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Parliament Act 2025

Parliamentary privilege - Other provisions relating to parliamentary privilege - Members and officers in court or tribunal proceedings

34: Exemption of member or officer from attendance

You could also call this:

"Members of Parliament can be excused from attending court with a special certificate"

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You can be excused from going to court if you are a member or officer of the House. You need to ask the Speaker for a certificate to exempt you from attending. The Speaker will give you the certificate unless not going to court would be unfair or hurt someone. You will be excused from going to court until the end of the session of Parliament or the end of the next calendar year. The Speaker must sign the certificate and attach a copy of the court summons to it. The certificate says you do not have to go to the court or tribunal mentioned in it. The Speaker can look into the matter before deciding whether to give you the certificate. They can refuse the certificate if not going to court would defeat justice or cause harm. You can find more information about this by looking at the related laws https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6136750

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS804172.

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35: Exemption of Speaker from attendance: exemption by House of Representatives, or

"The Speaker of the House doesn't have to go to court if the House says so."

Part 2Parliamentary privilege
Other provisions relating to parliamentary privilege: Members and officers in court or tribunal proceedings

34Exemption of member or officer from attendance

  1. This section applies if a member (other than the Speaker) or an officer of the House is required, by a court’s or tribunal’s summons, to attend the court or tribunal personally as—

  2. a party or witness in a civil proceeding; or
    1. a witness in a criminal proceeding.

      1. The member or officer may apply to the Speaker for a certificate exempting the member or officer from attending the court or tribunal.

      2. On receiving an application, the Speaker must grant an exemption certificate to the member or officer unless satisfied, after any inquiry the Speaker considers appropriate, that not complying with the summons would—

      3. defeat or seriously delay the interests of justice; or
        1. cause irreparable injury to a party to the proceedings.

          1. The Speaker must—

          2. sign the certificate; and
            1. ensure that the certificate identifies the court or tribunal attendance it relates to; and
              1. attach a copy of the summons to the certificate.

                1. An exemption certificate exempts the member or officer to whom it is issued from attending the court or tribunal concerned until the earlier of the following times:

                2. the end of the session of Parliament during which the certificate was granted:
                  1. the end of the calendar year after the calendar year during which the certificate was granted.

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