Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme: Consequential amendments as result of Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law

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A decision made 31 January 2012

Decision Reference: MD-HA-2012-0008
Decision Summary Title :	CICS Amendments re Civil Partnerships Law		Date of Decision Summary:	23 January 2012
Decision Summary Author:	Executive Officer Home Affairs		Decision Summary: Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Type of Report: Oral or Written?	Written		Person Giving Oral Report:	n/a
Written Report Title :	Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law –amendments required to CICS		Date of Written Report:	23 January 2012
Written Report Author:	Executive Officer Home Affairs		Written Report : Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Subject: Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law – consequential amendments required to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.
Decision(s): The Minister noted the amendments that will be required to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme as a result of the Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law and decided to request the Law Draftsman to prepare a revised Scheme to take into account those changes and to correct some typographical errors in the current Scheme.
Reason(s) for Decision: The introduction of the Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law 201- will require amendments to a number of pieces of legislation. Many of these amendments are being dealt with in the Civil Partnerships (Consequential Amendments) (Jersey) Regulations 201-. However, the Law Draftsman has advised that the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme will need to be amended separately, as it is not legislation. It is desirable to make these changes in order to afford same sex couples many of the same rights as married heterosexual couples.
Resource Implications: There are no direct manpower or financial implications arising from this decision.
Action required: The Executive Officer, Home Affairs, to forward a copy of the report accompanying this Ministerial Decision to the Law Draftsman’s Office to request that the necessary changes be made to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.
Signature:		Position: Minister for Home Affairs
Date Signed:		Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):

Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme: Consequential amendments as result of Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law

Brief for the Minister

Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law

Consequential amendments required to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme

The introduction of the Civil Partnerships (Jersey) Law 201- in 2012 will require amendments to a number of pieces of legislation. Many of these amendments are being dealt with in the Civil Partnerships (Consequential Amendments) (Jersey) Regulations 201-. However, the Law Draftsman has advised that Article 10(a) of the Act 1990 establishing a Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme will need to be amended separately, as it is not legislation. Article 10(a) of the Scheme currently reads, with emphasis added:

Scope of the Scheme

10. (a) Subject to paragraph (b) of this Article, the Board may make ex gratia payments of compensation in any case where the applicant or, in the case of an application by a spouse or dependent (see Articles 25 and 26 below), the deceased –

(i) sustained, in the Island or on a Jersey ship, personal injury directly attributable to a crime of violence (including arson or poisoning) or the apprehension or attempted apprehension of an offender or a suspected offender or to the prevention or attempted prevention of an offence or to the giving of help to a police officer who is engaged in any such activity, or

(ii) sustained personal injury directly attributable to a crime of violence (including arson or poisoning) in respect of which a court in the Island has jurisdiction by virtue of section 686 or 687 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 or such enactments as from time to time replace them;

This Article makes reference to Articles 25 and 26 of the Scheme, which read, with emphasis added:

25. Where the victim has died in consequence of the injury, no compensation other than the funeral expenses will be payable for the benefit of his estate, but the Board may consider applications from his spouse and dependants. For this purpose, compensation will be payable, in accordance with the other provisions of this Scheme to any person entitled to claim under the Fatal Accidents (Jersey) Law 1962 and to a person to whom the deceased was alleged to be married by habit or repute and who was living with the deceased in the same household during the whole of the period of two years immediately preceding the date of the death. Funeral expenses to an amount considered by the Board to be reasonable will be paid by the Board in appropriate cases even where the person bearing the cost of the funeral is otherwise ineligible to claim under this Scheme. Applications may be made under this paragraph where the victim has died from his injuries even if an award has been made during his lifetime. Such cases will lie subject to the conditions set out in Article 22 for the re-opening of cases and compensation payable to (he applicant will be reduced by the amount paid to the victim.

26. Where (he victim has died otherwise than in consequence of the injury, (he Board may make an award in respect of loss of wages, expenses and liabilities incurred before his death as a result of the injury whether or not application for compensation in respect of the injury has been made before his death.

Many pieces of legislation have been amended to take into account of the Civil Partnership Law by the insertion of the words ‘or civil partner’ after the word ‘spouse’ wherever it appears.

In addition to the changes made by the Civil Partnerships Law, there are a couple of typographical changes that could be made at the same time. Articles 25 and 26 of the Revised Scheme as adopted by the States of Jersey 10 September 2009 contain some stray brackets which could be removed in the updated version of the Scheme.

Until 2009, amendments to the Scheme were published in the R&O series, notwithstanding that the Scheme was not legislation. When amendments to the Scheme were required in 2009, it was felt that this should be rectified and that the simplest way to do this was for the States to be asked to approve the entire Scheme in its amended form whenever amendments are proposed. This has the benefit that the updated text of the Scheme is always available in the Proposition document.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Minister requests the Law Draftsman’s Office to draft a revised Scheme to take into account the changes detailed above. The Chairman and members of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board have been alerted to the proposed changes and have not raised any concerns.

Executive Officer, Home Affairs

23 January 2012