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Our projects

Each project is an area of law or subject matter that the Law Commission has agreed to review. The Commission works on several projects at a time. Together, these projects make up the Commission's annual work programme.

Use the search filters below to find particular projects. For more information on how we work see how we conduct projects.

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Te Kōpū Whāngai: He Arotake | Review of Surrogacy

Project status: Closed Start date 23 November 2020 Last updated 08 March 2023

The Government has asked Te Aka Matua o te Ture | Law Commission to conduct a review of surrogacy in Aotearoa New Zealand.

This review is a comprehensive examination of surrogacy law, regulation and practice in Aotearoa New Zealand. The...

Victims of family violence who commit homicide

Project status: Closed Start date 15 July 2015 Last updated 08 March 2023

In 2001 the Law Commission published a report examining the legal defences available to protect those who commit criminal offences as a reaction to domestic violence: “Some Criminal defences with Particular Reference to Battered Defendants”...

Search & Surveillance Act 2012

Project status: Closed Start date 28 June 2016 Last updated 08 March 2023

The Law Commission and the Ministry of Justice conducted a review of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012, as is required by section 357 of that Act. The review was referred to us by the then Minister of Justice on 28 June 2016 and we jointly...

Protection of Classified and Security Sensitive Information

Project status: Closed Start date 01 December 2014 Last updated 22 February 2023

This project reviews the laws that determine how security sensitive information should be dealt with in court proceedings. The review looks at how to protect information that may prejudice New Zealand’s security. It also considers whether the...

Review of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976

Project status: Closed Start date 24 May 2016 Last updated 22 February 2023

This project examined New Zealand’s relationship property legislation.

The Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (PRA) sets out the rules for how property owned by either or both partners is divided when they separate or when one of them dies...

Ko ngā Hunga Take Whaipānga me ngā Pūtea Tautiringa | Class Actions and Litigation Funding

Project status: Closed Start date 01 July 2019 Last updated 05 December 2022

A class action is a court proceeding in which a group with similar interests collectively sues one or more defendants. The court proceeding is brought by a representative plaintiff on behalf of the class. We do not currently have class actions in...

Emergency powers for pandemics and other threats

Project status: Closed Start date 09 April 2021 Last updated 11 November 2022

Te Aka Matua o te Ture | Law Commission commissioned Professor Janet McLean KC to write a Study Paper concerning Aotearoa New Zealand’s legal and institutional framework for pandemics and other threats. Building on the Commission’s Final...

Review of Succession Law

Project status: Closed Start date 18 December 2019 Last updated 27 June 2022

The Law Commission will review the law of succession. The law of succession is the system of rules that governs who gets a person’s property when they die.

In July 2019 the Minister Responsible for the Law Commission requested that the...

Review of the Law of Privacy

Project status: Closed Start date 12 October 2006 Last updated 20 September 2021

This project involves four stages, with publications at each stage.

Stage 1: Policy Overview was a high-level analysis to assess privacy values, changes in technology, international trends, and their implications for New Zealand law.  It...

The Use of DNA in Criminal Investigations

Project status: Closed Start date 27 July 2016 Last updated 25 May 2021

The forensic analysis of DNA is a powerful tool in solving crime. However, the use of DNA in criminal investigations also raises important legal and ethical issues.

In New Zealand the Criminal Investigations (Bodily Samples) Act 1995...

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