Skip to main content
  • Follow us
  • Like us
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Text Size: A A A A
Home
  • Contact us
  • About us
    • What we do
    • Our people
    • Our Vision and Values
    • Tāwhaki and Te Aka Matua
    • Anniversary Symposium
    • How projects are conducted
    • Māori Liaison Committee
    • Vacancies
    • Corporate information
      • Annual Reports
      • Statements of Intent & Statements of Performance Expectations
      • Briefing for the Incoming Minister
      • Chief Executive Expenses
      • Commissioners' Conflict of Interest Declaration
  • Our role in law reform
  • Our projects
  • Our publications
  • Have your say
  • News & media
    • Te Aka Kōrero
  1. Home
  2. Work on hold
  3. Courts and Dispute Resolution
  4. Reviewing submissions
  5. Public
  6. Closed
  7. Our projects

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.

Date range

Project status

  • (-) Remove Reviewing submissions filter Reviewing submissions
  • (-) Remove Work on hold filter Work on hold
  • Discontinued (1) Apply Discontinued filter
  • Awaiting Government Response (2) Apply Awaiting Government Response filter
  • Open (3) Apply Open filter
  • (-) Remove Closed filter Closed

Areas of law

  • (-) Remove Public filter Public
  • (-) Remove Courts and Dispute Resolution filter Courts and Dispute Resolution
  • Criminal (34) Apply Criminal filter
  • Civil (31) Apply Civil filter
  • Other (30) Apply Other filter
  • Human Rights (22) Apply Human Rights filter
  • Social (21) Apply Social filter
  • Family (20) Apply Family filter
  • Commercial (17) Apply Commercial filter
  • Property/Trusts (14) Apply Property/Trusts filter
  • Evidence (12) Apply Evidence filter
  • Customary and Treaty Settlements Law (10) Apply Customary and Treaty Settlements Law filter
  • Consumer (5) Apply Consumer filter
  • International Law (5) Apply International Law filter
  • Sort by latest activity
  • Sort by date

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 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...

Second Review of the Evidence Act 2006

Project status: Closed Start date 20 February 2017 Last updated 03 September 2019

For nearly 30 years the Law Commission has been engaged in reforming the law of evidence in New Zealand. 

In August 1989 the Minister of Justice asked the Commission to review all evidence law to make it as clear, simple and accessible as...

Contempt of Court

Project status: Closed Start date 11 April 2013 Last updated 17 August 2017

The objective of the law of contempt of court is to protect the integrity of the justice system and a defendant’s right to a fair trial. However, the law is vague in scope, uses outdated language and concepts, and is inaccessible to the New...

First Review of the Evidence Act 2006

Project status: Closed Start date 28 February 2012 Last updated 22 February 2017

Section 202(1) of the Evidence Act required the Commission to report to the Minister of Justice on the following matters:
 (a) the operation of the provisions of the Act since its commencement;
(b) whether those provisions should be...

Extradition and Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters

Project status: Closed Start date 01 November 2013 Last updated 28 September 2016

This review covers the Extradition Act 1999 and Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1992. These Acts provide a framework for formal assistance between New Zealand and foreign governments in the investigation and prosecution of crime. They...

Crown Proceedings Act 1950

Project status: Closed Start date 01 July 2011 Last updated 28 September 2016

The ability of citizens to bring civil legal proceedings against the Crown and its servants is an important part of New Zealand’s constitution, and is protected by the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990.  The Crown Proceedings Act 1950 is the...

Alternative Models for Prosecuting and Trying Criminal Cases

Project status: Closed Start date 01 July 2009 Last updated 15 June 2016

This project arose from the Commission’s recommendation in their Report, Disclosure to Court of Defendants’ Previous Convictions, Similar Offending, and Bad Character (R103, 2008). The Commission recommended that Government should...

Judicature Act 1908 and Consolidation of Courts Legislation

Project status: Closed Start date 01 July 2010 Last updated 29 May 2015

The Judicature Act 1908 is over one hundred years old and has been amended many times.   Many of the sections in the Act are outdated, and it contains “hidden” commercial law and judicial review provisions.  The focus of the Law Commission’s...

Admissibility of previous convictions

Project status: Closed Start date 01 April 2007 Last updated 11 May 2015

For this project, the Commission reviews existing rules of evidence around admissibility of previous convictions, similar offending and bad character. In particular, the extent to which the court is made aware of prior convictions of an accused,...

  • View more
  • Follow us
  • Like us
  • Subscribe
  • About us
  • Our role in law reform
  • Our projects
  • Our publications
  • Have your say
  • News & media
  • Contact us
Creative Commons License

Copyright © 2023 New Zealand Law Commission. Read our disclaimer and privacy policy. Copyright content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Click here for more information.