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Fisheries Act 1996

Offences and penalties - Penalties

255E: General provisions relating to forfeiture

You could also call this:

"What happens to your property if you break fishing laws"

Illustration for Fisheries Act 1996

If you break the law under the Fisheries Act 1996, you might lose some of your property to the Crown. This means the Crown gets to keep it. The Crown gets the property, fish, or quota absolutely and free of all debts. When you are found guilty of an offence, the court decides what you will lose. If you used a boat to catch fish or transport seafood illegally, the boat can be taken away. The court looks at what laws you broke, such as section 230 or section 231, or regulations made under section 297, section 298, or section 299. The court must consider what you will lose, such as fish, boats, or quota. You cannot be let off without conviction unless the court has a special reason. The court must follow the rules in sections 255A to 255D when deciding what you will lose. These rules do not apply to some offences, such as those in Part 15A.

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Topics:
Environment and resources > Farming and fishingCrime and justice > Criminal law
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Part 13Offences and penalties
Penalties

255EGeneral provisions relating to forfeiture

  1. If any property, fish, aquatic life, seaweed, or quota is forfeited to the Crown under this Act, such property, fish, aquatic life, seaweed, or quota, despite section 168, vests in the Crown absolutely and free of all encumbrances.

  2. Despite subsection (1), if settlement quota is forfeit to the Crown under this Act, the quota continues to be subject to a settlement quota interest.

  3. For the avoidance of doubt, any vessel used by the offender to take or transport fish, aquatic life, or seaweed must be treated as property used in the commission of the offence if the fish, aquatic life, or seaweed is the subject of an offence against—

  4. section 230 or section 231; or
    1. regulations made under section 297 or section 298 or section 299, which regulations relate to—
      1. making any false or misleading statements in any return; or
        1. omitting any information in any return; or
          1. completing, keeping, or providing any return.

          2. At the time of conviction of any offence against this Act, the court must determine what, if any, of the following is forfeit under any of sections 255A to 255D:

          3. fish and any proceeds from the sale of such fish:
            1. illegal fishing gear:
              1. property used in the commission of the offence:
                1. quota:
                  1. associated quota, unless the court is satisfied that subsection (3B) applies to preclude forfeiture.

                    1. Where the court is considering the forfeiture of any quota alleged to be associated quota, the court must give any person who owns that quota a reasonable opportunity to make submissions and be heard on the questions of whether—

                    2. the quota is associated quota; and
                      1. if so, whether or not the court should find in favour of the owner under subsection (3B).

                        1. Where the court is satisfied that associated quota exists, forfeiture must be considered in accordance with sections 255C(3) and 255D(2) unless the court is satisfied that the associated quota is associated quota, rather than quota owned by the offender, for reasons principally other than avoiding the consequences of the application of this Act in respect of that forfeiture.

                        2. No person may be discharged without conviction in respect of an offence referred to in any of sections 255A to 255D unless the court for special reasons relating to the offence considers that the property, illegal fishing gear, fish, any proceeds from the sale of such fish, and quota should not be forfeit.

                        3. Nothing in any of sections 255A to 255D applies to any offence against a provision in Part 15A.

                        Notes
                        • Section 255E: inserted, on , by section 59 of the Fisheries Act 1996 Amendment Act 1999 (1999 No 101).
                        • Section 255E(1A): inserted, on , by section 214 of the Maori Fisheries Act 2004 (2004 No 78).
                        • Section 255E(3)(e): added, on , by section 27(1) of the Fisheries Amendment Act 2001 (2001 No 65).
                        • Section 255E(3A): inserted, on , by section 27(2) of the Fisheries Amendment Act 2001 (2001 No 65).
                        • Section 255E(3B): inserted, on , by section 27(2) of the Fisheries Amendment Act 2001 (2001 No 65).
                        • Section 255E(4): substituted, on , by section 186 of the Sentencing Act 2002 (2002 No 9).