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Inquiries Act 2013

Duties, powers, immunities, and privileges - Powers and duties of inquiry relating to procedure

15: Power to impose restrictions on access to inquiry

You could also call this:

"Controlling who sees information from an inquiry"

Illustration for Inquiries Act 2013

An inquiry can make orders to stop people from publishing certain information. This includes evidence or submissions presented to the inquiry, reports about the evidence, and the names of witnesses. You might not be able to know the names of people who give evidence, or what they say, if the inquiry decides to keep it private.

The inquiry can also decide to hold all or part of the inquiry in private, or restrict who can attend. Before making these decisions, the inquiry must think about how important it is to be open and transparent, and whether keeping things private would be better for the inquiry and for the people involved.

The inquiry has to consider many things, including whether being open would affect people's confidence in the inquiry, whether it would help the inquiry find out the facts, and whether it would affect New Zealand's security or economy. They also have to think about people's right to privacy, and whether keeping things private would affect someone's right to a fair trial.

If the rules that set up the inquiry say that some parts have to be private, the inquiry has to make orders to keep those parts private.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM1566150.

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Part 3Duties, powers, immunities, and privileges
Powers and duties of inquiry relating to procedure

15Power to impose restrictions on access to inquiry

  1. An inquiry may, at any time, make orders to—

  2. forbid publication of—
    1. the whole or any part of any evidence or submissions presented to the inquiry:
      1. any report or account of the evidence or submissions:
        1. the name or other particulars likely to lead to the identification of a witness or other person participating in the inquiry (other than counsel):
          1. any rulings of the inquiry:
          2. restrict public access to any part or aspect of the inquiry:
            1. hold the inquiry, or any part of it, in private.

              1. Before making an order under subsection (1), an inquiry must take into account the following criteria:

              2. the benefits of observing the principle of open justice; and
                1. the risk of prejudice to public confidence in the proceedings of the inquiry; and
                  1. the need for the inquiry to ascertain the facts properly; and
                    1. the extent to which public proceedings may prejudice the security, defence, or economic interests of New Zealand; and
                      1. the privacy interests of any individual; and
                        1. whether it would interfere with the administration of justice, including any person's right to a fair trial, if an order were not made under subsection (1); and
                          1. any other countervailing interests.

                            1. If the instrument that establishes an inquiry restricts any part or aspect of the inquiry from public access, the inquiry must make such orders under subsection (1) as are necessary to give effect to the restrictions.