Electronic Transactions (Victoria) Act 2000

 

Section 13. Time of dispatch

(1) For the purposes of a law of this jurisdiction, unless otherwise agreed between the originator and the addressee of an electronic communication, the time of dispatch of the electronic communication is -

(a) the time when the electronic communication leaves an information system under the control of the originator or of the party who sent it on behalf of the originator; or

(b) if the electronic communication has not left an information system under the control of the originator or of the party who sent it on behalf of the originator - the time when the electronic communication is received by the addressee.

Note - Paragraph (b) would apply to a case where the parties exchange electronic communications through the same information system.

(2) Subsection (1) applies even though the place where the information system supporting an electronic address is located may be different from the place where the electronic communication is taken to have been dispatched under section 13B.

13A Time of receipt

(1) For the purposes of a law of this jurisdiction, unless otherwise agreed between the originator and the addressee of an electronic communication -

(a) the time of receipt of the electronic communication is the time when the electronic communication becomes capable of being retrieved by the addressee at an electronic address designated by the addressee; or

(b) the time of receipt of the electronic communication at another electronic address of the addressee is the time when both -

(i) the electronic communication has become capable of being retrieved by the addressee at that address; and

(ii) the addressee has become aware that the electronic communication has been sent to that address.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), unless otherwise agreed between the originator and the addressee of the electronic communication, it is to be assumed that the electronic communication is capable of being retrieved by the addressee when it reaches the addressee's electronic address.

(3) Subsection (1) applies even though the place where the information system supporting an electronic address is located may be different from the place where the electronic communication is taken to have been received under section 13B.

 13B Place of dispatch and place of receipt

(1) For the purposes of a law of this jurisdiction, unless otherwise agreed between the originator and the addressee of an electronic communication -

(a) the electronic communication is taken to have been dispatched at the place where the originator has its place of business; and

(b) the electronic communication is taken to have been received at the place where the addressee has its place of business.

(2) For the purposes of the application of subsection (1) to an electronic communication -

(a) a party's place of business is assumed to be the location indicated by that party, unless another party demonstrates that the party making the indication does not have a place of business at that location; and

(b) if a party has not indicated a place of business and has only 1 place of business, it is to be assumed that that place is the party's place of business; and

(c) if a party has not indicated a place of business and has more than 1 place of business, the place of business is that which has the closest relationship to the underlying transaction, having regard to the circumstances known to or contemplated by the parties at any time before or at the conclusion of the transaction; and

(d) if a party has not indicated a place of business and has more than 1 place of business, but paragraph (c) does not apply - it is to be assumed that the party's principal place of business is the party's only place of business; and

(e) if a party is a natural person and does not have a place of business - it is to be assumed that the party's place of business is the place of the party's habitual residence.

(3) A location is not a place of business merely because that is -

(a) where equipment and technology supporting an information system used by a party are located; or

(b) where the information system may be accessed by other parties.

(4) The sole fact that a party makes use of a domain name or electronic mail address connected to a specific country does not create a presumption that its place of business is located in that country.