disadvantaged as a consequence of cancellation of registration. In recent times the Applicant has not had any significant involvement in industrial relations activities and it no longer uses the statutory rights provided under New South Wales legislation. Since the New South Wales Government referred its industrial relations powers to the Commonwealth and since the making of the federal modern awards, the objects of the Applicant are of declining relevance and the Applicant has become defunct. The continuation of the Applicant association imposes an unnecessary administrative and financial burden on those who assist in its administration, the Management Committee and the New South Wales Industrial Relations Commission. 5In a supporting affidavit sworn by Mr David Bare, Executive Director - New South Wales, Housing Industry Association Ltd, Mr Bare deposed in relation to a resolution to apply for cancellation: On 26 October 2011, I attended a meeting of the Management Committee of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Committee ('Committee Meeting'). There was a quorum present at the Committee Meeting. At the Committee Meeting, the Management Committee unanimously approved a resolution: a.That the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association make an application to seek cancellation of the Association under the Industrial Relations Act 1996. b.That, provided the Industrial Relations Commission approves the application for cancellation, the Applicant be dissolved as soon as practicable in accordance with Rule 76 of the rules of the Association. c.That any remaining assets after meeting the costs of dissolution shall be given or transferred to the Housing Industry Association Ltd, an Association having objects similar to the objects of the Applicant. The rules of the Association were followed in approving the resolution. 6Mr Bare further deposed: The Association has no employees. The Association has not had any significant involvement in industrial relations activities since the state of New South Wales referred its industrial powers to the Commonwealth. The Association no longer uses its statutory rights provided under New South Wales legislation. The continuation of the Association imposes administrative duties upon the employees of the Housing Industry Association Ltd who assist in the administration of the Association. It is my intention that I will cause the notice provided at Annexure 'C', or such similar notice, to be published in the Housing Industry Association Ltd electronic newsletter as soon as practicable after a date for the hearing of the application regarding deregistration of the Association is set down. HIA has complied with its financial reporting obligations. The financial statements and certificate for the year ended 31 December 2010 are provided at Annexure 'D'. To the best of my knowledge, the Association does not have any claim, demand or suit against it. To the best of my knowledge, the Association does not have any debts or liabilities. In the event that the application to deregister the Association is approved, it is my intention that I will cause any outstanding funds held by the Association to be transferred to the Housing Industry Association Ltd, as authorised in the final resolution of the Association. The Association and the Housing Industry Association Ltd share similar objectives and eligibility criteria pursuant to their respective rules and the Housing Industry Association Ltd Constitution. 7On 15 March 2012, the applicant caused to be published in the Housing Industry Association Ltd electronic newsletter a notice to the effect that the applicant had applied for cancellation of its registration and that the hearing of its application had been set down for 11 April 2012. According to a further affidavit by Mr Bare filed on 11 April 2012, he had received no objections to the application to cancel the organisation's registration. There was no appearance by any person raising a question or objecting to the application. We are satisfied the applicant has no employees, that the financial reporting obligations of the applicant have been met and the Association does not have any claim, demand or suit against it nor any outstanding debts or liabilities. 8It is apparent for the reasons given by Mr Bare that the applicant no longer has a role and has no need to participate in the New South Wales industrial relations system; it is defunct. We note that upon cancellation of registration Mr Bare will cause any outstanding funds held by the Association to be transferred to the Housing Industry Association Ltd, as authorised in the final resolution of the Association. 9Accordingly, the grounds of the application have been made out and it is, therefore, appropriate to grant the application. Orders 10The Court confirms the following orders: (1)The registration of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association is cancelled pursuant to the provisions of s 227(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996; (2)The cancellation of the registration of the Housing Industry (Industrial Relations) Association shall take effect seven days after 11 April 2012. Pursuant to the provisions of s 232 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996, the Industrial Registrar shall record in the register kept under Ch 5, Pt 3 the cancellation of the registration of the Association effective from the date as determined above. ********** DISCLAIMER - Every effort has been made to comply with suppression orders or statutory provisions prohibiting publication that may apply to this judgment or decision. The onus remains on any person using material in the judgment or decision to ensure that the intended use of that material does not breach any such order or provision. Further enquiries may be directed to the Registry of the Court or Tribunal in which it was generated. Decision last updated: 13 April 2012