Permit authorising making assets available to persons or entities designated under the Autonomous Sanctions Regulations 2011, and the use of, or dealing with ‘controlled assets’, in connection with legal services, settlement of legal proceedings, and payment of legal costs

Permit

SAN-2024-00138

Date of Issue

30 October 2024

Revocation of Permit  SAN-2022-00079

Permit SAN-2022-00079 is revoked.

Period of Validity

From the Date of Issue until the earlier of:

1. 2 years from the Date of Issue; or
2. the Permit is revoked.

Authority

Regulations 18(1)(e) and (f), 18(2)(a) and 18(4) of the Autonomous Sanctions Regulations 2011 (Cth).

Definitions

AS Act: The Autonomous Sanctions Act 2011 (Cth)

Ancillary Services: Services that are directly related to the provision of legal advice or legal representation in Australian courts and tribunals, including services relating to: the organisation and filing of court documents; the engagement of expert witnesses; and administrative tasks necessary for legal proceedings in Australian courts and tribunals.

Australian Sanctions Office Contact Point: Email to sanctions@dfat.gov.au

DPE:Designated person or entity, within the meaning of the Regulations.

Regulations:The Autonomous Sanctions Regulations 2011 (Cth)

Permit Holders

The following classes are Permit Holders:

Class A: Australian persons, including bodies corporate, who are legal service providers, and their employees.

Class B: DPEs.

Class C: Persons, including bodies corporate, acting for, or on behalf of, a DPE.

Class D: Persons, including bodies corporate, who provide:

1. postal, transport, courier, process service or delivery services;
2. litigation document management services; or
3. financial services.

Class E: The Commonwealth, and persons appointed or engaged under the Public Service Act 1999 (Cth).

Class F: The Reserve Bank of Australia and staff members of the Reserve Bank Service within the meaning of the Reserve Bank Act 1959 (Cth).

Class G: Financial institutions and their employees.

Authorised Actions

1. Class A Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions, to the extent doing so is required to provide, to a DPE or Class C Permit Holder, legal advice, legal representation in Australian courts and tribunals, and Ancillary Services, in relation to matters arising under or related to Australian law:
   1. Directly or indirectly make assets available to, or for the benefit of, a DPE.
   2. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the relevant DPE, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
2. Class B Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions to the extent doing so is required to obtain legal advice, legal representation, and Ancillary Services, in relation to matters arising under or related to Australian law, and in relation to proceedings in Australian courts and tribunals:
   1. Use or deal with any assets a Class A Permit Holder makes available to them under Authorised Action 1(a), either directly or indirectly.
   2. Use or deal with controlled assets that the Class B Permit Holder owns or controls, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
3. Class C Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions to the extent doing so is required to obtain, in their capacity acting for, or on behalf of, a DPE, legal advice, legal representation, and Ancillary Services, in relation to matters arising under or related to Australian law, and in relation to proceedings in Australian courts and tribunals:
   1. Use or deal with any assets a Class A Permit Holder makes available to them under Authorised Action 1(a), either directly or indirectly.
   2. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the relevant DPE, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
   3. Directly or indirectly make assets available to, or for the benefit of, a DPE.
4. Class D Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions to the extent doing so is required to facilitate Authorised Actions 1, 2 or 3:
   1. Directly or indirectly make assets available to, or for the benefit of, a DPE.
   2. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the relevant DPE, or allow
      those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
5. To the extent necessary to satisfy an order for legal costs made by an Australian court or tribunal, to comply with an obligation to pay legal costs pursuant to a deed of settlement for a proceeding in an Australian court or tribunal, or to receive legal costs under such an order or deed of settlement:
   1. Class A Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions:
      1. Directly or indirectly, make assets available to, or for the benefit of, a DPE.
      2. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the relevant DPE, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
   2. Class B Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions:
      1. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the Class B Permit Holder, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.
   3. Class C, E, F and G Permit Holders are authorised to undertake the following actions:
      1. Directly or indirectly, make assets available to, or for the benefit of, a DPE.
      2. Use or deal with controlled assets that are owned or controlled by the relevant DPE, or allow those assets to be used or dealt with, or facilitate the use of those assets or dealing with those assets.

Condition

Class A, B and C Permit Holders must notify the Australian Sanctions Office Contact Point if they intend to rely on this Permit.

Authorised

Penny Wong
Minister for Foreign Affairs

General Information about this Permit

This Permit is an authorisation granted under a sanction law. It is an offence, punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment or $825,000, to give information or a document to a Commonwealth entity in connection with the administration of a sanction law that is false or misleading or omits any matter or thing without which the information or document is misleading (section 17 of the AS Act).

Any authorisation granted under the Regulations is taken never to have been granted if information contained in, or information or a document accompanying, the application for the relevant authorisation is false or misleading in a material particular or omits any matter or thing without which the information or document is misleading in a material particular (section 15 of the AS Act).

It is an offence to contravene a sanction law, punishable for individuals by up to 10 years imprisonment, or a fine the greater of $825,000 or three times the value of the contravening transaction and for bodies corporate by a fine the greater of $3.3 million or three times the value of the contravening transaction (section 16 of the AS Act). For bodies corporate, this is a strict liability offence.