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Inquiries Act 2013

Sanctions and miscellaneous matters - Sanctions able to be imposed by or on behalf of inquiry - Contempt against inquiry

31: Application of Contempt of Court Act 2019

You could also call this:

"The law that helps courts deal with people who disobey them also applies to inquiries, so the Solicitor-General can take action to help an inquiry work properly."

Illustration for Inquiries Act 2013

The Solicitor-General can start a court case in the High Court on their own or when an inquiry asks them to. They can do this under subpart 4 of Part 2 of the Contempt of Court Act 2019 or under the High Court's own power to deal with contempt of an inquiry, as described in section 26(3) of that Act. You should know that the court can make any orders it thinks are necessary to help the inquiry do its job. When the court is making a decision about a case started under these rules, it can make any orders it considers necessary and just to enable the inquiry to fulfil its purpose. The Solicitor-General has this power to help the inquiry work properly.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM1566177.

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Part 4Sanctions and miscellaneous matters
Sanctions able to be imposed by or on behalf of inquiry: Contempt against inquiry

31Application of Contempt of Court Act 2019

  1. The Solicitor-General, on the Solicitor-General’s own initiative or at the request of an inquiry, may commence proceedings in the High Court—

  2. under subpart 4 of Part 2 of the Contempt of Court Act 2019; or
    1. under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court to punish any contempt of an inquiry or enforce its processes, as described in section 26(3) of that Act.

      1. In determining any proceedings commenced under subsection (1), the court may make any orders that it considers necessary and just to enable the inquiry to fulfil its purpose.

      Notes
      • Section 31: replaced, on , by section 29 of the Contempt of Court Act 2019 (2019 No 44).