Community Law Reform Assistance Animals Final Report 16

Appendix 4

Laws Referring To Assistance Animals
Key State Legislation
Domestic (Feral and Nuisance) Animals Act 1994	s 7
Equal Opportunity Act 1995	ss 4, 52
Other state legislation
Commonwealth Games Arrangements Act 2001	s 3(1)
Major Events (Crowd Management) Act 2003	ss 3
State regulations
Alpine Resorts (Management) Regulations 1998	r 42(3)
Australian Grands Prix (Formula One) Regulations 2006	r 5
Forests (Murrindindi Scenic Reserve) Regulations 1999	r 17
Forests (Steavenson Falls Scenic Reserve) Regulations 1999	r 18
Forests (You Yangs Regional Park) Regulations 2003	r 20, 22
National Parks (Park) Regulations 2003	r 37
Royal Botanic Gardens Regulations 2004	r 23
Transport (Passenger Vehicles) Regulations 2005	r 72
Transport (Public Transport Corporation) Regulations 1994	r 301
Transport (Taxi-Cabs) Regulations 2005	r 33
Transport (Conduct) Regulations 2005	r 20

Transport (Ticketing and Conduct) Regulations 2005	r 20
Water Industry (Reservoir Parks Land) Regulations 2001	r 18
Wildlife (State Game Reserve) Regulations 2004	rr 18, 19
Commonwealth Legislation
Disability Discrimination Act 1992	ss 5, 6, 9
Commonwealth Standards
Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code 3.2.2	Ch 3 Div 6 cl 24

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Glossary

An accreditation scheme is a formal system for confirming that an organisation or person providing a service meets predetermined standards.
Assistance animal is one trained to help a person with a disability to alleviate the effects of that person’s disability.
Assistance animal handler describes the person assisted by the assistance animal.
Assistance animal partnership refers to both the assistance animal and its handler.
Attribute is the term used in legislation to describe a characteristic of a person, for example gender.
Companion animals are pets.
Co-morbidities describes the situation where a person has more than one form of disability.
Derogate means diminish.
Direct discrimination occurs when a person with an attribute protected by anti-discrimination legislation is treated less favourably, because of that attribute, than another person who does not possess that attribute.
Disability is the word used in the Disability

Discrimination Act 1995 (Cth) to describe the attribute or ground upon which it is unlawful to discriminate against a person.
A duty of care is a legal obligation to avoid harm. It arises where harm is foreseeable if due care is not taken.
Formal equality requires that similarly situated people be treated equally.
A guide dog, dog guide or seeing eye dog is trained to assist people with a visual impairment.
A hearing dog assists people with a hearing impairment.
Impairment is the word used in the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic) to describe the attribute or ground upon which it is unlawful to discriminate against a person.
Indirect discrimination occurs when a condition or requirement that applies equally to all persons operates to the disadvantage a particular group and is not reasonable.
A mobility dog is trained to help people who have reduced motor skills, mobility problems, or difficult walking or moving.
Mutual recognition schemes are those that operate between states and territories to ensure that legal recognition in one place automatically entitles you to recognition in another place. For example, a doctor who trains in Queensland is eligible for registration as a medical practitioner in Victoria.
Negligence occurs when a person breaches the duty of care they owe to another, and as a result the person to whom the duty is owed suffers material damage.
Psychiatric service dogs are trained to provide support to people with psychiatric disabilities.
Public access test is a test administered by a trainer to check that the assistance animal meets minimum standards.
Reasonable adjustments are those measures that need to be taken to ensure a person can have equal access. It excludes adjustments that would cause unjustifiable hardship or are not reasonable.
Regulation means delegated legislation. Regulations are made under a power contained in the primary legislation (the Act).
A schedule is located at the back of an Act of Parliament and forms part of the legislation.
Scienter is a legal term meaning knowingly.
Seizure and alert dogs are trained to assist their handlers before and during a medical emergency such as a epileptic seizure or diabetic episode.
Substantive equality requires measures to be taken to ensure equality of outcomes.
A trainee assistance animal is one that is undergoing training to assist a person with a disability.
Unjustifiable hardship operates as a defence to a claim of disability discrimination under Commonwealth law. The person who has discriminated must prove that they were compelled to discriminate because to have done otherwise would have caused them a level of hardship that cannot be justified in the circumstances.
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