Relevant Legislation and policy
Dear Attorney-General's Department,
I require any legislation or policy that documents:
1. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over a man; and
2. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over said man's property.
Thanks in advance,
Bob
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OFFICIAL
Dear Bob
Thank you for your email, which was received by the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department (the department) Freedom of Information (FOI) section on 22 April 2024.
The right of access to information under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) pertains to documents held by this department such as internal correspondence, ministerial submissions, reports, etc. It is not a mechanism by which we can respond to queries about the operation of government or legislation. You request appears to ask whether individuals, and their property, are subject to the laws of this country. Unfortunately, FOI requests are not the appropriate mechanism for commissioning legal research or having questions of this nature answered.
All Australian legislation is available on the Federal Register of Legislation here: https://www.legislation.gov.au/
You can submit specific questions you may have in relation to the operation of the parliament through the Parliamentary Education Office at https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parlia.... Alternatively, if you do have specific questions about the operation of government or the effect of laws in Australia, you may wish to seek your own legal advice.
Please let us know if we have misunderstood the nature of your request, or if you wish to submit a new or revised request for access to documents held by this department.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGD request email]
OFFICIAL
Dear AGD FOI Requests,
Thanks for your quick reply.
There is a clear misunderstanding from your side. The requirement is not documents that relate to a legal entity such as an 'individual' or 'person'.
There are no visible public legislation documents that indicates jurisdiction as it relates to man as per my original request. Therefore, can you provide documents (legislation, or other policy) to fulfill the original request for the numbered paragraphs 1 and 2, and provided below:
I require any legislation or policy that documents:
1. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over a man; and
2. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over said man's property.
Yours sincerely,
Bob
OFFICIAL
OFFICIAL
Dear Bob
Thank you for your email of 29 April 2024.
In your email, you advised that “There are no visible public legislation documents that indicates jurisdiction as it relates to man as per my original request.”
As we advised previously, all Australian legislation is available on the Federal Register of Legislation here: https://www.legislation.gov.au/. If the legislation on the Federal Register does not contain the elements prescribed in your request, then it is likely that no legislation consistent with the terms of your request exists. In any event, it is not within the remit of this team to undertake legislative research on your behalf.
Additionally, a preliminary search of the department’s holdings has not yielded any policy documents relating to ‘jurisdiction over a man’ and ‘jurisdiction over said man’s property’ per the terms of your request.
You advised that you are not seeking documents that “relate to a legal entity such as an 'individual' or 'person'.” If you wish to proceed, we would appreciate your clarification about how a ‘man’ is distinct from an individual or person, for the purposes of your request. Your clarification will help us to tailor searches for any policy documents within the scope of your request.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGD request email]
OFFICIAL
OFFICIAL
OFFICIAL
Dear Bob
I note we have yet to receive a reply to our email of 30 April 2024 regarding this matter. Please note that if we do not receive a response by COB Friday 10 May 2024, we will consider this request to be closed and no further action will be taken.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGD request email]
OFFICIAL
Dear AGD FOI Requests,
Thanks for your reply.
For your question:
"If you wish to proceed, we would appreciate your clarification about how a ‘man’ is distinct from an individual or person"
A man (or woman) is not a legal entity (unlike a individual or person), and does not fall under the jurisdiction of Government/Corporations/or other legal entities. A man (or woman) can be found in Federal Legislation text from time to time and as such the Attorney-General's Department will have a relevant expert(s) who can provide an answer to your question. If the Attorney-General's Department has a definition of "man", I wish for you to provide it in your response.
I request that you undertake a search for any legislation or policy that documents:
1. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over a man; and
2. A Federal Agency, and/or Federal Employee, and/or other Federal personnel have jurisdiction over a man's property.
Yours sincerely,
Bob
Dear Bob
Thank you for your response and for providing additional information about your request. You have asserted that for the purposes of your request a 'man' is distinct from a 'person' or 'individual'.
We write to advise that the current wording of your request is likely to result in a refusal under s 24A of the FOI Act (documents cannot be found or do not exist). This is because the department uses gender neutral language in its policy documents, in accordance with the Australian Government Style Manual. More information about this is available here: https://www.stylemanual.gov.au/accessibl....
Similarly, the Office of Parliamentary Counsel (OPC) is responsible for drafting and publishing the laws of the Commonwealth of Australia. OPC's drafting directions relating to the use of gender-neutral language are available here: https://www.opc.gov.au/sites/default/fil...
We have provided the advice above in order that you can consider whether, in light of the advice above, you would like to revise the terms of request before we process it.
Section 24A of the FOI Act can be accessed here: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A025...
If we do not hear from you by Thursday 16 May 2024 we will process your request as it stands currently.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information & Privacy
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone: (02) 6141 6666 | Email: [AGD request email]
OFFICIAL
Dear Bob
Freedom of Information Request FOI24/213
Please find attached your decision letter, including your review rights.
If you have any questions, please contact me by telephone on (02) 6141
6666 or by email to [1][AGD request email].
Kind regards
Alistair
Case Officer | Freedom of Information & Privacy | Strategy & Governance
Branch
Attorney-General’s Department
Phone (02) 6141 6666 | Email [AGD request email]
OFFICIAL
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