Communications Regulation and Digital Hub Development Agency (Amendment) Act 2023
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Powers of adjudicators and offences | ||
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87. (1) At any time after a referral under section 69 an adjudicator may, on an application by the Commission or the notified person or of the adjudicator’s own motion, where the adjudicator is satisfied that such direction is necessary for the determination of the issues before the adjudicator— | ||
(a) direct authorised officers of the Commission, or the notified person (each of which, in this section, is referred to as a “party”) to answer (whether on oath or affirmation or otherwise) an identified question or questions in whatever manner or form the adjudicator may specify, | ||
(b) direct a party to adduce evidence or produce books, documents and records in its power or control, and | ||
(c) direct a party to clarify any issue of fact that an adjudicator may deem necessary. | ||
(2) An answer to a question put to a person in response to a direction under subsection (1)(a) is not admissible as evidence against the person in criminal proceedings, other than proceedings for perjury in circumstances where the contested response or information was provided on oath or affirmation. | ||
(3) A summons issued by the adjudicator for the purpose of an oral hearing under section 86 may be substituted for, and is the equivalent of, any formal process capable of being issued in an action for enforcing the attendance of witnesses and compelling the production of records. | ||
(4) A person the subject of a direction under this section shall be entitled to the same immunities and privileges in respect of compliance with any requirement referred to in this section as a witness appearing in proceedings before the Court. | ||
(5) A person commits an offence if the person— | ||
(a) is served with a notice under section 86 (2) and does not comply with that notice, | ||
(b) is subject to a direction under subsection (1) and fails to comply with such direction, | ||
(c) having been duly summoned to attend before an adjudicator under section 86 (2) fails without reasonable excuse to attend at the time and place indicated on the summons, | ||
(d) while attending as a witness before an adjudicator at an oral hearing under section 86 refuses to— | ||
(i) give evidence in the manner lawfully required by the adjudicator to be taken, | ||
(ii) produce any record in the person’s power or control that the person is lawfully required by the adjudicator to produce, or | ||
(iii) answer any question that the person is lawfully required by the adjudicator to answer, | ||
or | ||
(e) while attending before the adjudicator engages in any conduct that, if the adjudicator were a court of law having power to punish for contempt, would be contempt of court. | ||
(6) Where a person fails to comply with a requirement of an adjudicator under section 86 , with a direction under subsection (1), or with a summons to attend before an adjudicator, or refuses, while attending as a witness before the adjudicator, to do anything referred to in subsection (5) that the person is lawfully required by an adjudicator to do, or otherwise fails to comply with a direction of the adjudicator, the Court, on summary application by a party, on notice to that person, may— | ||
(a) by order require the person to attend before the adjudicator or to do the thing that the person refused to do, as the case may be, within a period to be specified by the Court, and | ||
(b) make such interim or interlocutory orders as it considers necessary for that purpose. | ||
(7) A person commits an offence if, having been, or in anticipation of being, required to produce a book, document or record under subsection (1) or under section 86 (2), he or she intentionally or recklessly destroys or otherwise disposes of, falsifies or conceals such book, document or record or causes or permits its destruction, disposal, falsification or concealment. | ||
(8) If information or evidence is provided by a person to an adjudicator in connection with any function of an adjudicator under this Part, that person commits an offence if— | ||
(a) the information or evidence is false or misleading in a material respect, and | ||
(b) the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, that it is false or misleading in a material respect. | ||
(9) A person who provides any information to another person, knowing the information to be false or misleading in a material respect, or who recklessly provides any information to another person which is false or misleading in a material respect, knowing the information is to be used for the purpose of providing information to an adjudicator in connection with any of his or her functions under this Act, commits an offence. | ||
(10) A person who commits an offence under subsection (5), (7), (8) or (9) is liable— | ||
(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both, or | ||
(b) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to a fine not exceeding €250,000 or both. | ||
(11) Proceedings may be brought for an offence under this section regardless of whether or not an order has been made, or has been applied for, under subsection (6). | ||
(12) The Minister may make regulations setting out further details or conditions for the exercise of the powers of adjudicators under this section. | ||
(13) In this section, “Court” means the High Court. |