EU Legislation (Geographical
Indications – Wines and Spirits) (Jersey) Order 2016
1 Interpretation
(1) In this
Order –
“2008 Regulation” means Regulation (EC) No 110/2008
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 on
the definition, description, presentation, labelling and the protection of
geographical indications of spirit drinks and repealing Council Regulation
(EEC) No 1576/89 (OJ L 39, 13.2.2008, p. 16), as amended[2] from time to time;
“2013 Regulation” means Regulation (EU)
No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the
markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC)
No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC)
No 1234/2007 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 671), as
amended[3] from time to time;
“EU Regulations” means the following provisions designed
to prevent use of geographical indications being applied to wines and spirits
that originate elsewhere –
(a) Articles 92
to 108 of the 2013 Regulation; and
(b) Chapter III
of, and Annex III to, the 2008 Regulation;
“Minister” means the Minister for Home Affairs;
“spirits” means any spirit drink within the meaning of
Article 2 of the 2008 Regulation;
“wines” means the grapevine products listed in points
(1), (3) to (6), (8), (9), (11), (15) and (16) of Part II of
Annex VII to the 2013 Regulation.
(2) Subject to paragraph (1),
words or phrases used in this Order have the same respective meanings as in the
Customs and Excise (Jersey) Law 1999.
2 Enforcement
of EU Regulations and disclosure of information
(1) It
is the duty of officers to secure execution and enforcement of the EU
Regulations.
(2) The
Agent of the Impôts may require any person concerned with the production
of, or movement in or out of Jersey of, wines or spirits –
(a) to
furnish, in such form as the Agent may require, such information as is, in the
Agent’s opinion, necessary to enable compliance with the EU Regulations;
and
(b) to
produce any books of account or other documents of whatever nature relating to
the production or movement of those wines or spirits.
(3) Without limiting any other powers of disclosure, officers may
disclose any information in their possession to any person for the purposes
of –
(a) the
EU Regulations or this Order; or
(b) assisting
equivalent law enforcement functions in any other jurisdiction.
3 Powers
to search premises
(1) An officer may,
following the production of evidence of his or her authority if requested, at
any reasonable time enter any premises (other than those used wholly or mainly
as a private dwelling) for the purposes of executing or enforcing the EU Regulations
or this Order.
(2) Without limiting
paragraph (1), if the Bailiff or a Jurat is satisfied by information on
oath by an officer that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that any wines
or spirits liable to forfeiture under this Order are kept or concealed in any
premises, the Bailiff or Jurat may grant a warrant authorizing any officer, any
police officer or any other person named in the warrant to enter and search any
premises so named within one month of the date on which the warrant was
granted.
(3) An officer who has
entered premises under paragraph (1) or under the authority of a warrant
granted under paragraph (2) may –
(a) inspect
any materials or articles;
(b) require
access to, and inspect and copy any documents or records (in whatever form they
are held), and remove them to enable them to be copied;
(c) require
access to, inspect and check the operation of any computer and any associated
apparatus used in connection with the records, and may require any person to
afford such assistance as may reasonably be required (including the provision
of passwords), and may require any computer records to be produced in a form in
which they may be taken away;
(d) seize
and retain anything required as evidence in proceedings under this Order;
(e) undertake
an inventory of wines and spirits and of anything that may be used in their
preparation; and
(f) purchase
or take samples of any wines or spirits and of anything that may be used in
their preparation.
(4) An officer who has
procured a sample of any wines or spirits, or of anything that may be used in
their preparation, may analyse or examine that sample or have that sample
analysed or examined.
(5) An authorized officer
entering any premises by virtue of this Article may be accompanied by such
other person as the officer considers necessary.
4 Power to search vehicles or vessels
Where there are reasonable grounds to suspect that any vehicle or
vessel is or may be carrying any wines or spirits that contravene the EU
Regulations, any officer or police officer may stop and search that vehicle or
vessel.
5 Power of arrest
Any person who has committed, or whom there are reasonable grounds
to suspect of having committed, any offence under this Order may be arrested by
an officer.
6 Seizure or detention of wines or spirits liable to forfeiture
(1) Any wines or spirits
that contravene the EU Regulations are liable to forfeiture under this Order
and may be seized or detained by any officer or police officer.
(2) Where any wines or
spirits are seized or detained by a police officer under paragraph (1), the
officer must –
(a) where
it is practicable to do so, deliver them to the Agent of the Impôts; or
(b) where
they may be required for use in connection with any proceedings to be brought
otherwise than under this Order, retain them in police custody until either
those proceedings are completed or it is decided that no such proceedings will
be brought.
(3) Where any wines or
spirits seized or detained by a police officer are not delivered to the Agent
of the Impôts, a police officer must –
(a) give
to the Agent of the Impôts notice in writing of the seizure or detention
together with full particulars of the wines or spirits seized or detained; and
(b) permit
any officer to examine them at any time while they remain in the custody of the
police.
7 Forfeiture and condemnation
(1) The Schedule has effect
for the purpose of forfeitures, and of proceedings for the condemnation of any
wines or spirits as being forfeited, under this Order.
(2) Subject to Article 6
and the Schedule, any wines or spirits seized or detained under this Order
must, pending the determination as to their forfeiture or disposal, be dealt
with, and if condemned as forfeited, must be disposed of, in such manner as the
Minister may direct.
8 Protection of officers in relation to seizure and detention
(1) Where, in any
proceedings for the condemnation of any wines or spirits seized as liable to
forfeiture under this Order, judgment is given for the claimant, the court may,
if it thinks fit, certify that there were reasonable grounds for the seizure.
(2) Where any civil
proceedings are brought against the Minister or any officer on account of a
seizure or detention of any wines or spirits under this Order and judgment is
given for the plaintiff, the plaintiff is not entitled to recover any damages
or costs in respect of the seizure or detention if –
(a) a
certificate relating to the seizure has been granted under paragraph (1);
or
(b) the
court is satisfied that there were reasonable grounds for the seizure or
detention.
(3) Nothing in paragraph (2)
affects any right of a person to the return of the wines or spirits seized or
detained or to compensation for their destruction or any damage to them,
including the costs of pursuing that right.
(4) Any certificate under
paragraph (1) may be proved by the production of either the original
certificate or a certified copy of it purporting to be signed by the Judicial
Greffier.
9 Offences
and penalties
(1) A person who
contravenes Article 103(2) of the 2013 Regulation or Article 16
of the 2008 Regulation is guilty of an offence.
(2) A person is guilty of
an offence if the person –
(a) intentionally
obstructs an officer acting in the execution of this Order or of the EU
Regulations;
(b) without
reasonable cause, fails to give to an officer any assistance or information
that the officer reasonably requires;
(c) furnishes
to an officer any information knowing it to be false or misleading; or
(d) fails
to produce a document, record or passport to an officer when required to do so.
(3) It is an offence for
any person to disclose any information received from an officer under Article 2(3)
if –
(a) the
information relates to a person whose identity is specified in the disclosure
or can be deduced from the disclosure;
(b) the
disclosure is for a purpose other than that specified in Article 3; and
(c) the
Agent of the Impôts has not give prior consent to the disclosure.
(4) It is a defence for a
person charged with an offence under paragraph (3) to prove that the
person reasonably believed –
(a) that the
disclosure was lawful; or
(b) that
the information had already and lawfully been made available to the public.
(5) A person guilty of an
offence under this Article is liable to a fine.
10 Offences
by bodies corporate, etc.
(1) If an offence under
this Law committed by a limited liability partnership or a body corporate is
proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be
attributable to any neglect on the part of –
(a) a
person who is partner of the partnership, or a director, manager, secretary or
other similar officer of the body corporate; or
(b) any
person purporting to act in any such capacity,
the person is also guilty of the offence and liable to the penalty
provided for that offence.
(2) If the affairs of a
body corporate are managed by its members, paragraph (1) applies in
relation to acts and defaults of a member in connection with his or her
functions of management as if the member were a director of the body corporate.
11 Citation
This Order may be cited as the EU Legislation (Geographical
Indications – Wines and Spirits) (Jersey) Order 2016.
SCHEDULE
(Article 7)
FORFEITURE
1 Notice of seizure
(1) The
Minister or the Agent of the Impôts must give notice of the seizure of
wines or spirits liable to forfeiture and of the grounds for that seizure to
any person known to be their owner.
(2) However,
sub-paragraph (1) does not apply if the seizure was made in the
presence –
(a) of
the person whose offence or suspected offence occasioned the seizure;
(b) of
the owner or any of the owners of wines or spirits seized or the owner’s
servant or agent; or
(c) in
the case of any wines or spirits seized in any ship or aircraft, of the master
or commander.
(3) Notice
under sub-paragraph (1) must be given in writing and is treated as being
duly served on the person concerned –
(a) if
delivered to the person personally;
(b) if
addressed to the person and left or forwarded by post to the person at his or
her usual or last known place of abode or business or, in the case of a body
corporate, at their registered or principal office; or
(c) where
the person has no address within Jersey, or the person’s address is
unknown, by publication of notice of seizure in the Jersey Gazette.
2 Notice of claim
(1) Any
person claiming that any wines or spirits seized as liable to forfeiture are
not so liable must, within one month of the date of the notice of seizure or,
where no notice under paragraph 1 has been served on the person, within
one month of the date of the seizure, give notice of his or her claim in
writing to the Minister or the Agent of the Impôts as the case may be.
(2) Any
notice under sub-paragraph (1) must specify the name and address of the
claimant and the advocate or solicitor (if any) in Jersey authorized to accept
service of process and to act on behalf of the claimant.
(3) Service
of process upon an advocate or solicitor so specified is taken to be proper
service upon the claimant.
3 Condemnation
(1) If
on the expiration of the relevant notice period under paragraph 2, notice
has not been given or does not comply with all the requirements of that paragraph,
the wines or spirits in question are taken to have been duly condemned as
forfeited.
(2) Where
notice is duly given in accordance with paragraph 2, the Minister or the
Agent of the Impôts must take proceedings for the condemnation of the
wines or spirits in question and if the court is satisfied that they were
liable to forfeiture at the time of seizure the court must condemn them as
forfeited.
(3) Forfeiture
under this paragraph has effect as from the date when the liability to
forfeiture arose.
4 Proceedings for
condemnation by court
(1) Proceedings
for condemnation are civil proceedings and may be instituted –
(a) in
the Petty Debts Court where the value of the wines or spirits liable to
forfeiture does not exceed the maximum amount of a debt recoverable in that
court; or
(b) the
Royal Court in any other case.
(2) In
any proceedings for condemnation –
(a) the
claimant or the claimant’s advocate or solicitor must make oath that the
wines or spirits seized was, or was to the best of the claimant’s
knowledge and belief, the property of the claimant at the time of the seizure;
(b) the
claimant must, where such proceedings are instituted in the Royal Court, give
such security for costs of the proceedings as that court may determine; and
(c) where
any requirement of this sub-paragraph is not complied with, the court shall
give judgment for the Minister.
(3) An
appeal by either party lies from a decision on a question of forfeiture under
this paragraph of the Petty Debts Court to the Royal Court and any wines or
spirits that are the subject of such an appeal must, pending the final
determination of the matter, remain in the custody of the Minister or the Agent
of the Impôts as the case may be.
5 Provisions as to proof
In any proceedings under
this Schedule –
(a) the
fact, form and manner of the seizure is taken to have been as set out in the
process without the need for any further evidence, unless the contrary is
proved; and
(b) the
condemnation by a court of any wines or spirits forfeited may be proved by the
production either of the order of condemnation or of a certified copy thereof
signed by the Judicial Greffier.
6 Special provisions as to
certain claimants
For the purposes of any
claim to, or proceedings for the condemnation of, any wines or spirits that
are, at the time of seizure the property of a body corporate, of 2 or more
partners or of 6 or more persons, the oath required by paragraph 4(2)(a)
to be taken and any other thing required by this Schedule or by any rules of
the court to be done by, or by any person authorized by, the claimant or owner
may be taken or done by, or by any other person authorized by –
(a) where
the owner is a body corporate, the secretary or some duly authorized officer of
that body;
(b) where
the owners are in partnership, any one of those owners;
(c) where
the owners are 6 or more persons who are not in partnership, any 2 of those
persons on behalf of themselves and their co-owners.
7 Power of Minister to
restore property
The Minister may, if he
or she thinks fit, restore any wines or spirits that have under this Law
been –
(a) seized;
or
(b) forfeited
otherwise that by order of a court,
subject to any conditions
that the Minister considers appropriate.