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176: Protection of members of Authority, etc
or “Members of the Employment Relations Authority are protected like judges when they do their job.”
You could also call this:

“When the Authority has a tricky legal question, they can ask the court for help and wait for an answer before moving on.”

The Employment Relations Authority can ask the court for help when a legal question comes up during an investigation. If this happens, the Authority can pause its investigation until it gets an answer from the court. When the Authority asks the court for help, it must do it in a special way that’s been decided beforehand. Once the court gives its opinion on the legal question, the Authority must continue its investigation based on what the court said.

However, the Authority can’t ask the court about how it should do its job or what procedures it should use. This means the Authority can’t ask the court about the way it has done things in the past, how it’s doing things now, or how it plans to do things in the future.

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Next up: 178: Removal to court generally

or “The Employment Relations Authority can send tricky or urgent job cases to a bigger court to decide”
Next

Part 10 Institutions
Employment Relations Authority

177Referral of question of law

  1. The Authority may, where a question of law arises during an investigation,—

  2. refer that question of law to the court for its opinion; and
    1. delay the investigation until it receives the court's opinion on that question.

      1. Every reference under subsection (1) must be made in the prescribed manner.

      2. The court must provide the Authority with its opinion on the question of law and the Authority must then continue its investigation in accordance with that opinion.

      3. Subsection (1) does not apply—

      4. to a question about the procedure that the Authority has followed, is following, or is intending to follow; and
        1. without limiting paragraph (a), to a question about whether the Authority may follow or adopt a particular procedure.

          Compare
          • 1991 No 22 s 93
          Notes
          • Section 177(4): added, on , by section 57 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act (No 2) 2004 (2004 No 86).