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Serious Fraud Office Act 1990

General provisions relating to warrants and exercise of powers under Parts 1 and 2 - Effect of powers on duty of confidentiality

23: Act to apply to persons with duty of confidentiality to clients

You could also call this:

"Law applies to people who keep client secrets"

Illustration for Serious Fraud Office Act 1990

You have a duty to keep things confidential for your clients. The Director can ask you to follow rules under Part 1 or Part 2. You might need to answer questions or give information about someone being investigated. You might work in a bank or a similar business. The Director can ask you to give documents or information about someone's affairs. Some sections of the Act, like sections 5, 6, 9, and 10, apply to you and your records. This rule applies to you, even if other laws say something different, but you should also consider section 24. The Director can look at your records if they think it will help with the investigation. You must comply with the Director's requirements, even if you think it might break your duty of confidentiality.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM211454.

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22: Effect of final decision that exercise of powers unlawful, or

"What happens if the Serious Fraud Office breaks the law when using its powers?"

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24: Legal professional privilege, or

"Secret conversations with your lawyer are protected by law"

Part 3General provisions relating to warrants and exercise of powers under Parts 1 and 2
Effect of powers on duty of confidentiality

23Act to apply to persons with duty of confidentiality to clients

  1. The Director may require any person who claims to have a duty of confidentiality to his or her client or customer (including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any person carrying on the business of banking)—

  2. to comply with any requirement imposed under Part 1 or Part 2; and
    1. in particular, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, to answer questions, supply information, and produce documents relating to any person whose affairs are being investigated under this Act,—
        1. and sections 5, 6, 9, and 10 shall apply in all respects to any such person, and to the registers, records, accounts, books, or papers of any such person in so far as the Director has reason to believe that they may be relevant to the investigation.

      1. This section shall apply subject to section 24, but notwithstanding any other enactment or rule of law or equity.