On 28 June 2019 the Law Commission completed its review of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 and submitted its Report to the Minister responsible for the Law Commission. The Report was tabled in Parliament on 23 July 2019.
The...
Our publications
The Law Commission publishes many different publications. Each type, such as reports, issues papers, and ministerial briefings, has its own series.
Each series has its own purpose. For example, issues papers identify law reform issues and call for submissions from the public. Reports are the final result of a project and contain recommendations for law reform. Use the search filters below to find particular publications.
Publication type
- Report (35) Apply Report filter
- Preliminary Paper (21) Apply Preliminary Paper filter
- Issues Paper (16) Apply Issues Paper filter
- Study Paper (5) Apply Study Paper filter
- Miscellaneous Paper (4) Apply Miscellaneous Paper filter
- Ministerial Briefing (1) Apply Ministerial Briefing filter
- Preferred Approach Paper (1) Apply Preferred Approach Paper filter
Areas of law
Report 143
23 July 2019
Report 142
13 March 2019
The Law Commission has completed its second five-yearly review of the Evidence Act 2006, as required by section 202 of the Act. The review was referred to us by the Minister of Justice on 28 February 2017 and we formally reported to the Minister...
Preferred Approach Paper 44
1 November 2018
In this Preferred Approach Paper, we concluded that reform is required to ensure that the law meets most New Zealanders' expectations of fairness when a relationship ends. We presented a package of key reforms that we proposed to recommend to the...
Issues Paper 42
28 March 2018
In the second review of the Act, like the previous one, the Commission asked whether the Evidence Act 2016 was operating effectively and as intended.
Under section 202 of the Act, the Commission was required to consider whether the Act’s...
Report 141
30 January 2018
This Report is the product of a unique joint review of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (the Act) conducted by the Law Commission and the Ministry of Justice. As required by the Act, it has been completed within one year of receiving the...
Issues Paper 41
16 October 2017
In this Issues Paper, the Commission asked whether the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (PRA) was still achieving a just division of property at the end of a relationship 40 years after the PRA was passed.
The Issues Paper was divided...
Study Paper 22
16 October 2017
The Law Commission published this Study Paper alongside our Issues Paper, Dividing Relationship Property – Time for Change? Te mātatoha rawa tokorau – Kua eke te wā?...
Issues Paper 40
8 November 2016
The Law Commission and the Ministry of Justice have jointly published an Issues Paper describing possible ways to improve the operation of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012. This Paper, Review of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012...
Report 135
14 December 2015
The Law Commission has completed the review of the Crown Proceedings Act 1950 and the review of the use of national security information in proceedings. Both references are about improving infrastructure that supports the Crown’s involvement in...
Report 134
27 October 2015
In its report Death, Burial and Cremation: A new law for contemporary New Zealand (R134), the Law Commission concludes that the Burial and Cremation Act 1964 is outdated and should be repealed and replaced with new legislation. The...