Plain Language Law uses Large Language Models to turn complicated legal information into plain language.
How do we do this?The New Zealand government has lots of laws. We have only turned some of them into plain language, but you can see all the New Zealand laws on legislation.govt.nz.
Resource Management Act 1991
Updating rules for how we use land, air, and water in New Zealand
Bills aren't the law yet, but some people want them to be the law. Information could change quickly, and some of the information is just a draft.
Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill
Defining rules for understanding Treaty principles in New Zealand law
Fast-track Approvals Bill
Simplifying the creation of important projects to benefit communities
This project is an experiment to take difficult language, and make it easier to read and understand for everyone.
What’s our process for taking the law and turning it into plain language?
Laws are often hard to read. They use a lot of words and language we don’t usually use when we talk.
What are the good and bad sides of using AI?
We hope that this information will help people understand New Zealand laws. But we think that it’s important you talk to someone who understands the law well if you have questions or are worried about something.
You can talk to Community Law or Citizen’s Advice Bureau about your rights.
Remember that AI can make mistakes, and just reading the law isn’t enough to understand how it could be used in court.
