Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Public Works Act 1981

Acquisition of land for public works - Extending estates in land that may be acquired or taken

28: Particular estates in land may be acquired or taken

You could also call this:

“The government can take land with existing rights or just take some rights”

When the government needs to acquire or take land for a public work, they have some special powers. You should know that they can take the land while keeping any existing rights, interests, or agreements attached to it. This means they don’t have to remove things like easements (which are rights to use the land in a specific way) or covenants (which are agreements about how the land can be used).

The government can also choose to take only part of the rights or interests in the land. For example, they might just take an easement to use part of the land, or they might take a specific interest in the land without taking full ownership.

These powers apply whether the rights, interests, or agreements currently exist on their own or are part of a larger package of rights. This gives the government flexibility in how they acquire or use land for public works.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM46029.

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"Land bought for important community projects can be given to special builders"

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29: Acquisition of certain public land, or

"Rules for the government taking special types of land for public projects"

Part 2 Acquisition of land for public works
Extending estates in land that may be acquired or taken

28Particular estates in land may be acquired or taken

  1. The power conferred by this or any other Act to acquire or take land for a public work shall include the power—

  2. to acquire or take and to hold the land subject to any particular estate, interest, easement, profit à prendre, covenant, or encumbrance, whether for the time being subsisting or not:
    1. to acquire or take and to hold separately—
      1. any particular estate or interest in the land, whether for the time being subsisting separately or not; or
        1. any easement or profit à prendre over the land, whether for the time being subsisting or not.

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