Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

Youth justice - Alcohol or drug rehabilitation programme orders

297B: Nature of programmes, who may consent to medical treatment, and related custody orders

You could also call this:

"Rules about programmes to help young people with issues, and who can agree to medical treatment"

Illustration for Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

If you are a young person who has to attend a programme to help with alcohol or drug issues, this programme can include things like counselling or therapy. The programme might be residential, meaning you stay somewhere for a while, or non-residential, meaning you go to the programme but still live at home.

You cannot receive any medical treatment as part of the programme unless you or someone who can make decisions for you agrees to it. If you are 16 or older, you can make this decision yourself.

If you are under 16, your parent or guardian can make this decision for you. If you do not have a parent or guardian who can make this decision, someone else who has been acting like a parent to you can make it.

In some cases, the court might decide that you need to live somewhere else so you can attend the programme. This could be because the programme cannot be provided to you while you are living with your parents or guardians.

If this happens, the court can make an order that puts you in the custody of someone like the chief executive of Oranga Tamariki, a social service, or the director of a child and family support service. The court will only make this order if the person or organisation agrees to it.

This kind of order is similar to other custody orders, but it has some differences. For example, it will expire under section 296, and some other rules will not apply to you. You can find more information about this in section 101, section 296, section 108, section 364, and section 365.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3276660.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal helpHealth and wellbeing > Mental healthHealth and wellbeing > Healthcare servicesFamily and relationships > Children and parenting
Previous

297A: Written statements of terms, and how court may respond to failures to comply, or

"What happens when you don't follow a court order to attend a parenting programme"

Next

298: Community work order, or

"Helping the community as a punishment for doing something wrong"

Part 4Youth justice
Alcohol or drug rehabilitation programme orders

297BNature of programmes, who may consent to medical treatment, and related custody orders

  1. Programme, for the purposes of section 283(jc) and this section, means a programme that is or includes all or any of the following (whether residential or non-residential in nature):

  2. psychiatric, psychological, or similar counselling or therapy:
    1. a medical, psychiatric, psychological, social, therapeutic, rehabilitative, or reintegrative programme with a focus on alcohol or drug issues.

      1. No young person may receive or undergo any medical, psychiatric, or psychological examination or treatment that forms part of a programme that the young person is required by an order under section 283(jc) to attend unless consent to the young person's receiving or undergoing the examination or treatment has been given by or on behalf of the young person.

      2. The consent required by subsection (2) may be given, in the case of a young person of or over the age of 16 years, by that young person and, in any other case,—

      3. by a parent or guardian (not being the chief executive) of the young person; or
        1. if there is no such parent or guardian in New Zealand or no such parent or guardian can be found with reasonable diligence or is capable of giving consent, by a person in New Zealand who has been acting in the place of a parent; or
          1. if there is no person in New Zealand who has been so acting, or if no such person can be found with reasonable diligence or is capable of giving consent, by a District Court Judge or the chief executive.

            1. This subsection applies if the court is satisfied that a programme that a young person is required by an order under section 283(jc) to attend is unable to be provided to the young person while they live with the parents or guardians or other persons having the care of the young person.

            2. If subsection (4) applies, the court may, to enable the programme referred to in subsection (4) to be provided to the young person, make an order placing the young person in the custody of the chief executive, an iwi social service, a cultural social service, or the director of a child and family support service.

            3. The court must not make an order under subsection (5) placing a young person in the custody of a person (other than the chief executive) or organisation unless that person or organisation consents to the making of the order.

            4. A custody order under subsection (5) has the same effect as if the young person had been placed in the custody of the relevant person or organisation under an order under section 101, except that—

            5. a custody order under subsection (5) expires under section 296 (and so generally not under section 108); and
              1. section 365 (which would empower the chief executive to place the young person in a residence established under section 364) does not apply to the young person.

                Notes
                • Section 297B: inserted, on , by section 30 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Youth Courts Jurisdiction and Orders) Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 2).
                • Section 297B(4): amended, on , by section 137 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Oranga Tamariki) Legislation Act 2017 (2017 No 31).
                • Section 297B(7): replaced, on , by section 6 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 99).