Industrial Relations Commission New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division (No 2), Re [2013] NSWIRComm 26 Hearing dates: 4 December 2012, 9 April 2013 Decision date: 14 May 2013 Jurisdiction: Industrial Court of NSW Before: Boland J, President, Haylen J and Staff J Decision: The Full Bench makes the following orders: (1) The registration of the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division is cancelled pursuant to the provisions of 227(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. (2) The cancellation of the registration of the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division shall take effect seven days after the date of this decision. 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 5 the cancellation of the registration of the BSCA effective from the date as determined above. Catchwords: Registered Organisations - Application by the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division to cancel its registration as an organisation of employers - Registration no longer necessary - BSCA now registered under Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Cth) - Application granted - Orders made cancelling registration. Legislation Cited: Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Cth) Industrial Relations Act 1996 Cases Cited: Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division, Re [2013] NSWIRComm 11 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division Representation: Mr G Selig (Applicant) Workplace Advisory Group File Number(s): IRC 1107 of 2012 Judgment 1In Re Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division [2013] NSWIRComm 11 the Full Bench dealt with an application by the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division ("BSCA") for cancellation of its registration as an organisation of employers under s 225(3) and s 226(f) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 ("the Act"). 2The Full Bench declined to grant the application. At [10]-[13] the Full Bench explained why: [10] It is apparent that the BSCA no longer needs or desires to be an organisation of employers registered under the Act. The Association has sought and gained registration under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act. Despite the ambiguity of the affidavit it appears that the BSCA has now been subsumed into the federally registered organisation. However, it has not been made clear whether the finances of the BSCA have been transferred to the federal body. [11] Furthermore, the Court needs to be satisfied about the state of the Association's finances. That is to say, we require the latest audited financial reports, not merely draft accounts, and information about the state of the Association's finances up to the present time. [12] Accordingly, until such time as the BSCA provides this material to the Court and clarifies whether it is the case that its assets and liabilities have been transferred to the federally registered body or have been otherwise disposed of in accordance with its rules, the Court is not prepared to grant the orders sought. The Court also requires evidence that the Industrial Registrar is satisfied the applicant has complied with all of its obligations under the Act. [13] The applicant has 28 days from the date of this judgment to address these matters. A failure to do so will result in the application being refused. 3In correspondence to the President's Associate dated 13 March 2013, Mr Selig for the BSCA sought an extension of time in order to satisfy the Court's concerns. That application was granted. 4Mr M Diamond, acting for the BSCA as agent, forwarded a further letter to the President's Associate dated 9 April 2013. Enclosed with the letter was an affidavit of Barbara Connolly, Executive Director of the BSCA, sworn on 15 March 2013 annexed to which were details of the latest transactions in the BSCA's accounts with the National Bank as well as the Association's Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Statement for the calendar year 2012, which were approved by the BSCA's Executive Committee on 5 April 2013. 5In her affidavit Ms Connolly explained that the BSCA had dual registration, having successfully sought and obtained registration under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Cth) and, of course, under the Act. The intention is that if its application to cancel registration under the Act is successful, the BSCA will continue as a "stand alone, independent association" albeit not registered under the Act and that, therefore, it was not necessary for the BSCA's assets to be transferred to the federally registered body or otherwise disposed of upon cancellation of registration. 6We understand there are no outstanding matters required of the BSCA by the Industrial Registrar regarding its reporting obligations under the Act. 7In the circumstances, and having regard to the further information provided by Ms Connolly in her affidavit, we have decided to grant the application. Orders 8The Full Bench makes the following orders: (1) The registration of the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division is cancelled pursuant to the provisions of 227(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. (2) The cancellation of the registration of the Building Service Contractors Association of Australia, New South Wales Division shall take effect seven days after the date of this decision. 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 5 the cancellation of the registration of the BSCA 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: 14 May 2013