Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

COMMONWEALTH ELECTORAL ACT 1918 - SECT 134A

             (1)  If:

                    (aa)  one registered political party (the parent party ) was registered under section 126 before another registered party (the second party ); and

                     (a)  the Electoral Commission is satisfied that:

                              (i)  the name of the parent party is the same as, or relevantly similar to, the name of the second party and the parties are not related at the time of the objection; or

                             (ii)  the name of the second party is one that a reasonable person would think suggests that a connection or relationship exists between the second party and the parent party and that connection or relationship does not in fact exist; and

                            (iii)  the second party was registered after the commencement of this section; and

                     (b)  the registered officer of the parent party objects in writing to the continued use of the name by the second party;

the Commission must:

                     (d)  uphold the objection; and

                     (e)  notify the registered officer of the second party, at the address specified in the Register, that the second party will be deregistered under section 137 if:

                              (i)  it does not make an application under section 134 for a change of name within 1 month of the date of the notice; or

                             (ii)  it makes such an application, but the application is refused.

             (2)  For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), the name of a party is relevantly similar to the name of another party if, in the opinion of the Electoral Commission, the name so nearly resembles the name of the other party that it is likely to be confused with or mistaken for that name.

          (2A)  The Electoral Commission must:

                     (a)  give the parties to an objection under this section written notice of the reasons for its decision in relation to the objection if it upholds the objection; and

                     (b)  take such steps as the Commission considers appropriate to publicise those reasons.

          (2B)  For the purposes of subsection (2A), the parties to the objection are:

                     (a)  the registered officer of the parent party; and

                     (b)  the registered officer of the second party.

             (3)  In this section:

"name" , in relation to a registered political party, means:

                     (a)  the name of the party that is entered in the Register; or

                     (b)  the abbreviation, entered in the Register, of the name of the party.