Legal Status
The Western Australian Coat of arms are Arms of Dominion and Sovereignty. The Arms are included in the description in section 3 of the Armorial Bearings Protection Act 1979 (see below) as "Arms of any part of Her Majesty's Dominions". Arms of Dominion and Sovereignty are the symbols of intangible public authority which belong to independent states and are used by their representatives (such as government agencies) and leaders
The Royal Warrant granting the Arms states that they are "...to be borne for Our said State on Seals, Shields, Banners, Flags, or Otherwise ... according to the Laws of Arms", and are "...to be used on seals, shields, banners or otherwise according to the Laws of Arms." These laws are derived from medieval English civil law, and relate to the authority to grant Arms, and the regulation of their use, although the enforcability of these laws in Western Australia is unclear.
In 1979, the Western Australian Parliament passed the Armorial Bearings Protection Act 1979, which patriated the Law of Arms to some degree regarding the Western Australian State Arms, although rather obliquely. The main purpose of the Act is to prohit the unauthorised reproduction of images of the Arms.
The Armorial Bearings Protection Act only applies to "...the Royal Arms or the Arms of any part of Her Majesty’s Dominions..." (Section 3 of the Act). It has not patriated the Laws of Arms for personal, civic or corporate Arms. Western Australian residents and corporate bodies wishing to obtain a grant of Arms must continue to obtain such grants, and any protection for those grants, from foreign authorities.
Read more about this topic: Coat Of Arms Of Western Australia
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