Our legislation

Legislative Standards Act 1992

The Legislative Standards Act 1992 established the position of Queensland Parliamentary Counsel and the Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel on 1 June 1992. The Act also sets out the fundamental legislative principles and the requirement for Queensland legislation to have sufficient regard to these principles.

The Legislative Standards Act 1992 provides for the functions of the Parliamentary Counsel and OQPC to draft and publish Queensland legislation. These functions include OQPC's role of providing advice about the application of the fundamental legislative principles (see section 7(g)(ii) and (h)(ii) of the Act).

The Legislative Standards Act 1992 is administered by the Premier of Queensland.

Reprints Act 1992

The Reprints Act 1992 affects how legislation is consolidated and published after it is amended. A reprint is a reproduction of legislation prepared by OQPC under this Act. If legislation has been amended, a reprint of the legislation shows the legislation as amended. The Reprints Act 1992 allows limited editorial changes to be made to legislation when it is reprinted. See section 7 for a list of the editorial changes that can be made.

The Reprints Act 1992 is administered by the Premier of Queensland.

Statutory Instruments Act 1992

The Statutory Instruments Act 1992  brings together and clarifies the law about statutory instruments, particularly in relation to the power to make statutory instruments. The term ‘statutory instrument’ is defined in detail in section 7 of the Act. Statutory instruments include subordinate legislation.

The Statutory Instruments Act 1992 is administered by the Premier of Queensland.

Acts Interpretation Act 1954

The Acts Interpretation Act 1954  contains provisions that apply generally to all Queensland legislation to aid in its interpretation. The result is clearer and shorter drafting because, for example, it contains definitions of commonly used expressions which remove the need for these expressions to be defined in other legislation. This Act also contains standard provisions applying to the commencement of legislation and legislative changes.

The Acts Interpretation Act 1954 is administered by the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice.

Human Rights Act 2019

The Human Rights Act 2019  sets out the human rights that are protected in Queensland and provides that a law may only limit a human right to an extent that is reasonable and can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom. The Act also provides for proposed legislation to be scrutinised by the Parliament for compatibility with human rights. These requirements must be considered when drafting Queensland laws.

The Human Rights Act 2019 is administered by the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice.