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Glossary

Preliminary Paper - This is a discussion paper identifying issues on which interested parties are invited to make submissions;
Study Paper - This is usually an advisory report in response to a request from a state agency;
Miscellaneous Paper - This contains the findings of research done on specific topics; and
Report - This sets out the results of the Commission’s research and consultation and usually makes a number of recommendations for law reform.

Access keys

To help you navigate this site, we have included access keys as quick links to the main sections. They are as follows:

Home: access key ‘1’
Search: access key ‘2’
About us: access key ‘3’
Projects: access key ‘4’
Publications: access key ‘5’
Press releases: access key ‘6’
Job vacancies: access key ‘7’
Links: access key ‘8’
Contacts: access key ‘9’
Go to govt.nz: access key ‘/’

Not all browsers support access keys. In Internet Explorer you can use access keys on both Windows and Macintosh platforms, as follows:

On Windows, press the alt key and the relevant access key together to highlight the desired link, then press enter to jump to that page.
On Macintosh, press the control key and the relevant access key together to jump to the desired page.

Search Tips

To begin a search, simply type the words you wish to find into the search box and click on the Search button. If your search is successful, a list of relevant documents that contain any of the words in your query will be returned. If there are no results, you will be encouraged to do an advanced search.

Advanced search

From the search results page you will be able to do a more advanced search.

Type the words you wish to find into the search box, using the options shown below to determine the type of search. The options are:

All words
Use to find documents containing all of the search terms.
Any words
Use to find documents containing one or more of the search terms.
Exact phrase
Use to find documents containing the exact phrase you enter.

Boolean
Use connectors and symbols such as and and or to indicate the relationship between words or phrases in your search request. Examples are:

apple and pear	both words must be present
apple or orange	either word can be present
apple w/5 orange	apple must occur within 5 words of orange
apple and not orange	only apple without the word orange must be present
apple and “fruit salad"	apple and the phrase “fruit salad” must be present
appl*	* matches any number of characters: appl* would match apple, application etc.
appl?	? matches any single character: appl? would match apply and apple, but not apples

All of the techniques shown in the examples above can be combined.

Use the options under the heading ‘Search Over’ to choose between searching over the entire site, projects only, or publications only.
- If you select Projects only, a list entitled Law Type will allow you to limit the search to the major umbrella subjects of either: All Subjects, Criminal Law, Family Law, Civil Law, Other Law, Public Law and Te ao Maori.
- If you select Publications only, a list entitled Publication Type will allow you to limit the search to: All Publications, Reports, Preliminary Papers, Study Papers, Miscellaneous Papers, or Press Releases.
Click on Search.

How to make a submission

When the Law Commission is calling for submissions on a particular topic you are welcome to have your say. You can send a submission to the Law Commission by post or email. There is also an online form available to assist with structuring your response.

The Law Commission’s processes are essentially public and copies of submissions made to the Commission will usually be made available on request. The Commission may also mention submissions in its publications. Any request for the withholding of information on the grounds of confidentiality or for any other reason will be determined in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982.

Contact details are:

Law Commission
PO Box 2590
Wellington

Phone: (04) 473 3453
Email: com@lawcom.govt.nz

Help with downloads

Many of the files included in this site are in PDF format. A free PDF reader can be downloaded from the Adobe website at www.adobe.com or by clicking on the adobe icon below.

Information on subscribing

To subscribe to our free Law Commission update service please enter your name and email address into the relevant box and click the submit button. A message will appear confirming your subscription.

Once this is done, you will receive notification by email of any new publication or press release on the Law Commission website. The email will contain a summary with a link to the new item on the website. Each email will also contain simple unsubscribe instructions if you ever wish to stop receiving the email notifications.

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Please read our Privacy and Security statements for full details on these matters.

Glossary
Access keys
Search tips
How to make a submission
Help with downloads
Information on subscribing