Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Act 2005

Reprint as at 1 April 2012

Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Act 2005

Public Act2005 No 74
Date of assent3 June 2005
Commencementsee section 2
Note

Changes authorised by section 17C of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 have been made in this reprint.

A general outline of these changes is set out in the notes at the end of this reprint, together with other explanatory material about this reprint.

This Act is administered by the Ministry of Justice.

Contents

1 Title

2 Commencement

Part 1
General provisions

3 Purpose of this Act

4 Interpretation

5 Offender

6 Specified claim

7 Specified internal and external complaints mechanisms

8 Victim

9 Victim’s claim

10 Act binds the Crown

Part 2
Prisoners’ and victims’ claims

Subpart 1—Compensation sought by claims by prisoners, etc

11 Overview of this subpart

12 Application

13 Restriction on awarding of compensation

14 Guiding considerations for awarding of compensation

15 Subpart does not prevent complaints or access to assistance

16 Expiry of subpart

Subpart 2—Victims’ claims

Payment of money into account and information about filing claims

17 Compensation of prisoners, etc, must be paid to Secretary

18 Secretary deducts money for legal aid, reparation, and earlier orders, then pays surplus into account

19 Status of money paid to Secretary or into account

20 Secretary to give notice of payments into account, etc

21 How and to whom notice, etc, given

22 Single process for 2 or more payments in same period

23 Sending date: what it means

24 Secretary’s duties for purposes of section 21

25 Access to records of the Court Martial proceedings, etc, to identify, and ascertain contact details of, victims

26 Procedure if no victims of accused or offender

27 Service of notices

Procedure for making and determination of victims’ claims

28 Filing of claims

29 No filing fees payable

30 Secretary of Tribunal to refer claims filed to Tribunal

31 Offender to be given copy of claim and reasonable opportunity to make written submission on it

32 Procedure if no claims filed

33 Period to allow all claims, offender’s submissions, etc

34 Claims determined on papers

35 Access to relevant court documents or records

36 Access to records of Court Martial proceedings, etc, to help to determine victims’ claims

37 Relevant findings in criminal proceedings or proceedings of Court Martial or officer to be evidence

38 Tribunal may also hear submissions in exceptional cases

39 Power to require information, documents, or answers

40 Power to maintain order at hearings, etc

41 Power to restrict publication of proceedings, etc

42 Application for renewal or review of order or direction under section 41

43 Contravention of orders or directions under section 41

44 Availability of documents filed in connection with claims

45 Other aspects of procedure

46 Tribunal to determine group of claims received

47 Further provisions on determination of claims received

48 Implementation of order

49 Procedure if victim or others entitled cannot be found

50 Order under section 46 must be varied in certain circumstances

51 Appeal to High Court

52 Release of surplus money to offender

53 End of process to be notified publicly in certain cases

Victims’ claims trust bank account

54 Secretary must establish account

55 Payments from, and other operation of, account

56 Procedure if offender or others entitled cannot be found

57 Regulations on operation and auditing of account

Victims’ Special Claims Tribunals

58 Tribunals

59 Evidence

60 Decisions to be given in writing

61 Proceedings of Tribunal not invalid for want of form

62 Services for Tribunal

Subpart 3—Suspension of limitation periods for certain claims by victims

63 Application

64 Limitation periods suspended

Part 3
Amendments to other Acts

Amendment to Human Rights Act 1993

65 Damages

Amendments to Legal Services Act 2000

66 Interpretation

67 Proceedings for which legal aid may be granted: civil matters

68 When legal aid may be granted: civil matters

69 Conditions on grant of legal aid

70 Maximum grant

71 Application for amendment to grant of legal aid

72 Regulations

Amendment to Limitation Act 1950

[Repealed]

73 Limitation of actions of contract and tort, and certain other actions

Amendments to Privacy Act 1993

74 Damages

75 Schedule 5 amended

Amendments to Victims’ Rights Act 2002

76 Police to give information about right to ask for notice and appointment of representative

77 New section 33A inserted

Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Amendment Act 2007

Reprint notes