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Crown Minerals Act 1991

Permits, access to land, and other matters - Permits, access to land, and title notations - Access to land other than for minimum impact activity

78: Absentee or unknown owner of land

You could also call this:

"What to do if you want to use someone's land but can't find the owner"

Illustration for Crown Minerals Act 1991

If you want to access someone's land, but you cannot find the owner or they are unknown, you can ask the Public Trust to help. You must tell the Public Trust first, then you can apply to the District Court for an order. This order allows the Public Trust to act on behalf of the owner. The District Court can make this order, which means the Public Trust can then make decisions about the land. The Public Trust can make an access arrangement on behalf of the owner, which is like an agreement about how you can use the land.

If you have to pay the owner to use their land, you pay the Public Trust instead. The Public Trust holds this money for the owner. If there is a problem about who should get this money, you can go to the High Court to sort it out.

The High Court can make a decision about what happens to the money, and the Public Trust must follow this decision. You can find more information about changes to this law in the District Court Act 2016 and the Public Trust Act 2001.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM246743.

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Part 1BPermits, access to land, and other matters
Permits, access to land, and title notations: Access to land other than for minimum impact activity

78Absentee or unknown owner of land

  1. Where an owner or occupier of land with whom it is desired to enter into an access arrangement under this Part is—

  2. of unknown whereabouts and has no known agent; or
    1. unknown,—
        1. the person seeking the right of access may, after notifying Public Trust, apply to the District Court for an order authorising Public Trust to act as if it were the agent of the owner or occupier; and that court may make such an order.

      1. On the making of such an order, Public Trust shall, for the purposes of this Part, be deemed to be the agent of the owner or occupier in respect of whom the order was made, and notwithstanding the provisions of any Act, rule of law, deed, or instrument, may enter into an access arrangement on behalf of the owner or occupier.

      2. Any compensation payable under an access arrangement to an owner or occupier to which an order under subsection (1) applies shall be paid to Public Trust who shall hold such compensation on behalf of the owner or occupier concerned.

      3. Where any doubt or dispute arises as to the right of any person to receive compensation held by Public Trust under subsection (3), the High Court may, upon the application of any of the parties interested, make such order in relation to the compensation as it thinks fit, and Public Trust shall pay any such compensation in accordance with that order.

      Notes
      • Section 78(1): amended, on , by section 261 of the District Court Act 2016 (2016 No 49).
      • Section 78(1): amended, on , by section 170(1) of the Public Trust Act 2001 (2001 No 100).
      • Section 78(2): amended, on , by section 170(1) of the Public Trust Act 2001 (2001 No 100).
      • Section 78(3): amended, on , by section 170(1) of the Public Trust Act 2001 (2001 No 100).
      • Section 78(4): amended, on , by section 170(1) of the Public Trust Act 2001 (2001 No 100).