Most Australian jurisdictions provide free access to legislation through government websites. These are the official websites and are where you will find the most up-to-date compilations of legislation.
We recommend using the government websites outlined below to locate authorised versions of legislation. Although other free websites such as AustLII contain legislation, these are not necessarily the most up-to-date compilations of Acts. They can however, provide useful historical legislative documents.
Lawlex can be useful for locating a piece of legislation when you are not sure of the proper title, or which jurisdiction it is from. For information about the types of material produced in the legislative process, check the Legislative Documents Produced section below.
Acts of Parliament are the laws of Australia. There are a range of types of Acts, such as:
Bills are drafts of law that Parliament proposes to make. If approved by Parliament, the Bill becomes an Act.
Hansards are often referred to as parliamentary debates. They are the transcripts of parliamentary proceedings, containing second reading speeches and committee debates which are used for the interpretation of Acts.
Clause-by-clause descriptions of the Bill and its purpose which are produced to accompany Bills. They are written in plain English and are intended to make the purpose of the Bill clear to the reader. Also referred to as EMs, they only came into regular use in the late 1970s. Check the Was there an EM page to see when EMs came into regular use in your jurisdiction of interest.
The second reading debate is the discussion of the motion moved by the Minister and is usually the most substantial debate that takes place on a Bill. Its purpose is to consider the principles of the Bill. Debate may cover reasons why the Bill should be supported or opposed, the necessity for its proposal or alternative means of achieving the same objectives. The second reading speech is often used in legal research to understand the motivation or purpose of a Bill and is useful as a tool in statutory interpretation.
If during the parliamentary debate (second reading speech) of a Bill, changes are proposed, the Bill is referred to a Parliamentary Committee to make any appropriate changes.
A gazette is an official government publication which gives information about government matters and makes government announcements including proclamations. The gazette usually provides assent and commencement information.
The most common type of subordinate legislation made under the legislative powers of an Act. They are often made out of Parliament by the government department that has been established by the principal Act.
| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
Called Explanatory Notes. Formerly issued as a note affixed to each bill when it was introduced, they are now separate documents.
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
Called Explanatory Statements, they have been produced in the Northern Territory since 2005.
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
Not common in Tasmania, they are often produced as Bills Fact Sheets or Clause Notes.
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| Hansard |
Before 1979 there were no official reports of the Tasmanian parliamentary debates. The Hobart Mercury reported the parliamentary debates from 1920 - 1979.
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| Gazettes |
The first official Tasmanian gazette/newspaper, the Hobart Town Gazette and Southern Reporter, appeared in Hobart in 1816. It was preceded by two short-lived unofficial publications in 1810-14. After other name changes, it became known as the Tasmanian Government Gazette in 1907.
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
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| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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| Acts |
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| Bills |
|
| Explanatory Memoranda (EMs) |
Prior to 2000, Explanatory Memoranda were produced on an ad hoc basis.
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| Hansard |
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| Gazettes |
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