Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Fair Trading Act 1986

Miscellaneous provisions

47: Power to search

You could also call this:

“The Commission can search places to check if someone is breaking the rules”

The Commission can allow one of its workers to search a place if they have a special permission slip called a warrant. To get this warrant, the worker needs to ask an official who can give out warrants. The official will only give a warrant if they think there’s a good reason to search.

You might need to search a place to find out if someone is breaking the rules in the Fair Trading Act, or to get proof that someone has broken these rules. The search can also help figure out how big the rule-breaking is.

When searching, the people doing the search have to follow most of the rules in Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012. But they don’t have to follow two specific parts of that Act (sections 118 and 119).

Sometimes, the Commission might need to share information they found during a search with people who enforce similar rules in other countries. In these cases, when the law talks about breaking the rules, it also means breaking the rules in those other countries.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM97320.

Topics:
Business > Fair trading
Money and consumer rights > Consumer protection
Crime and justice > Criminal law
Previous

46M: Examples of unfair contract terms, or

“List of ways a contract can be unfair to one person”

Next

47A: Powers conferred by warrant, or

“This law about special permissions is no longer used”

Part 6 Miscellaneous provisions

47Power to search

  1. The Commission may, from time to time, authorise an employee of the Commission to search, under a warrant issued under subsection (2), any place named in the warrant for any of the purposes set out in that subsection.

  2. An issuing officer (within the meaning of section 3 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012) may, by warrant, authorise a person who is authorised under subsection (1) to search a place specified in the warrant if he or she is satisfied on application made in the manner provided for an application for a search warrant in subpart 3 of Part 4 of that Act by that employee that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a search is necessary for the purpose of—

  3. investigating—
    1. whether a person has engaged in, or is engaging in, conduct that constitutes, or may constitute, a contravention of this Act; or
      1. the nature or extent of any conduct that constitutes, or may constitute, a contravention of this Act; or
      2. gathering, obtaining, or recovering evidence of—
        1. conduct that constitutes, or may constitute, a contravention of this Act; or
          1. the nature or extent of any conduct that constitutes, or may constitute, a contravention of this Act.

          2. Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (except sections 118 and 119) applies.

          3. For the purpose of allowing the Commission to provide, under section 48I, compulsorily acquired information and investigative assistance to a recognised overseas regulator, every reference in this section to a contravention of this Act must be taken to include a reference to a contravention of any foreign enactment that is identified (as required by section 48G(1)(b)) in the co-operation arrangement concerning that recognised overseas regulator.

          Notes
          • Section 47: substituted, on , by section 3 of the Fair Trading Amendment Act 1990 (1990 No 42).
          • Section 47(1): substituted, on , by section 14 of the Fair Trading Amendment Act 2003 (2003 No 31).
          • Section 47(2): substituted, on , by section 14 of the Fair Trading Amendment Act 2003 (2003 No 31).
          • Section 47(2): amended, on , by section 316(2)(a) of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (2012 No 24).
          • Section 47(2): amended, on , by section 316(2)(b) of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (2012 No 24).
          • Section 47(3): replaced, on , by section 316(3) of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (2012 No 24).
          • Section 47(4): inserted, on , by section 4 of the Fair Trading (International Co-operation) Amendment Act 2012 (2012 No 86).