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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Crimes Act 1961

Crimes against rights of property - Unlawful taking

229: Criminal breach of trust

You could also call this:

“Misusing things you're meant to look after for someone else is against the law and can get you in big trouble.”

If you are a trustee of a trust, you have a special responsibility. A trust is when someone gives you control over money or property to look after for someone else. If you use the trust’s money or property in a way that isn’t allowed by the trust’s rules, and you do this dishonestly, you are committing a crime called ‘criminal breach of trust’.

If you commit a criminal breach of trust, you could be sent to prison. The longest time you could be sent to prison for is 7 years.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM330233.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal law
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228C: Possessing goods capable of being used to facilitate crimes involving dishonesty with intent to facilitate commission of those offences, or

“Having tools for stealing without a good reason is against the law.”

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230: Taking, obtaining, or copying trade secrets, or

“ It's against the law to steal or copy secret business information for personal gain or to harm others. ”

Part 10 Crimes against rights of property
Unlawful taking

229Criminal breach of trust

  1. Every one is guilty of a criminal breach of trust who, as a trustee of any trust, dishonestly and contrary to the terms of that trust, converts anything to any use not authorised by the trust.

  2. Every trustee who commits a criminal breach of trust is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 7 years.

Compare
Notes
  • Section 229: replaced, on , by section 15 of the Crimes Amendment Act 2003 (2003 No 39).