Legal Opinions

The Comptroller-General of Customs has forwarded the following memorandum for advice:

In accordance with the ruling given in the Solicitor-General's opinion of 21.7.21⁽¹⁾, relative to the above, the Oversea Shipping Representatives' Association was recently informed that agents in the Commonwealth of oversea shipping lines, and their staffs, do not come within the exception in the definition of 'Passenger' contained in section 6 of the Navigation Act.

The Secretary to the Association has replied as follows:

The Chairman, War Service Homes Commission:

The War Service Homes Commissioner has forwarded the following memorandum for advice:

The sections of the Act particularly bearing on this matter are sections 30 and 45. Section 30 deals with the rate of interest to be charged in respect of any purchase money or advance and section 45 with arrears.

Your opinion is desired upon the following points:

The Secretary to the Treasury has forwarded me the following minute for advice:

Tylors (Water and Sanitary) Ltd, Sydney, drew a promissory note for £120 in favour of the Small Arms Ammunition Factory, Footscray. The note was payable at the Bank of Australasia, Pitt Street, Sydney.

The Comptroller-General of Customs has forwarded me the following memorandum for advice:

Sub-sections (2) and (3) of section 77 of the Navigation Act provide:

The Auditor-General has submitted the following memorandum for advice:

In connection with the payment, as an act of grace, of a gratuity of £200 by the Department of Repatriation to the executor of the late Mr Maurice Copland (formerly Principal of the School of Mines, Ballarat) for services rendered in connection with the vocational training of returned soldiers, an Audit query was raised as to whether the payment of such gratuity should not be specially voted by Parliament in accordance with the procedure usually followed in similar case.

I am in receipt of your minute herein of 3 June 1921.

I do not agree with the interpretation placed by the Law Officer upon the words 'any person who has applied for protection' in a foreign country, which are contained in section 121 of the Patents Act.

The Comptroller-General of Customs has submitted to me the following minute for advice:

In view of doubts which are held as to the validity of certain sections of the Customs (Cinematograph Films) Regulations 1919 (copy attached), it is suggested that the Attorney-General's Department be requested to favour the Censorship with early advice on the following points:

The Secretary to the Treasury has forwarded for advice the following memorandum:

Messrs A.B. & Son of King William Street, Adelaide, are known to have received from bond owners certain War Gratuity Bonds.

The Chairman of the Repatriation Commission has forwarded for advice the following memorandum:

Under the Second Schedule to the Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act 1920, a special pension of £8 per fortnight may be granted to a blinded soldier not maintained in an establishment at the public expense.

The Commission has up to the present granted the special rate of pension to totally blinded soldiers and to those who, at the best, can merely discern light from darkness.

The Postmaster-General has forwarded me the following memorandum for advice: