Definitions

This page defines the terms used for the purposes of the conflicts of interest policy for contracted providers of human services.

Affiliate

Affiliate refers to:

In relation to a natural person, any:

spouse of that person, or any immediate relative of that person or that person’s spouse,
body corporate that the person, that person’s spouse, or immediate relative of that person or that person’s spouse controls, and
body corporate in which the person, that person’s spouse, or any immediate relatives of that person or that person’s spouse individually or together own or hold in aggregate more than 20% of the voting shares.

In relation to a trust, each:

other trust where there’s at least one common beneficiary,
other trust where there’s a common director on the board of the corporate trustee in each case,
body corporate where the director or shareholder of the body corporate is a beneficiary of the trust, and
natural person who’s capable of benefitting under the trust.

In relation to a body corporate, each:

of that body’s related bodies corporate,
of that body’s directors, their relatives and spouses (persons A),
of the persons who have a substantial holding in that body, their relatives and spouses (persons B),
body corporate that persons A and B individually or together control, and
body corporate in which persons A and B individually or together own or hold in aggregate more than 20% of the voting shares.

Body corporate

A legal entity as defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). It includes a statutory corporation, a company and an incorporated association.

Conflict of interest

In this policy, a conflict of interest means having interest – personal, financial or other – which conflicts, or may reasonably be perceived as conflicting, with your ability to fairly, objectively and independently perform your obligations under the contract with us.

We’re concerned with conflicts of interest that are related to the governance, financial management, service delivery or performance under the contract with us, and which may influence or may be perceived to influence your obligations and the services you’re contracted to deliver.

There are three types of conflict of interest: actual, perceived and potential.

Note that our contracts refer to ‘actual’ and ‘possible’ conflicts of interest. In this policy, possible conflicts of interest are separated as perceived and potential conflicts of interest.

Type of conflict	Explanation	Examples
Actual	There’s a direct conflict between your organisation’s or any of its personnel’s private interests or duties and your obligations under the contract with us.	An organisation leases a property owned by an employee to deliver the services contracted by DCJ. The Chief Executive Officer is a member of the board, participates in all board decisions and has voting rights. An organisation subcontracts services contracted by DCJ to a board member’s private company. An organisation subcontracts services contracted by DCJ to a subsidiary company.
Perceived	It could reasonably be perceived or appear that your organisation’s or any of its personnel’s private interests or duties could improperly influence your obligations under the contract with us.	An organisation awards a contract to a board member’s family business. An organisation hires a board member's spouse as a consultant.
Potential	Your organisation’s or any of its personnel’s private interests or duties may, if circumstances change, conflict with your obligations under the contract with us.	Members of an organisation’s board are also board members of other organisations in the area. The organisation is thinking of subcontracting some DCJ services to two of those other organisations. A board member owns shares in a local private company. The organisation is thinking of a merger with the company.

Officer

In this policy, officer refers to a person who is an officer of your organisation, including a person who:

is an office holder
makes, or participates in making decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of your business
has the capacity to significantly affect your organisation’s standing
has the capacity to manage your organisation and its property
participates in the governing body, board of directors or any decision-making body, or
in accordance with whose instructions or wishes your directors are accustomed to act (excluding advice given by the person in the proper performance of functions attaching to the person’s professional capacity or their business relationship), whether or not the person is a volunteer or receives payment their role.

Personnel

In this policy, personnel refers to officers, employees, volunteers, contractors, subcontractors, agency personnel and any other person authorised by your organisation to deliver services agreed in the contract with us.

Related party

A related party is a person or entity that’s related to another person or entity. In relation to your organisation and its personnel, a related party could be any of the following persons or entities:

an affiliate of your organisation or any of its personnel
a subsidiary of your organisation
an entity of which your organisation is a subsidiary
a subsidiary of another entity of which your organisation is also a subsidiary
if your organisation is a company, any shareholder, securityholder or manager of your organisation
any entity or person that’s:
- controlled (within the meaning of section 50AA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) by any of your organisation’s personnel, or
- who is an associate (within the meaning of section 50AAA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) of any of your organisation’s personnel
a trustee of any unit trust in relation to which your organisation or any of its personnel, or any entity referred to above, directly or indirectly:
- controls the right to appoint the trustee, or
- is in a position to control the casting of more than one half of the maximum number of votes that might be cast at a meeting of holders of units in the trust, or
- holds or is in a position to control the disposal of more than one half of the issued units of the trust.

Related party transaction

A related party transaction is any agreement, arrangement or understanding between your organisation and a related party of your organisation or any of its personnel.

Last updated: 17 June 2025