Harassment Act 1997

Rules and regulations

42 Rules of court

  • (1) In addition to all other powers conferred by the District Courts Act 1947, the Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make rules—

    • (a) regulating the practice and procedure of District Courts in proceedings under this Act:

    • (b) providing for such matters as are contemplated by or necessary for giving full effect to the provisions of this Act and for its due administration.

    (2) Without limiting subsection (1), rules made under that subsection may—

    • (a) prescribe the procedure for the service of notices and other documents for the purposes of this Act, and provide for substituted service, and for service to be dispensed with, in such circumstances as are specified in the rules:

    • (b) prescribe such forms as are necessary for the purposes of this Act, or authorise any specified person or persons to prescribe or approve forms, and require the use of such forms:

    • (c) prescribe circumstances in which applications under this Act may be made without notice, and circumstances in which applications under this Act must be made on notice:

    • (d) make such provision as is necessary or desirable in relation to representatives, including (without limitation),—

      • (i) providing for the appointment, retirement, and removal of representatives:

      • (ii) prescribing the circumstances in which a representative is or is not responsible for costs, and providing for the recovery, by a representative, of costs paid or incurred by the representative while acting as such:

      • (iii) providing for the conduct of proceedings brought, on a person's behalf, by a representative:

    • (e) provide that proceedings may be stayed or dismissed, or that a party may not take certain steps or further steps in the proceedings (whether not at all or only on such terms as the court considers appropriate),—

      • (i) if certain specified requirements of the rules are not complied with; or

      • (ii) unless or until certain specified requirements of the rules are complied with; or

      • (iii) if any order made under the rules is not complied with; or

      • (iv) unless or until any order made under the rules is complied with:

    • (f) provide that Registrars may exercise specified powers of the court or a Judge:

    • (g) provide for information about proceedings under this Act to be transferred between courts (whether District Courts, Family Courts, the High Court, the Court of Appeal, or the Supreme Court), including (without limitation) between different courts, or between different divisions of the same court, or between courts exercising civil jurisdiction and courts exercising criminal jurisdiction, or between courts exercising appellate jurisdiction and courts exercising original jurisdiction:

    (3) In the absence of any rules under this section or in any situation not covered by any such rules, the District Courts Rules 2009 apply, with all necessary modifications, to proceedings under this Act.

    Compare: 1995 No 86 s 126

    Section 42(2)(g): amended, on 1 January 2004, by section 47 of the Supreme Court Act 2003 (2003 No 53).

    Section 42(2)(h): amended, on 1 November 2009, pursuant to rule 17.1 of the District Court Rules 2009 (SR 2009/257).

    Section 42(3): amended, on 1 November 2009, pursuant to rule 17.1 of the District Court Rules 2009 (SR 2009/257).