Corruption and Crime Commission (WA)
A short factsheet on the Corruption and Crime Commission: its establishing Act, purpose, powers, and the Court of Appeal authority confirming it is not a prosecuting authority.
Learning outcomes
- State the CCC's establishing Act and its core function of investigating corruption, crime and misconduct in the WA public sector.
- Explain why the CCC is not a prosecuting authority, and what it does instead when an investigation discloses an offence.
- Distinguish the CCC's integrity-oversight role from SAT's merits review and the Ombudsman's general administration complaints.
Act: Corruption, Crime and Misconduct Act 2003 (WA).1
Established: 2004, when the Act commenced.
Purpose: The CCC investigates and reports on corruption, crime and misconduct connected with the Western Australian public sector. It is an integrity body, not a general police force or prosecutor — its focus is the conduct of public officers and public authorities, not crime generally.
Powers conferred under the Act
The Act gives the CCC investigative powers not available to an ordinary agency, including compulsory examinations, the ability to require production of documents and information, and (subject to statutory safeguards) the use of surveillance and telecommunications interception powers in serious cases. These powers exist to investigate and report, not to determine guilt or impose punishment.
Is it a prosecuting authority?
No. This is the single most important thing to get right about the CCC. In A v Maughan [2016] WASCA 128,2 the Western Australian Court of Appeal held that the Commission's functions do not include prosecuting individuals for offences arising from its own investigations. Where a CCC investigation discloses evidence of an offence, the Commission refers the matter to a prosecuting authority — such as the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions or the police — rather than prosecuting it itself. A student who describes the CCC as "prosecuting" a matter has made a specific, checkable error.
How it relates to the other WA bodies
The CCC's own conduct is in turn overseen by the Parliamentary Inspector of the CCC — a separate statutory office created by the same Act. The CCC does not do merits review (that is the State Administrative Tribunal's role) and it does not handle general maladministration complaints (that is the Ombudsman's role); its lane is specifically corruption and serious misconduct.
Self-check
- Have I stated the CCC's function as investigation and referral, not prosecution?
- Have I cited A v Maughan [2016] WASCA 128 rather than asserting the "not a prosecutor" point without authority?
- Have I distinguished the CCC's role from SAT, the Ombudsman and the Parliamentary Inspector?