False or misleading documents

Offence title:

False or misleading documents

Act:

1308 Corporations Act

Offence:

(1)   A person commits an offence if:

(a)   A document:

                                           i.         Is required for the purposes of this Act; or

                                         ii.         Is lodged or submitted to ASIC; and

(b)   The person:

                                           i.         Makes or authorises a statement in the document; or

                                         ii.         Omits or authorises the omission of a matter of thing in the document; and

(c)    The person knows the document is false or materially misleading.

Note 1: For when a document is materially false or misleading, see subsection (6).

(2)   A person cannot be proceeded against for a breach of (1) and a regulation made pursuant to s. 1364.

(3)   A person commits an offence if:

(a)   A document:

                                        iii.         Is required for the purposes of this Act; or

                                        iv.         Is lodged or submitted to ASIC; and

(b)   The person:

                                        iii.         Makes or authorises a statement in the document; or

                                        iv.         Omits or authorises the omission of a matter of thing in the document; and

(c)    the document is materially false or misleading because of the statement or omission; and

(d)   Did not take all reasonable steps to ensure the document was not materially false or misleading because of the statement or omission.

Note 1: For when a document is materially false or misleading, see subsection (6).

(4)   A person contravenes this subsection if:

(a)   A document:

                                         v.         Is required for the purposes of this Act; or

                                        vi.         Is lodged or submitted to ASIC; and

(b)   The person:

                                         v.         Makes or authorises a statement in the document; or

                                        vi.         Omits or authorises the omission of a matter of thing in the document; and

(c)    The person knows, or is reckless, that the document is false or materially misleading.

Note 1: For when a document is materially false or misleading, see subsection (6).

Note 2: This subsection is a civil penalty provision: s. 1317E.

(5)   A person contravenes this subsection if:

(a)   A document:

                                       vii.         Is required for the purposes of this Act; or

                                      viii.         Is lodged or submitted to ASIC; and

(b)   The person:

                                       vii.         Makes or authorises a statement in the document; or

                                      viii.         Omits or authorises the omission of a matter of thing in the document; and

(c)    The person knows the document is false or materially misleading; and

(d)   Did not take all reasonable steps to ensure the document was not materially false or misleading because of the statement or omission.

Note 1: For when a document is materially false or misleading, see subsection (6).

Note 2: This subsection is a civil penalty provision: s. 1317E.

(6)   For this section a document is materially false or misleading if:

(a)   It includes a statement that:

                                           i.         is false in a material particular or materially misleading; or

                                         ii.         is based on information that is false in a material particular or materially misleading, or has missing a matter or thing that makes it materially misleading; or

(b)   a matter or thing is missing from the document and without that matter or thing the document is false in a material particular or materially misleading.

Penalty:

(1)   5 years imprisonment.

(3)   20 penalty units.

Summary/Indictable/mixed:

Mixed

Jurisdiction:

(1)   Local, District or Supreme Court

(3)   Local Court

How committed:

(1)   The manager of a body corporate required to report to ASIC, submits a knowing misleading report by omitting certain data. In submitting the document this way, the manager knows anyone reading the report will be misled.

(3)   A person lodges a document with ASIC, which they created, it is materially false because of missing data, and the person failed to check the document or make all reasonable steps to ensure accuracy before lodgement.

Important note:

(7)   For the purposes of this section, a person who votes in favour of a resolution approving, or who otherwise approves, a document is taken to have authorised:

(a)   the making of any statement in the document; and

(b)    the omission of any matter or thing from the document.

(8)   For the purposes of this section, a statement, report or other document that:

(a)   relates to affairs of a company or of a subsidiary of a company; and

(b)   is attached to or included with a report of the directors provided under section 314 to members of the company or laid before the company at an annual general meeting of the company;

is taken to be part of the report referred to in paragraph (b) of this subsection, even if it is not otherwise required by this Act to be laid before the company in general meeting.

(9)   For the purposes of this section:

(a)   a notice under subsection 708AA(2), 708A(5), 1012DAA(2) or 1012DA(5) is taken to be a notice required for the purposes of this Act; and

(b)   a notice under subsection 708AA(2), 708A(5), 1012DAA(2) or 1012DA(5) is taken to be misleading in a material respect if it fails to comply with paragraph 708AA(7)(d), 708A(6)(e), 1012DAA(7)(e) or 1012DA(6)(f).