Surveillance Devices Act 1998 (WA)

Western Australia Surveillance Devices Act 1998 Western Australia Surveillance Devices Act 1998 Contents Part 1 — Preliminary 1. Short title 2 2. Commencement 2 3. Interpretation 2 4. Application 8 4AA. Authority required for some investigations 8 4A. State police working for Australian Crime Commission 8 Part 2 — Regulation of installation and use of surveillance devices 5. Regulation of use, installation and maintenance of listening devices 9 6. Regulation of use, installation and maintenance of optical surveillance devices 10 7. Regulation of use, installation and maintenance of tracking devices 12 8. Technical assistance 13 Part 3 — Restriction on publication or communication of private conversations and activities 9. Prohibition of publication or communication of private conversations or activities 14 10. Admissibility in criminal proceedings of information inadvertently obtained 16 11. Presumption as to evidence obtained under warrant or emergency authorisation 17 Part 4 — Warrants and emergency authorisations Division 1 — Judicial warrants 12. Interpretation of "court" 18 13. Warrants for use etc. of surveillance devices 18 14. Warrants for maintenance and retrieval of certain tracking devices 22 15. Applications for warrants 23 16. Radio/telephone applications for warrants 25 17. Warrants issued following radio/telephone applications 26 18. Restriction on further radio/telephone applications 27 18A. Enhanced powers concerning surveillance devices 28 19. Extension of warrants 29 Division 2 — Emergency authorisations 20. Emergency use of surveillance devices 29 21. Emergency authorisations 31 22. Retrieval of surveillance devices installed under emergency authorisations 34 Division 3 — Confidentiality 23. Confidentiality 35 Part 5 — Use of surveillance devices in the public interest Division 1 — General 24. Interpretation 36 25. Unlawful act 36 Division 2 — Use of listening devices and optical surveillance devices in the public interest 26. Use of listening devices in the public interest 36 27. Use of optical surveillance devices in the public interest 37 Division 3 — Emergency use of listening devices and optical surveillance devices in the public interest 28. Emergency use of listening devices in the public interest 38 29. Emergency use of optical surveillance devices in the public interest 38 30. Report to a judge 38 Division 4 — Publication or communication in the public interest 31. Order allowing publication or communication in the public interest 40 32. Application for a publication order 41 33. Confidentiality 41 Part 6 — Offences and enforcement provisions 34. Possession of surveillance device for unlawful use 43 35. Unlawful removal or retrieval of surveillance device 43 36. Power to search 43 37. Report of finding surveillance device 44 38. Time limit for prosecutions 45 40. Forfeiture 45 Part 7 — Miscellaneous 41. Dealing with records obtained by surveillance devices 47 42. Exemption from personal liability 48 43. Annual reports 48 43A. Reports by Royal Commissions 50 44. Regulations 50 Notes Compilation table 52 Other notes 53 Defined terms Western Australia Surveillance Devices Act 1998 An Act to regulate the use of listening devices in respect of private conversations, optical surveillance devices in respect of private activities, and tracking devices in respect of the location of persons and objects, to repeal and replace the Listening Devices Act 1978 1, to amend the Evidence Act 1906 2 with regard to transcripts of recordings, and for connected purposes.