Officer pleads not guilty in the first prosecution of an officer under Work Health and Safety Laws in the Australian Capital Territory

• Introduction
• Background
• The charges under the WHS Act
• The prosecution of the officer
• The prosecution of the PCBU

Introduction

Authors: Alena Titterton and Alice Winter-Irving

On Tuesday 10 June 2014 in the Australian Capital Territory Industrial Magistrates Court, an early mention in the Kenoss Contractors case was heard.  This case includes a prosecution of both an organisation for allegedly failing to meet the primary health and safety duty and an officer for allegedly failing to exercise due diligence under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (ACT) which commenced on 1 January 2012.  This case is ostensibly the first prosecution of an officer under the new harmonised WHS laws.

Reproduced with permission of Norton Rose Fulbright in accordance with their legal notice and disclaimers.