Published: 16 December 2024
Ngā mihi o te wā ki a koutou katoa
Season’s greetings from the Law Commission
Season's Greetings from all of us at Te Aka Matua o te Ture | Law Commission. Ngā mihi o te Kirihimete me te Tau Hou. We hope you have a relaxed and enjoyable summer break. We are delighted to be emailing you with lots of news from the Law Commission in our final edition of Te Aka Kōrero for 2024.
He mea arotahi
Highlights
The Emperor’s Servant
In August, President of the Law Commission Dr Amokura Kawharu gave this year’s lecture at the annual Auckland University Law Review Symposium. In her lecture “The Emperor’s Servant: the unruly statute book and what the Law Commission is or could be doing about it”, she discusses the future of statute law in Aotearoa New Zealand and reflects on the Law Commission’s role in developing and reforming legislation. The lecture will be published in the Auckland University Law Review. Ahead of publication there, you can read it on our website.
Government response to the Third Review or the Evidence Act 2006
In September, the Government responded to the Commission's report Te Arotake Tuatoru i te Evidence Act 2006 | The Third Review of the Evidence Act 2006. It acknowledged the Commission’s finding that the Act is generally working well in practice, although there are still some areas of the Act which may benefit from reform. The Government considers that further policy work is required to analyze the report’s recommendations and assess the potential operational impacts of the proposals.
Ngā kaupapa
Project updates
Hara ngākau kino | Hate Crime
Te Aka Matua o te Ture | Law Commission has been asked to review the law relating to hate crime. The terms of reference for this project are now available in 18 languages and various accessible formats. The review will consider whether the current law in Aotearoa New Zealand adequately responds to hate crime, focusing on whether the law should be changed to create standalone hate crime offenses as recommended by the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch masjidain on 15 March 2019. Public consultation will begin early next year.
Hapori Whānui me te Tangata Mōrea Nui | Public Safety and Serious Offenders
In July, we published our Preferred Approach Paper, Here ora? Preventive measures for community safety, rehabilitation, and reintegration. The Paper set out our preferred proposals for reform of the law governing preventive detention and post-sentence orders. We appreciated hearing from everyone who took the time to give feedback on our proposals. We are currently analyzing the feedback and preparing our Final Report for publication early next year.
Ia Tangata | Review of Human Rights Protections
In July this year, we published our Issues Paper. We identified and explored options for reform and sought public feedback on 80 consultation questions. We were pleased to receive a large number of submissions from interested organizations and members of the public during our two-month consultation period. We also received feedback through several consultation hui. With the consultation period now closed, we are analyzing the feedback we received and developing our recommendations. Our Final Report is due in mid-2025.