10 February 2014

Civic Compliance Victoria Explained

This is a great breakdown what Civic Compliance Victoria actually is and who it’s shareholders are-FT

Civic Compliance Victoria is the “body” that processes infringement notices, infringement warrants and fines within the State of Victoria.

This article provides a description of exactly what Civic Compliance Victoria is (and is not), and the people behind CCV.

Civic Compliance Victoria

The State Government of Victoria website for fines states, “Civic Compliance Victoria (CCV) is an administrative body that is responsible for processing fines issued by various government agencies and authorities within Victoria“, and that, “all enforcement orders and infringement warrants issued by the Infringements Court are processed by Civic Compliance Victoria irrespective of the agency by which they were originally issued.” [1]

The fore mentioned website appears to be (grossly) misleading. In communications with the Department of Justice – State of Victoria it was communicated that:

Civic Compliance Victoria (CCV) is the name created by the State to provide one name for the integrated fines and enforcement system comprising the Traffic Camera Office of Victoria Police, the Infringements Court and the Sheriff’s Office. CCV has no ABN number and is not registered as a business as it is neither a business nor a company, nor a trading name. The name CCV is the intellectual property of the State of Victoria. [2]

This statement is confirmed by the IP Australia website [3]. The following trade marks are registered:
Registered Trade Marks for CCV
Number Trade Mark Name Registrant
933736 CCV The Crown in the Right of the State of Victoria
933737 CIVIC COMPLIANCE VICTORIA The Crown in the Right of the State of Victoria
1010971 CCV (logo) The Crown in the Right of the State of Victoria

Hence, Civic Compliance Victoria appears to be nothing more than a trade mark registered by The Crown in the Right of the State of Victoria.

The State of Victoria and Tenix

In communications with the Department of Justice – State of Victoria it was communicated that:
The State’s contractor, Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd, is licensed to use the names ‘CCV’ and ‘Civic Compliance Victoria’ in providing infringement management and enforcement services for the State.” [2]

In subsequent communications with the Department of Justice – State of Victoria it was communicated that:
… Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd is the only entity licensed to use the names ‘CCV’ and ‘Civic Compliance Victoria’“. [4]

Hence, the Department of Justice – State of Victoria has communicated that Tenix Solution IMES Pty Ltd has exclusive license to use the CCV trade marks.
Civic Compliance Victoria - Trade Mark Relationships
Further information about the relationship between the State of Victoria and Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd can be obtained from the following sources:
  • Infringement Management and Enforcement Services Project – Deed of Charge, signed 26 July 2007 (available via ASIC).
  • Infringement Management and Enforcement Services Agreement; start date 29 July 2007 to 30 October 2012 (Contract 015-07-08) [5].
The estimate value of the contract is listed as $332,100,000 ($332.1M). Please note that the contract available via the tenders.vic.gov.au website has sections redacted and is not the complete document.

The reference in the contract to license of the trade marks is located in section 51.18 of the agreement; part of that section is presented (bold font emphasis added by editor):

51.18 Licence to use the Trade Marks

(a) With effect from the Commencement Date, the State grants to the Contractor for the Term a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use the Trade Marks in Australia solely for the purposes of the Contractor fulfilling its obligations under this Agreement.

(b) The State may from time to time during the Term impose in writing, reasonable requirements regarding the use of the Trade Marks, and the Contractor must comply with those requirements.

(c) Where the Trade Marks appear in any written material (including any electronic material) published by or on behalf of the Contractor, unless otherwise authorised by the State:

(i) the Trade Marks must appear with the ® symbol (or, if the Trade Mark is not yet registered, the ™ symbol); and

(ii) the Trade Mark must be accompanied by the following footnote: The [insert trade mark] trade mark is used by [insert Contractor's details] under licence from the Crown in Right of the State of Victoria.

(d) The Contractor must comply with any standards, directions and specifications notified in writing by the State from time to time during the Term as to the appearance, colour, size and positioning of the Trade Marks and the footnote referred to in clause 51.18(c)(ii) and allow the State to inspect its premises and items using the Trade Marks at any time.

(e) The Contractor must not use the Trade Marks in a manner which is prejudicial to the State or likely to prejudice the distinctiveness of the Trade Marks or the validity of any registration for a Trade Mark. This provision will survive the expiry or termination of this Agreement.

(f) The Contractor must not at any time during the Term use the Trade Marks in juxtaposition to any other trade mark, embellishment or device without the prior written consent of the State.

Note 1: Section 51.18(a) may conflict with advice provided by the Department of Justice – State of Victoria.

Note 2: The author is unaware of any updates to this agreement, thus the contractual terms may be out of date.

Who is Tenix?

Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd is a registered company in the Commonwealth of Australia (ABN 47 126 390 378) [6]; the ultimate holding company is Olbia Pty Ltd (ABN 64 000 305 304) [7]. Further company information can be obtained via ASIC which will validate this fact; part of the company extract is provided as evidence [8]. The company structure/hierarchy is presented.

Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd Company Structure (to Olbia Pty Ltd)
Hence, Tenix Solution IMES Pty Ltd is owned by Olbia Pty Ltd.

Who is Olbia?

Olbia Pty Ltd comprises of eight shareholders, four individual people and four companies; the shareholder structure is presented (information obtained from ASIC Company Extract [9]).
Olbia Pty Ltd Shareholders
Without further investigation, it may be (wrongly) assumed that each of the four company shareholders are owned or controlled by the respective individual shareholders (Paul Salteri, Robert Salteri, Mary Victoria Shaw, Adriana Bianca Gardos); the website manta.com provides information that Paul Salteri is a director of Pasagean Pty Ltd and Adriana Bianca Gardos is a director of Clurname Pty Ltd [10] [11].

The four individuals who are shareholders of Olbia Pty Ltd are children of the late Carlo Salteri; Carlo Salteri died in 2010 [12].
Salteri Family

Hence, Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd, the company that issues infringement notices and infringement warrants is a family-owned company of the Salteri family. According to the BRW Rich 200 list, the Salteri family was ranked as the 7th wealthiest family in Australia ($1.18B). [13]

Summary

In summary, based on the evidence provided:
  • Civic Compliance Victoria and CCV are trade marks.
  • CCV is not a corporation, entity, government department or administrative body.
  • Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd has (exclusive) license to use the CCV trade marks.
  • Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd has a five year contract with the State of Victoria valued at approximately $332.1M.
  • The ultimate holding company of Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd is Olbia Pty Ltd.
  • Olbia Pty Ltd is owned by the billionaire Salteri family.
exfacie.com 24 Sep 2011

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