

that is conferred on a person as the holder of a public office, or.‘causing a loss’ includes causing a loss to another person.Īnd finally, section 249O defines ‘public duty’ as a power, authority, duty or function: ‘obtaining a gain’ includes obtaining a gain for oneself or for another person.Ī loss is a loss in money or other property, whether temporary or permanent, and includes not getting what one might get. Section 249N defines the terms ‘gain’, ‘obtaining a gain’, ‘loss’ and ‘causing a loss’.Ī ‘gain’ is defined as any gain in money or other property, whether temporary or permanent, and includes keeping what one has. In any event, it is immaterial whether the menaces relate to action to be taken by the person making the demand. cause an unwilling response because of a particular vulnerability of which the person making the threat is aware.ordinarily cause an unwilling response, or.the particular individual to act unwillingly in response to the threat and the person who makes the threat is aware of the vulnerability of the particular individual to the threat.įurther, a threat against a Government or body corporate does not constitute a menace unless it would:.

an individual of normal stability and courage to act unwillingly in response to the threat, or.The section makes clear that a threat against an individual does not constitute a menace unless it would cause: a general threat of detrimental or unpleasant action that is implied because the person making the unwarranted demand holds a public office.an express or implied threat of any action detrimental or unpleasant to another person, and.‘Menaces’ is defined by section 249M to include: Section 249L explains that a demand with menaces is ‘unwarranted’ unless the person believes that he or she has reasonable grounds for making the demand and reasonably believes that the use of the menace is a proper means of reinforcing the demand.

The maximum increases to 14 years where the person threatens to commit a serious indictable offence, which is any offence that carries a maximum penalty of at least five years’ imprisonment.Įxamples of serious indictable offences include larceny (stealing), assault occasioning actual bodily harm, robbery etc.

There is no specific crime of ‘extortion’ in New South Wales. Extortion?Įxtortion is defined as “obtaining something, especially money, through force or threats”, and some have described the robodebt regime as a state-sanctioned extortion scheme as it essentially involves a government department obtaining money to which it is not entitled through threats of legal action.īut what is the legal definition of extortion in New South Wales?Īnd when does extortion become a criminal offence? Extortion in New South Wales The scheme has had serious financial and emotional consequences for many innocent people, driving some into depression and even towards suicide. This fundamental flaw has resulted in thousands being issued with debt notices in error, and vigorously pursued under threat of further action.
#Extortion meaning software
One of the issues with the software is that it fails to make adequate allowances for those who work on a part-time, casual or seasonal basis, and those who claim benefits for part of the tax year only. The robodebt software uses ‘debt-averaging’ to determine whether a recipient owes a debt, calculating their average fortnightly income based on their annual tax return figure. The federal court recently delivered a judgment which found Centrelink’s ‘robodebt system’ to be unlawful, ordering the federal government to pay the legal costs of a social security recipient who challenged a debt notice that was issued to her in error.
