CPPREP4003 - Access and interpret legislation in real estate (Release 1)

Written Questions

Written Questions

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Written Questions

What you need to do:

Answer the questions below by writing in the space provided.

You are required to answer all questions correctly. If correct, you will see
‘Satisfactory’ or if incorrect you will see ‘Not Satisfactory’ in your grades section of
your learner portal next to the assessment name. The assessor will provide
feedback and a Record of Results in the assessment task once graded. You will be
required to resubmit your work for any ‘Not Satisfactory’ assessment tasks.

What you will need:

Use the learner material provided in your online student portal as well as research
materials such as books, internet, magazines, workplace documentation etc. to
assist you in gaining the knowledge required to answer the questions. Remember
that the assessment is completely self-paced and open book, so you are able to use
whatever resources you have to answer the questions.

What you need to submit:

Your answers to these questions.

How to Submit your Assessment:

Upload your completed document into your learner portal as per the instructions with
the assessment task.

You can drag and drop the file into the window or use the add file icon in the top left
of the submission window and select the file you wish to upload by using the
browse/choose file option.

Click on “finish attempt” to submit it for grading.

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Written Questions

Question 1
Identify and explain 2 common problems that people have when trying to interpret
legislation.

Two common problems which could occur when people are trying to interpret
legislation are:

1. The use of ambiguous words and phrases and legal terminology.

Legislation is written with the legal profession in mind, accordingly, the unfamiliar
words and phrases within a piece of Legislation are sometimes difficult for the
everyday person to understand. The Acts Interpretation Act 1954 and the Statutory
Instruments Act 1992 are two pieces of Legislation that provide the meaning behind
the terminology which is useful to the everyday person; and

2. References to other pieces of Legislation.

To properly understand the meaning of a particular piece of Legislation, a person must
be able to refer to additional pieces of Legislation, such as Acts, Regulations and/or
Amendments. To be able to properly interpret the meaning of a particular piece of
Legislation, you must know where and how to look up other pieces of Legislation to
gain the full meaning of it.

Question 2
Name 2 consequences that could occur if a real estate employee misinterpreted
legislation.

Consequences that could occur in the event of a real estate employee misinterpreting
legislation are:

1. Receiving a fine;

2. Loss of licence; and / or

3. Imprisonment.

Question 3
Reading Acts, Regulations and other laws requires an understanding of the structure
of Australian Government legislation. Give a brief explanation of the following
area/headings found when reading Acts, regulations and other laws.

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1.1. Long Title

1.2. Short Title
1.3. Commencement
1.4. Application
1.5. Contents
1.6. Definition
1.7. Headings

1.1 Long Title – is intended to provide a summarised description of the purpose or scope of
the piece of Legislation it is attached to.

1.2 Short Title – is the formal name given to a particular piece of Legislation and by which it is
known.

1.3 Commencement – is the time of which the piece of Legislation came into operation.

1.4 Application – stipulates the circumstances and time frame in which the piece of Legislation
applies or does not apply.

1.5 Contents – is a list of headings and sections with page references at the start of a piece of
Legislation.

1.6 Definition – the meaning of a word or expression used in either in a particular piece of
Legislation or in general.

1.7 Headings – are used for convenience, making it easier to look up specific matters within
the Legislation. There are Headings to different chapters, divisions, subdivisions, clauses,
etc.

Question 4
Identify and list the names of Commonwealth legislation, and legislation of your state
or territory that relate to the following aspects of operating a real estate agency.

4.1. Anti-discrimination and equal employment opportunity

4.2. Planning and Zoning
4.3. Employment and industrial relations
4.4. Consumer protection, fair trading and trade practices
4.5. Foreign investment
4.6. Environment and sustainability
4.7. Financial services, financial probity and taxation
4.8. Franchises and business structure
4.9. Property management including leases and tenancy agreements
4.10. Property sales and auctions
4.11. Occupational Health and Safety
4.12. Privacy
4.13. Secret commission

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4.14. Real estate licencing

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In Queensland, the following Commonwealth and State legislation applies to the

operation of a real estate agency as follows:

Anti-discrimination and equal employment opportunity

Anti-discrimination Act 1991 (Qld)

Planning and Zoning

Planning Act 2016
Planning Regulation 2017
Planning and Environment Court Act 2016
Planning and Environment Court Rules 2018
Regional Planning Interests Act 2014

Employment and industrial relations

Fair Work Act 2009
Fair Work Regulations 2009
Industrial Relations Act 2016
Industrial Relations (General) Regulation 2020

Consumer protection, fair trading and trade practices

Competition and Consumer Act 2010
Fair Trading Act 1989

Foreign investment
Foreign Ownership of Land Register Act 1988
Foreign Ownership of Land Regulation 2013
Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 (Cth)
Foreign Acquisitions and Take Overs Regulation 2015 (Cth)
Register of Foreign Ownership of Water or Agricultural Land Act 2015 (Cth)
Register of Foreign Ownership of Water or Agricultural Land Rules 2017 (Cth)
Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Fees Imposition Regulation 2015 (Cth)
Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Fees Imposition Act 2015 (Cth)

Environment and sustainability

Environmental and Protection Act 1994
Environmental Protection Regulation 2019
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)

Financial services, financial probity and taxation

Financial Services Reform Act 2001
Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997
Competition and Consumer Act 2010

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Competition and Consumer Regulation 2010

Corporations Act 2001
Corporations Regulations 2001
Corporations Amendment (Future of Financial Advice) Act 2012
Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006
Crimes Act 1914 (Cth)
Taxation Administration Act 1953
Taxation Administration Regulations 2017
Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (Cth)
Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth)
Income Tax Assessment (1997 Act) Regulations 2021
Income Tax Act 1986
A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999
Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986 (Cth)
Taxation Administration Act 2001
Land Tax Act 2010
Land Tax Regulation 2021
New Business Tax System (Capital Gains Tax) Act 1999

Franchises and business structure

Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes – Franchising) Act 2010 (Cth)
Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes – Franchising) Regulation 2014 (Cth)
Corporations Act 2001
Corporations Regulations 2001
Franchising Code of Conduct
Competition and Consumer Act 2010
Competition and Consumer Regulation 2010

Property management including leases and tenancy agreements

Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008
Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Regulation 2009
Retail Shop Leases Act 1994
Retail Shop Leases Regulation 2016
Housing Legislation Amendment Act 2021
Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation (COVID-19 Emergency Response)
Regulation 2020
Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Amendment Regulation 2022

Property sales and auctions

Land Sales Act 1984 (Qld)
Land Title Act 1993 (Qld)
Land Title Regulation 2015
Land Title Regulation 2022
Property Occupations Act 2014
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Property Occupations Regulations 2014

Native Title Act 1993 (Cth)
Agents Financial Administration Act 2014
Local Government Act 2009
Local Government Regulations 2012
Crime and Corruption Act 2201
Crime and Corruption Regulations 2015
Duties Act 2001
Duties Regulations 2013
Native Title Act 1993 (Cth)
Property Law Act 1974
Property Law Regulations 2013
Family Law Act 1975

Occupational Health and Safety

Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)

Privacy
Information Privacy Act 2009
Information Privacy Regulation 2009
Invasion of Privacy Act 1971
Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)

Secret commission
Crime and Corruption Act 2001
Crime and Corruption Regulation 2015
Crimes Act 1914
Crimes Regulation 2019

Real estate licencing

Property Occupations Act 2014
Property Occupations Regulations 2014

Question 5
Explain the legal framework in Australia.
5.1 Statute law
5.2 Common law
5.3 Contract law
5.4 Equity law

Statute law is a federal law which is introduced into Parliament as a Bill. Once the Bill has

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been passed by a majority in the same form by both the House of Representatives and
the Senate it is given Royal Assent by the Governor-General. Once this occurs it becomes
law and is referred to as an Act.
Common law is a finding which is derived from previous judicial precedents rather than
Acts or Legislation. When judges and magistrates decide a case, their rulings are made
based on previous decisions made in similar cases, this is what is commonly referred to as
a common law decision. If there is no past case with similar circumstances, the judge or
magistrate would make a new decision which would then become a precedent for similar
cases in the future.
Contract Law is based on legislatively modified English common law rather than a civil
code. The basic principle of contract law is that parties are free to bargain as they choose
as long as the agreement reached within the contract is made within the boundaries of
any applicable laws or regulations .
Equity Law is also derived from old English common law and is described as a collection of
legal principles that allowed the Court to reach fair results in cases where common law
would have otherwise led to an injustice being served. Equity law supersedes common
law and statute law only when there is a conflict between the two and neither can
appropriately bring the correct and fair verdict.

Question 6
Explain the following main components of legislation
6.1 Acts
6.2 Regulations
6.3 Amendments
6.4 Mandatory codes of conduct
6.5 Schedules
6.6 Appendices

An Act is a statute or law that has been passed by both the House of Representatives and
the Senate and that has received Royal Assent by the Governor-General. Once Royal
Assent has been given, Acts are given a year and a number. Once an Act has been
formally enacted it can only generally be amended or repealed by another Act.

Regulations are also known as Statutory Rules and is a law made under the authority of
an Act of Parliament. Regulations are a subsidiary legislation that includes rules,
ordinances, by-laws and codes.

An Amendment is a change to a Bill which has been introduced into Parliament.

Amendments are made to improve or alter the original Bill. Amendments can be made in
either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Any Amendment to any Bill must be
voted on by both the House of Representatives and the Senate and must receive a

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majority to be passed.

A Mandatory Code of Conduct provides a set or rules or a minimum standard in which an

industry must operate, including the relationship between the business and customer.
Mandatory Codes of Conduct are prescribed as regulations under the Competition and
Consumer Act 2010.

A Schedule is a part of an Act or Regulation and appears after the main clauses in the text.
Schedules are often used to provide more detail on how the provisions of an Act or
Regulation are supposed to work.

Appendices provide supplemental information and form part of the legislation. They are
critical to the validity of the legislation

Question 7
What resources are available to you to assist you in interpreting legislation? Include
in your answer sources of specialist advice, source documents and government and
industry bodies.

To be able to interpret legislation a person must first know where to look.

Commonwealth legislation can be accessed at:
https://www.legislation.gov.au/
This site includes information on current and repealed legislation as authorised by the
Commonwealth Government together with related documents. It contains the full text
and details of the lifecycle of individual laws and the relationships between them.

and State legislation for Queensland can be accessed at:

https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/
This site provides information on all authorised Queensland legislation and related
information—Bills introduced, Acts as passed, subordinate legislation as made and point-
in-time reprints (consolidations) of Acts and subordinate legislation.

There are a number of other online resources such as the Office of Fair Trading -
https://www.qld.gov.au/law/fair-trading and the UTS Library -
https://studyguides.lib.uts.edu.au/legislation/search as well as online legal sites such as Law
Live, Law One and Law Central. However if you are unable to find an answer to your
specific problem it is always best to contact a Solicitor who specialises in Property Law to
assist.

Source documents may include the following:

 Explanatory Memorandums (Cth) – which can be found with the relevant legislation.
 Explanatory Notes (Qld) – which can be found with the relevant legislation;

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 Acts Interpretation Act 1954 – contains definitions and other information essential
to understanding and interpreting Acts;
 Statutory Instruments Act 1992 – deals with the interpretation and presentation of
statutory instruments which assist in clarifying the law;
 Reprints Act 1992 – explains the OQPC’s responsibilities in producing reprints of
Queensland legislation including the authority to make certain minor editorial
changes in reprints of legislation;
 Legislative Standards Act 1992 – establishes the Office of the Queensland
Parliamentary Council, its functions and responsibility in drafting Queensland
legislation;
 The Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (Cth) – this document establishes the rules of
interpretation relating to Commonwealth actions only.
 Legal decisions made by Judges in relation to matters which are similar to the one in
which you have the query.
Other industry bodies which may be able to assist with interpreting legislation are:
 The Real Estate Institute of Australia – https://reia.com.au/
 The Real Estate Institute of Queensland - https://www.reiq.com/
 Australasian Legal Information Institute - https://www.austlii.edu.au/

Question 8
Explain the following statutory interpretation rules:
8.1 Literal rule

The literal rule of statutory interpretation means that the words of the legislation are
given their ordinary meaning unless a clearly established legal precedence has been
previously made with case law.

8.2 Mischief rule

The mischief rule is the oldest of the rules of interpretation being established in 1584.
Basically, in the case of ambiguity in the wording of a piece of legislation, the mischief
rule is applied. It allows the Court to look at the sate of law before the legislation was
passed to see what the rationale of the legislation was – i.e. to cure the “mischief” or
problem which existed under the law as it was prior to the legislation being
implemented

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8.3 Golden rule

The golden rule is an extension of the literal and used to avoid the consequences of a
literal interpretation of the wording of a piece of legislation in the event such an
interpretation would lead to a result that is contrary to the principles of the
legislation. The rule can be applied in two different ways – the narrow approach or
the broad approach.
When the rule is applied using the narrow approach it is used where there is some
ambiguity or absurdity in the words themselves. When used in its broad sense, the
rule may be used to avoid a result that is contrary to the principals of public policy,
even where the words, at first glance, may only carry one meaning.

8.4 Purposive approach

The purposive approach is based on civil codes and is a method of statutory

interpretation that considers the actual purpose of the legislation and interprets the
legislation in accordance with its intended purpose.

8.5 Express mention of one thing to the exclusion of another

One of the rules used to interpret legislation is the Latin phrase – expression: unius est
exclusion alterius - meaning to express mention of one thing to the exclusion of
others.
Simply put, this phrase means that where particular words of the same class are
followed by a general word, the meaning of the general word will be limited to things
similar to the class of things mentioned earlier.

Question 9
List (3) websites where you can access information on Commonwealth and/or state
legislation.

Three websites where you are able to access information on Commonwealth and/or State
legislation are:

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1. Commonwealth legislation : https://www.legislation.gov.au/

2. State legislation for Queensland : https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/

3. Commonwealth and State legislation : https://www.austlii.edu.au/

Question 10
Identify and list the names and websites of (2) bodies that provide support and
guidance for estate agency personnel.

Two websites that are able to provide support and guidance for real estate personnel are:

1. The Real Estate Institute of Australia – https://reia.com.au/; and

2. The Real Estate Institute of Queensland - https://www.reiq.com/.

Question 11
Access the most current version of the main legislation covering real estate and
property management operations for your state or territory and then answer the
following questions;
a) Name the most current version of the real estate legislation for your state or
territory including the name, version and year

The current version of real estate legislation for Queensland is Property Occupations Act
2014, current from 1 July 2015.

b) Name the most current version of the property management legislation for
your state or territory including the name, version and year

The current version of property management legislation for Queensland is the Residential

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Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008, current from 1 July 2022.

c) Explain in 100-150 words how you would know whether legislation is current.

In order to check to see if the legislation is current the easiest way would be to check
online. If checking on Commonwealth legislation, the website address is:
https://www.legislation.gov.au/. If checking on state government legislation the website
address is: https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/.
When viewing the legislation online it is important to always view the full piece of
legislation, as the front page of each Act or Regulation shows whether it is current, and if
so, from what date it is current. It will also show that the legislation has been repealed or
superseded and if so, a link is usually provided to the current legislation in force.
As a way to double check, you could also visit the Australasian Legal Information Institute
at: https://www.austlii.edu.au/ and look up the same legislation just to confirm it is
current.

Question 12
Outline how you could track changes and amendments to legislation and the
techniques you could apply to track these changes to ensure you are staying up to
date with current legislation.

To keep up to date and keep abreast of changes to legislation you could:

1. Subscribe to newsletters with updates from REIQ, solicitors’ offices,

regulatory bodies, etc. This will enable you to know when there is a new
regulation that concerns you and what its requirements and deadlines may
be.
2. Enrol in seminars, conferences or web trainings that provide updates within
the industry. Alternatively if you are unavailable to attend the seminar
contact the organiser and see if you are able to access the course material.
3. Keep a list of any legislation that is relevant to you with their dates of
approval and check online resources regularly to see if there have been any
amendments.
4. By maintaining membership of the Real Estate Institute of Queensland.

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5. Monitoring websites of Governing and Regulatory Bodies (e.g., Government

Gazette, Office of Fair Trading, Legislative and Parliamentary Counsels, etc).
6. Installing compliance management software with automatic updates so that
any changes to any legislation is automatically notified.
7. Install ATS Tracking / ATS Authoring software to track changes and/or
amendments to legislation.

Question 13
Explain the role that regulators have in relation to legislation.

Regulators are responsible for issuing licences and registrations. Their role also includes
ensuring that individuals and business entities comply with all industry standards and
requirements under the relative legislation. Regulators investigate instances of non-
compliance and penalise individuals and business entities that break the law.

Question 14
What is the responsibility of real estate personnel to access, read, interpret and
apply legislation to their real estate activity?

All real estate personnel are responsible for being able to access, read, interpret and
apply legislation as required for their position. This is to:
 mitigate risks to themselves and the agency.
 be able to provide a lawful service to clients and customers.
 avoid being caught up in litigation either personally and/or the business.
 avoid getting a bad reputation either for themselves personally or the business;
and
 avoid being fined for misconduct, having their license revoked and/or receiving a
jail sentence.

Question 15
Explain the interrelationship between various pieces of relevant legislation.

In general an Act or any other subsidiary legislation stands alone. However, there are
instances in which parts of one Act may have an effect upon parts of another Act. If part
of an Act impacts upon another piece of legislation it is usually stated within either the
Act or within the other legislation.

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Sometimes there is a conflict between, or an inconsistency between the Act and some
subsidiary legislation. In the event that there is a conflict or inconsistency between the
Act or other subsidiary legislation generally the information contained within the Act
prevails, unless the Act states to the contrary. If there is a conflict or inconsistency
between two Acts where one is a Commonwealth legislation and the other is a state
legislation, the Commonwealth legislation will prevail, unless stated otherwise.
Occasionally a piece of legislation exists alongside case law, where a decision made
previously is routinely referred to when reading the legislation, this would be referred to
as statutory interpretation.
However, if in any doubt about any aspect of legislation you should seek legal advice.

Question 16
Provide an explanation of “internal aids” and “external aids” in interpreting legislation.
16.1 List 3 internal aids to interpret legislation
16.2 List 3 external aids to interpret legislation

Internal aids used to interpret legislation could include:

1. The long title of the Act or Regulation;
2. Any explanatory notes to the Act or Regulation; and
3. Any definitions contained within the Act or Regulation.

External aids to interpret legislation could include:

1. Any explanatory memoranda;
2. Law Reform Commission Reports; and
3. Parliamentary Committee Reports.

Question 17
Explain the application of the following language conventions and expressions.
17.1 And/or

The words and/or are used to refer to either both parts or either one part or the other
part.

17.2 Gender

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The dictionary definition of gender is to denote

“… either of the two sexes (male and female), especially when considered with
reference to social and cultural differences rather than biological ones. The term is
also used more broadly to denote a range of identities that do not correspond to
established ideas of male and female…”.
The Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (Cth) in Part 5 , Section 23 provides rules as to gender
and number as:
“In any Act:
(a) words importing a gender include every other gender; and
(b) words in the singular number include the plural and words in the plural
number
include the singular.”
Basically unless the contrary intention is stated, words importing the masculine gender
also include the feminine gender and words importing the feminine gender also include
the masculine gender.

17.3 Hierarchy

The dictionary defines hierarchy as:

“a system in which members of an organization or society are ranked according to
relative status or authority”.
There is a hierarchy to both legislation and the Court system. In legislative terms any
Commonwealth Acts over rules any State Acts. Hierarchy within the court system dictates
that a higher Court can overturn a decision made by a lower Court. In Queensland, the
Court system starting at the bottom is as follows:
 Magistrates Court
 District Court
 Supreme Court
 Court of Appeal
A person can appeal decisions made in a state Court to a Commonwealth Court, as
follows:
 Federal Court of Australia
 High Court of Australia (which is the highest Court in Australia).

17.4 Includes

The dictionary definition of includes is:

“comprise or contain as part of a whole”
And the same definition is used in legislative terms. It simply means to contain something

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as part of something else, or to add two or more things together to be included as one
thing.

17.5 May

The dictionary definition of may is:

“expressing possibility”
And the same definition is used in legislative terms. Something possibly will impact on
something else.

17.6 Should

The dictionary definition of should is:

“used to indicate obligation, duty, or correctness, typically when criticizing someone's
actions”
And the same definition is used in legislative terms. An indication the something is like to
occur or is expected to occur.

17.7 Must

The dictionary definition of must is:

“denoting things that are essential or highly recommended”
And the same definition is used in legislative terms. Something that is necessary and
important.

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