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Bail Amendment Bill (Consistent) (Section 24(b)) [2008] NZBORARp 49 (1 December 2008)

Last Updated: 31 March 2020

Bail Amendment Bill

01 December 2008

Attorney-General

LEGAL ADVICE

CONSISTENCY WITH THE NEW ZEALAND BILL OF RIGHTS ACT 1990

BAIL AMENDMENT BILL (PCO 13496/5.0) (2-1) OUR REF: ATT395/83

I have reviewed the draft Bail Amendment Bill (in its above form) for consistency with the

New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990.

The Bill proposes to amend the Bail Act 2000 by making changes to s 8, which sets out the considerations to be taken into account by the Court in assessing whether the court is satisfied under s 7(5) that there is just cause for continued detention. In particular, the Bill proposes to make the following changes:

• To alter the wording of the mandatory considerations so that the test of “a real and significant risk” is changed to “a risk” (restoring the position prior to the 2007 amendments).
• Removing the avoidance for doubt provision (about the impact of the discretionary considerations) in subsection (3).
  

While the effect of these provisions is to alter the factors to be considered by the Court in assessing whether to grant bail, the basic question of whether there is just cause for continued detention remains under s 7(5). This is consistent with s 24(b) of the Bill of Rights Act, and the proposed amendments therefore do not give rise to any apparent

inconsistency.

In accordance with Crown Law practice, this opinion has been peer reviewed by Ben Keith, Crown Counsel.

Yours faithfully

Victoria Casey

Crown Counsel

In addition to the general disclaimer for all documents on this website, please note the following: This advice was prepared to assist the Attorney-General to determine whether a report should be made to Parliament under s 7 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 in relation to the Bail Amendment Bill. It should not be used or acted upon for any other

purpose. The advice does no more than assess whether the Bill complies with the minimum guarantees contained in the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act. The release of this advice should not be taken to indicate that the Attorney-General agrees with all aspects of it, nor does its release constitute a general waiver of legal professional privilege in respect of this or any other matter. Whilst care has been taken to ensure that this document is an accurate reproduction of the advice provided to the Attorney-General, neither the Ministry of Justice nor the Crown Law Office accepts any liability for any errors or omissions.