One of our clients was able to heave a huge sigh of relief when we were able to represent their interests at the District Court in Parramatta.
The person was charged with 17 separate counts of “supply a restricted substance otherwise than by wholesale” pursuant to section 10 of the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966. The person was also charged with one count of “sell e-cigarette etc to person under 18 years of age” pursuant to section 22(2A) of the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2008.
In plain English, the person was charged for having supplied a lot of e-cigarette liquid containing nicotine and selling this to a person under the age of 18. The person was found guilty at the Local Court and was ordered to pay an eye-watering fine of $18,900, with most of the charges being worth an $800 fine. This was truly a jaw-dropping moment for the person, indeed.
Is it even legal to sell nicotine vape juice in NSW?
No. Under section 10 of the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966, it is against the law to supply a restricted substance otherwise than by wholesale. The restricted substance in this particular case was what is colloquially known as “nicotine juice”. Basically, it’s the liquid form of nicotine which is often found in e-cigarette liquids, known as “vape juice”.
The maximum penalty for this is 15 penalty units, which is a $1,650 fine, or 6 months of imprisonment, or both.
Is it legal for a minor to buy nicotine vape juice?
No. Under section 22(2A) of the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2008, it is an offence to sell an e-cigarette or e-cigarette accessory to a person who is under the age of 18 years unless it is an authorised product.
The maximum penalty for this differs according to whether the person selling it is just an individual or a corporation. For an individual, it is 100 penalty units for a first offence or 500 penalty units for a second or subsequent offence. For a corporation, it is 500 penalty units for a first offence or 1,000 penalty units for a second or subsequent offence.
Note that 1 penalty unit is currently equal to $110 in NSW.
What happened with the astronomical fine?
After Pannu Lawyers was approached to represent this person at the District Court, we were able to appeal the fine amount. The court agreed with the representations that we were able to provide and agreed that the fine was excessive. Through the excellent representation of our lawyer, we were able to reduce the total of the fine down to $4,350.
That one trip to court saved our client $14,550.
Pannu Lawyers extensively practices in Family Law, Criminal Law and regularly appear at the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, which has court locations in Parramatta (NSW) and Dandenong (VIC). We are conveniently located within a walking distance from the Blacktown train station and can accommodate after hour appointment to suit you. Call our office on 02 9920 1787 or 1300 VAKEEL to discuss your matter in a confidential manner.
