Reviewing Tribunals — composition
Open ↗94.—(1) One or more bodies each called a Reviewing Tribunal is established by this section.
(2) Every Reviewing Tribunal consists of 3 individuals, each of whom is appointed by the President on the advice of the Cabinet subject to subsections (3) and (4).
(3) An individual must not be, or be appointed, a member of any Reviewing Tribunal if he or she is not a citizen of Singapore.
(4) The chairperson of every Reviewing Tribunal must be a Supreme Court Judge.
(5) A member of a Reviewing Tribunal must vacate office at the end of a period of 3 years starting the day of his or her appointment, but is eligible for reappointment.
(6) A member of a Reviewing Tribunal may resign his or her office by giving notice in writing to the President.
(7) In the performance of his or her functions and duties under this Act, the members of a Reviewing Tribunal each have the same protection and immunity as a Judge of the High Court.
(8) The proceedings of a Reviewing Tribunal are deemed to be judicial proceedings and every member of the Reviewing Tribunal Board is deemed to be a public servant within the meaning of the Penal Code 1871.
Reviewing Tribunal — remuneration and other terms
Open ↗95.—(1) The Minister may pay to the members of a Reviewing Tribunal out of moneys provided by Parliament such remuneration or allowances as the Minister may, with the approval of the President, fix.
(2) The remuneration and other terms of service of each member of a Reviewing Tribunal must not be altered to his or her disadvantage during his or her continuance in office as such.
Reviewing Tribunal — resources
Open ↗96.—(1) All expenses of every Reviewing Tribunal are to be defrayed out of money provided by Parliament.
(2) The Minister must appoint a Secretary to the Reviewing Tribunals and such other public officers as are necessary for a Reviewing Tribunal to discharge its functions under this Act.
Reviewing Tribunal — function
Open ↗97.—(1) It is the function and duty of every Reviewing Tribunal to consider and determine any appeal made under section 92 and served on the Secretary to the Reviewing Tribunals —(a)
by a person who is given a Part 3 direction and who may appeal against the authorisation by the Minister made under section 23(3)(b) or affirmed under section 23(3)(c) to the competent authority to give the direction; or
(b)
by a proprietor of a proscribed online location and who may appeal against the Minister’s declaration made under section 26(3)(b) or affirmed under section 26(3)(c) in relation to that online location.
(2) However, a Reviewing Tribunal may summarily dismiss any appeal which it determines to be frivolous or vexatious.
(3) A Reviewing Tribunal may determine an appeal made to the Reviewing Tribunal by —(a)
dismissing the appeal and confirming the decision appealed against; or
(b)
revoking the decision appealed against.
(4) Every Reviewing Tribunal has to carry out its work expeditiously.
(5) In relation to a Reviewing Tribunal determining an appeal under this Part, Part 3 applies as if the reference in that Part to the Minister were a reference to the Reviewing Tribunal.
(6) A Reviewing Tribunal’s decision under subsection (3) is final.
Procedure before Reviewing Tribunal
Open ↗98.—(1) Except where a Reviewing Tribunal, having regard to all the circumstances, is satisfied that it is equitable to do so, the Reviewing Tribunal must not consider or determine any appeal against —(a)
an authorisation by the Minister made under section 23(3)(b) or affirmed under section 23(3)(c) to the competent authority to give a Part 3 direction, if the appeal is made more than 30 days after the notice of that decision is given under section 23(6); or
(b)
a declaration made under section 26(3)(b) or affirmed under section 26(3)(c) in relation to a proscribed online location, if the appeal is made more than 30 days after the notice of that decision is given under section 26(5).
(2) A Reviewing Tribunal may at any stage in the appeal proceedings, and without calling for a defence from the Minister whose authorisation or declaration is appealed against, dismiss an appeal made to or before it if the Reviewing Tribunal is satisfied that —(a)
the appellant is not a person entitled to appeal under that section;
(b)
the bringing of the appeal is or the proceedings of the appeal are frivolous or vexatious, which may include taking into account whether the appellant has habitually and persistently, and without any reasonable ground, made vexatious appeals to the Reviewing Tribunal; or
(c)
the appellant has, without reasonable excuse, failed to comply with the time delimited by any provision of Rules made under section 99 for the submission of any notice, document or other information in the appeal proceedings, or with any direction of the Reviewing Tribunal under those Rules.
(3) Subject to Rules made under section 99, every Reviewing Tribunal is entitled to determine its own procedure in relation to any appeal under section 92 made to or before the Reviewing Tribunal.
Rules for Reviewing Tribunal proceedings
Open ↗99.—(1) Rules may be made by the Minister to prescribe the practice and procedure to be followed on, or in connection with, the hearing or consideration of any proceedings or appeal (including, where applicable, the mode and burden of proof and the admissibility of evidence) before a Reviewing Tribunal.
(2) In particular, the Rules made under subsection (1) may include —(a)
requiring persons making an appeal to take such preliminary steps, and to make such disclosures, as may be specified in the Rules for the purpose of facilitating a determination whether the making of the appeal is frivolous or vexatious;
(b)
enabling or requiring a Reviewing Tribunal to hear or consider any proceedings or appeal without the person who brought the appeal having been given full particulars of the reasons for any conduct which is the subject of the proceedings or appeal;
(c)
the need to secure that matters which are the subject of proceedings or appeals brought before or made to a Reviewing Tribunal are properly heard and considered;
(d)
prescribing the circumstances and manner in which appeals in relation to the same decision, or involve the same or similar issues, may be consolidated or heard together;
(e)
enabling or requiring a Reviewing Tribunal to take any steps in exercise of their jurisdiction in the absence of any person (including the person bringing the proceedings or making the appeal and any legal representative of the person);
(f)
enabling or requiring a Reviewing Tribunal to give a summary of any evidence taken in its absence to the person by whom the proceedings were brought or (as the case may be) to the person who made the appeal;
(g)
securing that the information is not disclosed to an extent, or in a manner, that is contrary to Singapore’s national security, the prevention or detection of serious crime, the economic wellbeing of Singapore or the continued discharge of the functions of any of the intelligence services of Singapore; and
(h)
providing for the manner in which the interests of a person who has made an appeal under section 92 are to be represented, such as for the appointment in accordance with the Rules, by such person as may be determined in accordance with the Rules, of a person to represent those interests.
(3) All Rules made under subsection (1) must be presented to Parliament as soon as possible after publication in the Gazette.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
