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Where a Commissioner is a Judge that Judge's sitting time should be limited and
be the subject of careful negotiation and agreement at the time of the
appointment.
Advisory Role
58. The evaluator recommends that the Law Commission should devote resources
to advisory work on legal and legislative problems within Government, simply
because this contributes to the improved quality of the Statute Book. In
particular it should play an active role in the Legislation Advisory Committee.
Careful management techniques must be applied to ensure that this does not
cause energy to be diverted from its major references so they are not produced
on time. The priority to be given to such advisory work should be the subject of
discussions with the Attorney-General. No more than 15 percent of the
Commission's outputs should bedevoted to such work.
Other Roles for the Law Commission
59. An Annual Report should be prepared by the Law Commission on the
systematic review of the law, in which general observations could be made
about defects in the development of New Zealand law.
60. The capacity of the Commission to undertake work involving large and
fundamental change ought to be considered by Government. It is in a better
position to carry out such work than Government Departments.
Commission Procedures
61. Internal debate within the Law Commission should not cause delays in the
completion of a project. But if there is an appropriate collegiate approach to
decision-making at the Law Commission, Commissioners who have not been
primarily involved in projects should, nevertheless, be able to add value to them
in the Commission's deliberations.
62. The Law Commission should review its internal procedures to ensure it can
meet its deadlines.