In this Act, if not inconsistent with the context,—

A notice required by this Act to be sent to any person may be sent to the last known place of abode or business of such person by messenger or by post.

If such person is absent from the colony, the notice may be sent to his agent.

If such person is not known, or has no known agent in the colony, the notice shall be publicly notified.

A notice required to be sent to the Minister must be sent to the Public Works Office at Wellington, or to the office of such person, either at Wellington or elsewhere in the colony, as the Minister authorises by public notice to receive notices on his behalf.

A notice required to be sent to a local authority must be sent to the office of such authority.

Where a notice is sent by post it must be sent so as to arrive in the due course of post on or before the last day on which such notice is required to be served.

The Governor in Council may from time to time make regulations for the conduct of all persons employed by the Government under this Act, or in or about any works which may be constructed by the Government under the authority thereof.

A copy of all regulations made under the authority of this Act shall be laid before Parliament within ten days after the issue thereof if Parliament be sitting, but if not, then within ten days after the commencement of the next sitting, thereof.

The Governor shall appoint some member of the Executive Council to be the Minister for Public Works, who shall be charged with the administration of this Act, and with the execution of all Government works, except as provided in Part VI. hereof.

The Minister for Public Works holding office at the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to be appointed under this Act.

Where the Minister is authorised to enter into any contract or agreement, or make any lease, under this or any other Act all the rights and liabilities in respect thereof, and all benefit and advantage thereunder, or interest therein, shall vest in his successor or successors in office without the necessity of any transfer or assignment whatsoever.

The Governor may from time to time create such offices, and appoint such engineers, managers, clerks, and other officers and persons, as may be necessary for the administration of this Act and for the execution of all Government works; and may from time to time assign such functions as he shall think fit to such persons respectively, all of whom shall hold office at the Governor’s pleasure, and shall receive such salaries as the General Assembly determines.

The Minister shall, as soon as conveniently may be after the opening of each session, lay before Parliament full and detailed estimates of the expenditure proposed to be made upon all Government works during the financial year; and no such works shall be undertaken unless Parliament appropriates money for the execution thereof.

When moneys are proposed to be voted in any session for the construction of railways,, the Minister shall insert in the Appropriation Bill of such session a schedule in the form of the Second Schedule hereto.

The Minister shall, as soon as conveniently may be after the opening of each session, lay before Parliament a full report of the works carried out by the Government under the authority of this Act during the preceding financial year; also a full and correct statement of the expenditure during such year on all the works and services chargeable to the Public Works Fund.

A copy of such statement of accounts shall be sent to the Controller and Auditor-General, who shall certify to the correctness of the same; and his certificate, together with any remarks by him appended thereto, shall be laid before Parliament by the Minister.

Every contract for the execution of Government works shall be entered into in the name of His Majesty, and may be executed by the Governor on his behalf.

Every contract for the execution of local works shall be made in such manner as the local authority making the same is authorised by law to make and execute its contracts.

All such contracts may be varied and discharged in the same manner respectively

The provisions of sections eighteen and nineteen hereof do not, except as hereinafter specially provided, apply to the taking of lands for railway or defence purposes, or for roads in connection with such purposes, or to the taking of Native land for any public work.

All the other provisions of this Part of this Act apply to the taking of any lands and to all lands taken for any public work whatever, except as hereinafter specially provided.

Land required for any public work may be taken under the provisions of this Act—

Whenever power is given to take land for any public work under the provisions of this Act such power, except where otherwise specially provided,—

The Minister may from time to time impound, divert, and take away any water from any stream or running water, or may purchase or acquire any right or interest therein, for the purpose of supplying water for the use of any railway or other public work and the engines or machinery used thereon or connected therewith, or for the purposes of any wharf, building, or premises connected with such railway or other public work, whether such railway or other public work is situated on land entitled to the use of such water or not, and also may in like manner take, purchase, or acquire any land which shall be necessary for the purposes of this enactment.

Any water so impounded, diverted, or taken away, and any land taken, purchased, or acquired as aforesaid, and any right or interest therein respectively, and all pipes, machinery, appliances, and works used in connection with or for the purposes of such water-supply, is and are hereinafter included in the expression “waterworks”; and all waterworks already constructed or acquired, or that may hereafter be constructed or acquired, for all or any such purposes as aforesaid, shall be deemed to have been and to be constructed or acquired under the provisions of this Act, and to form a part of the railway or other public work for the use of which they have been constructed or acquired.

The Minister, and all officers, workmen, and others by his direction, may enter on any land in the daytime, with or without carts or other vehicles, for the purpose of laying or erecting waterworks in or on such land, and also may from time to time in like manner enter thereon for the purpose of examining or repairing such waterworks when necessary.

At least twelve hours’ previous notice in writing shall be given by or on behalf of the Minister to the owner or occupier of such land, if resident thereon, before any entry for the purpose of laying or erecting waterworks, and if such owner or occupier is not so resident, then by posting such notice in a conspicuous place on such land; but no notice shall be necessary in cases where the entry is made for the purpose of examination or to execute repairs.

In exercise of the powers conferred by subsection three hereof the Minister, his officers, workmen, or others, shall do as little damage as possible, and any damage or loss done or occasioned by the exercise of such powers shall from time to time be ascertained and settled in the manner provided by any agreement made by the Minister under the authority of this Act, or if no such agreement be made, then in the manner provided by Part III. thereof.

Land may be taken under this Act for forest plantations, or recreation-grounds, or for the preservation of scenery as if such purposes were public works within the meaning of this Act.

Land may be taken under this Act by any local authority for the purpose of paddocking driven cattle as if such purpose were a public work.

Except for the purpose of a railway or for defence purposes, or for the purposes of any other work to be made under the authority of a special Act, nothing in this Act contained shall authorise—

When any land is or has been taken at any time by the Governor or by any local authority under the authority of any Act or Provincial Ordinance for the construction of any public works, the Governor or such local authority shall not thereby be deemed to have acquired or to acquire any right to any mines of coal or other minerals whatsoever under any land so taken, except only such parts thereof as are necessary for the proper and effectual construction, support, and maintenance of such works.

And all such mines and minerals (excepting as aforesaid) shall be deemed to be and to have been excepted out of the Proclamation or other instrument under the authority whereof the land is, or has been, or may be taken.

In case any of the land so taken as last aforesaid is leasehold land of the Crown, held under lease granted under the provisions of “The Westland and Nelson Coalfields Administration Act, 1877,” or any other Act relating to the granting of leases of land or licenses to hold land for mining purposes, then and in such case the lessee or licensee or lessees or licensees of such land shall not be entitled to claim compensation in respect of any land so taken, but shall only be entitled to claim compensation for actual loss sustained through damage to his or their mine, or the works connected therewith, by reason of the taking of such land.

Subject to the provisions of section ten hereof, whenever lands (other than Crown lands) are required to be taken for any public work, the Minister in the case of Government works, and the local authority in the case of local works,—

Surveys and plans to be deposited in road district.

Notice that objections to proposed works will be heard.

Notice to be served on owners and occupiers.

How objections to be heard.

If within the said forty days no objection is made, or if, after due consideration of all objections, the Minister or the local authority, as the case may be, is of opinion that it is expedient that the proposed works should be executed, and that no private injury will be done thereby for which due compensation is not provided by this Act, the land proposed to be taken shall be taken in the following manner:—

And from and after a day to be named in the said Proclamation the lands therein specified shall, unless otherwise specially provided in this Act or in any special Act, become absolutely vested in fee-simple in His Majesty, or in the local authority, or the corporate body represented by it, as the case may require, discharged from all mortgages, charges, claims, estates, or interests of what kind soever for the public use named in the said Proclamation.

Whenever it shall be made to appear to the satisfaction of the Governor that any local authority has not made provision for the payment of the compensation which would probably be awarded for the land proposed to be taken, the Governor shall not issue the Proclamation taking such land until such time as he is satisfied that the local authority has made provision for the payment of such compensation.

Whenever any Crown land is required to be set apart for any public work the Governor may at any time, by Proclamation duly gazetted, set the same apart for such public work without complying with any of the provisions of this Act in respect to the taking or setting-apart of other lands for such purpose, and every such Proclamation shall have the effect of and shall be deemed to be a Proclamation under section nineteen hereof.

A Proclamation issued under this Act or under any of the compiled Acts or under any Act thereby repealed shall not be held or deemed to have taken or to take effect until such Proclamation was or is gazetted.

In any case where a Proclamation has been issued taking land for any public work, and where, before such Proclamation has been registered by the District Land Registrar under the following section, it is found that such Proclamation incorrectly describes the land purporting to be taken, or that any other error in form or substance exists in or in relation to such Proclamation, or the making or gazetting thereof, the Governor may by a subsequent Proclamation cancel and annul such Proclamation or any part thereof, and such first Proclamation or such part thereof shall, from the date of the subsequent Proclamation, be absolutely void and of none effect as from the date of the same, and shall not be deemed to have vested the land mentioned therein in His Majesty, or in the local authority, or in the corporate body represented by such local authority, or to have discharged such land from any mortgages, charges, claims, estates, or interests of what kind soever existing in respect of such land, anything to the contrary in this or any other Act notwithstanding.

But nothing herein contained shall limit the power of the Governor to take by any subsequent Proclamation the whole or any part of the land mentioned or described in any Proclamation so cancelled in whole or in part.

Except in a case under the following section, the Minister shall cause a copy of every Proclamation taking or setting apart land, and of the map referred to therein, to be deposited without fee in the District Land Registry Office for the district in which such land is.

If such land was not theretofore subject to the provisions of “The Land Transfer Act, 1885,”—

If the said land was theretofore subject to the provisions of “The Land Transfer Act, 1885,”—

No person having in his possession such Crown grant, certificate of title, or other instrument shall be entitled to claim or receive any compensation under this Act until such certificate is delivered up to the District Land Registrar.

Where the land is within a mining district a copy of the Proclamation shall be deposited with the Mining Registrar for registration, and the Registrar shall register the same as on the hour and date of its being so deposited.

In the case of a Proclamation setting apart or taking any lands which are not subject to the provisions of “The Land Transfer Act, 1885,” and dealings with which are not registerable under the provisions of “The Deeds Registration Act, 1868,” the Minister shall cause a copy of the same and of the map referred to therein to be lodged in the office of the Surveyor-General, and the Surveyor-General shall cause the land included in such Proclamation to be shown upon the proper maps and records of the district affected by such Proclamation in such manner as to prevent such land being disposed of in any manner at variance with such Proclamation

If any land, not situate in a town or built upon, is so divided by the land taken for any work as to leave on either side thereof a less quantity of land than half a statute acre, the Minister or local authority, as the case may be, shall, if so required by the owners of such small parcel of land, and except as hereafter provided, take such parcel together with the other land taken for such work.

But if such owner has other land adjoining into which such small portion may be conveniently thrown, the Minister or local authority, as the case may be, may, instead of taking such small parcel of land, throw the same into such adjoining land, by removing the fences and levelling and soiling the sites in a sufficient and workmanlike manner.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Minister or local authority may enter into agreements to take the estate and interest of any person in any land required for public works without complying with the provisions of section eighteen or of subparagraph (iii.) of paragraph (c) of section nineteen hereof, or to purchase any such estate or interest, upon such terms and conditions as he or it thinks fit.

Where an estate or interest is taken by agreement the compensation to be paid may be either agreed upon or left to be determined under Part III. of this Act.

In any case the compensation or purchase-money shall be paid,—

but neither the Minister nor any member of a local authority shall be personally liable for any compensation or purchase-money which may become payable under this Act.

Where an agreement for the taking of an estate or interest has been entered into, the Governor, upon being satisfied of the sufficiency of the agreement, may forthwith issue a Proclamation taking such estate or interest under section nineteen hereof without complying with any of the provisions of section eighteen or of subparagraph (iii.) of paragraph (c) of section nineteen hereof.

Where an agreement for the purchase of an estate or interest has been entered into, such estate and interest shall be conveyed or surrendered to His Majesty, or (except in the case of roads) to the body corporate represented by such local authority, or (if not incorporated) to some person on behalf of such local authority, as the case may be.

An estate or interest purchased and conveyed or surrendered hereunder shall be deemed land taken under the authority of this Act, but the provisions of this Act respecting compensation shall not be applicable in any such case except as specially provided.

Except where an agreement has been made as provided in section one hundred and twenty-four hereof, nothing in this Act shall authorise the removal of any fencing upon any lands until fences have been first made so that all lands adjacent to land taken or works executed under this Act shall be as effectually protected against damage by trespass as before the commencement of such works.

If any public work has been or is executed, and after the execution thereof it is found that any person has any estate or interest in any land occupied by such work, or that any land required therefor has not been taken in the manner required by law, or that the provisions relating to the taking of such land have not been fulfilled; or

If it is found desirable for the use, convenience, or enjoyment of any public work executed or in course of execution to take, purchase, or acquire other land—

Such land, or the estate or interest of any person therein, may be taken, purchased, or acquired in the manner provided by this Act in respect of the taking, purchasing, or acquiring of lands required for such public work in the first instance.

All the provisions of this Act relating to the taking, purchasing, or acquiring of land, and to payment of compensation or purchase-money therefor, shall apply, except that in such cases—

Provided that if any person has received payment or been awarded compensation for such land, or by reason of his being injuriously affected by such public works, such person, and all persons claiming by, through, under, or in trust for him, shall not be entitled to any further payment or compensation.

The provisions of this section shall be deemed to apply, mutatis mutandis, to the closing of any road or street and to the exercise of any power over any land, road, or street after the execution of any public work for the purposes of which a road or street might have been closed or any such power exercised in the first instance.

Nothing in this section shall be deemed to in any way interfere with the operation of section ten of “The Public Works Acts Amendment Act, 1889,” set forth in the Seventh Schedule of this Act, or of any other provision of this or any other Act validating or confirming the taking of any land for any public work.

If it is found that any land held, taken, purchased, or acquired at any time under this or any other Act or Provincial Ordinance, or otherwise howsoever, for any public work is not required for such public work, the Governor may, by an Order in Council publicly notified and gazetted, cause the same to be sold under the following conditions:—

Provided, however, that the Governor may, without complying with any of the last foregoing provisions, sell by private contract or grant to any Education Board any lands taken for Government works, and may execute such grants, conveyances, and assurances as may be necessary to give effect to such sale or grant.

The purchase-money of land so sold shall be paid into the Public Account or the ordinary fund of the local authority, as the case may be, and shall form part of the fund appropriated to the execution of the works in respect of which the said lands were taken under this Act.

Upon the payment of the purchase-money the Minister or local authority, as the case may be, shall file in the District Land Registry Office for the district in which such land is situate a copy of the Order in Council directing the sale of the said lands, together with a copy of the certified map thereof, and also a certificate of the payment of the purchase - money, with the name and address of the purchaser.

Such Order in Council and certificate shall be deemed to be a memorandum of transfer of such land to such purchaser within the meaning of “The Land Transfer Act, 1885,” and the Registrar shall register the same and deal therewith in the manner in the said Act provided.

If any land at any time taken for public works under this or any other Act or Provincial Ordinance is not required for immediate use, the Minister or local authority by whom the land was taken may let the same upon such terms as he or it may respectively think fit for any period not exceeding twenty-one years, and the rents and profits thereof shall be paid into the Public Account or the ordinary fund of the local authority, as the case may require.

His Majesty or the local authority, as the case may be, but in the case of a local authority subject to the provisions of subsection two hereof, may from time to time grant to any person any easement in, upon, through, over, or under any land taken or acquired for a public work, subject to such conditions and payment of rent as His Majesty or the local authority thinks fit, and subject to revocation without compensation at any time when the service of the public requires it, and subject also to immediate revocation in case of the breach of any conditions under which such easement was granted.

The power given by the last subsection shall not be exercised by a local authority without the consent of the Minister; and no instrument executed by or on behalf of a local authority granting or purporting to grant such an easement shall have any effect whatever unless and until the consent of the Minister has been indorsed thereon.

Every person having any estate or interest in any lands taken under this Act for any public works, or injuriously affected thereby, or suffering any damage from the exercise of any of the powers hereby given, shall be entitled to full compensation for the same from the Minister or local authority, as the case may be, by whose authority such works may be executed or power exercised.

No compensation shall be payable in respect of—

In any case where His Majesty or the Governor may have been or may hereafter be entitled to resume or take possession of land under the authority of any Act of the General Assembly, then, notwithstanding the issue of a Proclamation under this or any Act of a like tenor at any time heretofore in force taking such land for any public purpose, and notwithstanding that any special provisions contained in such authorising Act as to the resumption or taking of such land may not have been complied with, no compensation shall be paid or payable in respect thereof otherwise than as may be specially provided in the Act by virtue of which His Majesty or the Governor, or any person on behalf of His Majesty or the Governor, is entitled to resume or take possession as aforesaid, provided such Proclamation shall have been issued during the currency of such authority.

No claim for compensation under this Act, or any of the compiled Acts, or any Act thereby repealed shall be made (in respect of any lands taken) after a period of five years after the date of the Proclamation taking the said lands, or (in respect of any damage done) after a period of twelve months after the execution of the works out of which such claim has arisen or may hereafter arise; and all right and title to any compensation in respect of such lands or for damage arising out of the execution of such works, as the case may be, shall after such respective periods absolutely cease.

The provisions of this section shall also extend and apply to all claims for compensation of any kind which arose before the passing of “The Public Works Act, 1882,” or which arose or may arise under that Act or any Act thereby repealed, after the passing of “The Public Works Act, 1894,” so far as such Acts or any of them were or are capable of having effect.

A claim for compensation may be made by any person seised, possessed of, or entitled to such lands, or to any estate or interest therein, whether such person has or has not the power to sell and convey the same, or by any executor or administrator; and any such claim on behalf of cestuis que trustent, wards, lunatics, or idiots may be made by their trustees, guardians, or committees respectively.

In the case of any person being an infant, lunatic, or idiot, or cestui que trust, not having a guardian, committee, or trustee within the colony, the Public Trustee shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be the legal guardian, committee, or trustee of such person.

A claim for compensation for lands taken out of any Native reserve may be made by the Public Trustee on behalf of those interested in such reserve.

Upon the application of the Minister to the Judge of the Supreme Court, accompanied by an offer of the amount of compensation in the matter, and upon such proof as is satisfactory to such Judge that any person who has any right or title to prefer a claim for compensation is absent from the colony, or is not known, or has no known agent in the colony, such Judge shall direct such claim to be heard by a Compensation Court under this Act, and shall appoint an Assessor to act in such Court on behalf of such person.

Thereupon such Court may proceed in the examination of such claim as in ordinary cases where the claimant is present.

In every such case the Public Trustee shall represent the claimant, and may act in his behalf in all matters incident to the claim or the hearing thereof; and the moneys payable as compensation shall be paid into the Public Trust Office, and shall there remain subject to the provisions of section seventy-eight hereof.

Any person so claiming compensation is hereinafter called “the claimant”; and the Minister in the case of Government works, and the local authority in the case of local works, is hereinafter called “the respondent.”

In order to obtain compensation the claimant shall serve upon the respondent a claim in writing, in one of the forms in the Third Schedule hereto, stating—

Such claim shall be served, in the case of the Minister, by being delivered at the Public Works Office at Wellington or by being sent by registered letter addressed to the Minister at such office, and, in the case of the local authority, by being left at its office or sent by registered letter to its office; and the claimant shall be entitled to receive from the officer for the time being in charge of any such office a receipt stating the day on which such claim was delivered or received; and any officer refusing to give such receipt on demand shall be liable to a fine not exceeding five pounds.

In order to prove the service of any claim as aforesaid it shall be necessary to produce the receipt of the officer receiving the same.

If the claimant does not give full particulars of such claims, or does not specify in his claim the amount claimed for each matter on account of which he claims compensation, the respondent may, by notice in writing, require him to furnish such particulars; and if such particulars are not supplied at least twenty-one days before the date appointed for the sitting of the Court to hear the claim, that Court may, if it think fit, upon the application of the respondent made before or at the hearing, order the claimant to furnish such particulars, and may adjourn the further hearing of the claim until such particulars are supplied, and until the respondent has had reasonable time to consider the same, and may order that the costs occasioned by such adjournment shall be borne by the claimant.

If the respondent does not, within sixty days after receiving such claim, give notice in writing to the claimant that he does not admit it, the claimant may file a copy of his claim, together with the receipt for the service thereof, in the Supreme Court; and such claim, when so filed, shall be deemed to be and shall have the effect of an award filed in the Supreme Court, and may be enforced in the manner provided in section seventy-seven hereof.

If the respondent gives notice in writing within the said sixty days that he does not admit the claim, he may, within ninety days after receiving the claim, by notice in writing, make the claimant an offer of the sum which he is willing to pay in lieu of the amount claimed, and may file a copy of such notice in the Court or office prescribed in subsection four of this section.

If the respondent gives notice in writing within the said sixty days that he does not admit the claim, but makes no such offer, or if the claimant does not accept the offer so made, the claimant may file a copy of his claim in the Court or office prescribed in subsection four of this section, together with a notice in the form in the Fourth Schedule hereto that he requires such claim to be heard by a Compensation Court; and he shall in such notice state the name and address of some person whom he thereby appoints to act as Assessor in such Court, and shall give notice in writing to the respondent of the appointment of such Assessor.

If the claimant does not file such notice as aforesaid within thirty days after the time limited for the respondent to make an offer as hereinbefore provided, the claimant shall be deemed to have abandoned the proceedings in respect of his claim, and shall not be entitled to prosecute the same further, except with the leave of the Court in which the claim might have been filed within such time, to be granted upon such terms and conditions as to the time and mode of procedure, and as to the costs of the application for such leave, as that Court thinks fit.

The Court or office in which the claim and notices aforesaid may be filed shall, if the amount claimed be not more than two hundred and fifty pounds, be the Magistrate’s Court Office nearest to the land or work in respect of which the claim arises within the Magistrate’s Court District within which such land or work is situated, and in all other cases shall be the office of the Supreme Court nearest to such land or work within the Supreme Court District within which such land or work is situated. Such Court or office is hereinafter referred to as “the Court for filing the claim.”

The respondent shall, within twenty-one days after receiving notice of the appointment of the Assessor by the claimant, also appoint an Assessor, and shall give notice in writing of such appointment to the Registrar or Clerk of the Court for filing the claim and to the claimant; and if the respondent fails within the said twenty-one days to make such appointment, the Registrar of the Supreme Court shall forthwith appoint an Assessor on behalf of the respondent, and give notice thereof to the claimant.

In any claim or matter arising for compensation for any land taken or to be taken, where a written offer on behalf of the respondent has been made therefor to the claimant not less than thirty days previously, and the same has not been accepted, the respondent shall have the same right to require such claim to be heard by a Compensation Court as is given to a claimant by section forty-six hereof.

And, at any time after the respondent has filed a copy of his notice as in the aforesaid section forty-six mentioned, he may give notice in the form or to the effect contained in the Fourth Schedule hereto, requiring such claim to be heard.

No appointment of any person to be an Assessor shall be valid unless such person signs the consent and declaration in the form contained in the Fifth Schedule hereto; and every such consent and declaration shall be appended to the notice of appointment of such Assessor, and shall be filed in the Court for filing the claim.

All claims for compensation shall, except where express provision is otherwise made, be determined by a Compensation Court constituted as hereinafter provided, and hereinafter called “the Court.”

If the amount claimed be not more than two hundred and fifty pounds, then—

Provided that if before the first sitting of the Court to hear the claim the claimant and respondent execute and file (in the Court for filing the claim) an agreement in writing that the claim shall be heard and determined by such Magistrate without Assessors, then such Magistrate alone shall constitute the Court, and shall hear and determine the claim accordingly.

If the amount claimed be more than two hundred and fifty pounds, the Judge of the Supreme Court and the two Assessors so appointed as aforesaid shall, except as hereinafter provided, constitute the Compensation Court, and the Judge shall be the President thereof.

If the amount claimed be more than two hundred and fifty pounds, and not more than one thousand pounds, the Judge may appoint a Judge of a District Court or Magistrate to be a member of and to preside in the Court in his stead.

If either the claimant or respondent objects to the person appointed under the last preceding section, the Judge shall, unless he considers such objection to be frivolous or unreasonable, cancel such appointment, and preside in the Court himself.

If the amount claimed exceeds one thousand pounds, and the claimant and respondent consent in writing that the claim should be heard before a Judge of a District Court or Magistrate, the Judge of the Supreme Court may order that such claim shall be heard accordingly, and may appoint a Judge of a District Court or Magistrate, as the case may be, to preside in the Court instead of the Judge of the Supreme Court.

If, before the first sitting of the Court to hear any claim as hereinbefore provided, the claimant and the respondent make and execute an agreement in writing to the effect that the claim in question shall be heard and determined by one person named in such agreement, such agreement shall also state the fee (if any) to be paid such person for his services, and shall be filed in the Court for filing the claim.

The person so named shall be deemed to be the Compensation Court; and shall appoint a time and place for the sitting thereof, and shall hear and determine the claim accordingly.

A Court constituted to hear any claim under this Act may, by consent in writing of the claimant and respondent in any other claim, in respect of the same or of any other land, hear and determine such last-mentioned claim as though the Court had been constituted to hear and determine the same.

If either party, before the first sitting of the Court, objects to the appointment of any Assessor, the President may, upon the application of such party, unless the objection appears to be frivolous or unreasonable, order the Assessor so objected to to be discharged, and the person having appointed him shall, within twenty-one days after such order, in like manner appoint another in his stead, failing which the Registrar of the Supreme Court shall forthwith appoint one in his stead.

No member of the Court shall be deemed to be interested in any case solely on account of his liability to pay rates on which the compensation awarded may become a charge.

If the Judge is interested in the claim to be heard, the Governor shall appoint some other Judge of the Supreme Court to act in his stead.

If, before the award is given, any member of the Court dies or becomes incapable of acting, or (being an Assessor) resigns or refuses to act, the following provisions shall apply:—

But the inquiry before the Court shall proceed as if no such change in its members had taken place.

The President shall appoint the time and place for the first sitting of the Court, and shall, not less than twenty-one days before such sitting, cause a notice of such time and place to be served on each Assessor and upon the claimant and respondent severally.

If the claimant or respondent fails to appear before the Court at the time and place appointed, the Court may, upon proof of the service of the notice of such sitting, proceed to hear and determine the claim in his absence.

Any person entitled under section thirty-eight hereof to make a claim for compensation shall be entitled to appear before the Court in the same manner as a claimant may do.

Either party may appear either personally, or by his counsel or solicitor, or by any agent appointed in writing in that behalf.

The Court, or, in the absence of the President or either of the Assessors, the member or members of the Court present, may adjourn its sittings so often as is necessary to a future day, of which the President or such member or members, as the case may be, shall give notice in open Court; and no further notice of such future sitting shall be necessary.

The Court shall have power to summon all persons required by either party or by the Court to give evidence before it, and may examine all such persons upon oath, and may require the production of any documents, plans, or other papers in the custody or control of either party.

The claimant and respondent, and their counsel, solicitors, witnesses, and all other persons attending the Court, shall have the same rights and privileges, and shall be subject to the same obligations, fines, and penalties, as in the trial of an action at law in the Court for filing the claim.

The Court shall, until it has made its award, have all the powers of the Court for filing the claim so far as may be necessary for inquiring into and determining the claim referred to it.

The Court may receive such evidence as it thinks fit, whether the same is strictly legal evidence or not.

Every question before the Court shall be determined by a majority of the members thereof, but the determination of the majority shall be deemed to be the award of the whole Court.

If the Court is unable by a majority to agree upon an award, the President shall discharge the Assessors, and cause notice thereof to be given to the claimant and respondent; and a fresh Court shall be constituted in the manner provided by this Act, which shall hear the case de novo.

In any case brought before a Compensation Court, where any question of law arises, the President may hear and determine the same without the Assessors; or he may, if he think fit, state a case for the decision of the Supreme Court thereon.

Such determination or decision shall be followed by the Compensation Court on making its award.

In determining the amount of compensation to be awarded the Court shall take into account severally the value of the land or interests in land (including riparian rights) taken, and the extent to which any lands in which the claimant has an interest are or are likely to be injuriously affected, either by severance or by the nature of the works in question, and shall also take into account, by way of deduction from the amount of compensation to be awarded, any increase in the value of such lands likely to be caused by the execution of such works.

The value of land taken or injuriously affected shall be assessed for the purpose of ascertaining the amount of compensation, if any, at its value at the time when it was first entered upon for the purpose of constructing or carrying out a public work thereon.

If the Court is of opinion that the claimant in respect of any land taken for a public work has, at any time after the date prescribed in subsection two hereof, done anything upon or under such land with the purpose and effect of rendering the execution of such work more difficult or costly, the Court shall take into account, by way of deduction from the amount of compensation to be awarded, any increase in the cost of executing such work caused or likely to be caused thereby; and if, in the opinion of the Court, such increase in cost exceeds the value of the land taken, the award shall be for the payment by the claimant to the respondent of the amount of such excess and the costs of the inquiry.

The date mentioned in subsection one hereof shall be, in the case of a railway, the date of the first gazetting of the Proclamation defining the middle line thereof; and, in the case of any other work, the date of the first publication of the notice mentioned in paragraph (c) of section eighteen hereof.

The Court may award one gross sum as the compensation to be paid to the claimant on all accounts, or it may award a particular sum in respect of any one or more of the items of the claim, and subject respectively to such conditions as it may think equitable, or it may determine that no compensation is payable in respect of the whole claim or any particular item or items thereof.

Every Assessor shall be entitled to a fee for every day upon which he attends a sitting of the Court in respect of each claim heard therein, the amount of such fee to be fixed by the President in each case, regard being had to the length of the sitting and the importance of the case.

The Court shall fix and determine the amount of the costs of the inquiry as between party and party, and shall include the same in its award, and shall direct by whom such costs shall be paid.

But if the compensation awarded does not exceed one-half of the amount claimed, the claimant shall not be entitled to recover any costs.

The Court may in any case declare that no costs shall be awarded, and the fact shall be stated in the award.

Costs payable by the claimant may be deducted from the compensation payable to the claimant under the award; and if such costs exceed the compensation payable, the award shall be for the payment by the claimant of the amount of such excess.

No award of a Compensation Court shall be void through any error or omission in matter of form.

The Court shall make its award in writing, which shall be drawn up and signed by the President as soon as conveniently may be after the making thereof; and the President shall deliver or transmit the same to the Registrar of the Supreme Court, to be by him filed in the said Court.

The Court may, within one month after making the award, reverse, alter, or modify the same; and may hear such evidence and make such order as to costs or otherwise as the Court may deem just.

Such award shall be final as regards the amount awarded, but shall not be deemed to be final as regards the right or title of the claimant or any other person to receive the same or any part thereof.

But if the sum awarded is not paid into the Public Trust Office, under paragraph (a) of section seventy-eight hereof, within sixty days after the filing of the award in the Supreme Court, the award so made and filed shall have the effect of a judgment of the Supreme Court, and may be enforced accordingly, subject, however, to the provisions of this Act.

If any doubt or dispute arise as to the right or title of any person to receive any compensation awarded under this Act, or any purchase-money or compensation agreed to be paid by the Minister or a local authority under this Act,—

Procedure when purchase-money paid into Public Trust Office.

Order as to costs.

If compensation is awarded or has been agreed to be paid as last aforesaid in respect of lands or any interest therein taken from any person having a partial or qualified interest only in such lands, and not entitled to sell or convey the same, or in respect of any permanent injury done to such lands, such compensation shall be dealt with as follows, that is to say:—

But the provisions of this section shall not be deemed to prevent any person who has a partial or other qualified interest in land to which interest he is solely entitled, and which he may absolutely sell or dispose of, from receiving any compensation in respect of such interest to which he may be declared entitled under any award, or which has been agreed to be paid to him as aforesaid.

Until any compensation deposited in the Public Trust Office under this Act is applied as provided by the last preceding section hereof, the Public Trustee shall invest the same upon investments upon which any moneys in the Public Trust Office may by law be invested, and shall pay the annual proceeds thereof to the party for the time being entitled to the rents and profits of the lands in respect of which such compensation was awarded.

If the land in respect of which compensation is awarded is subject to a mortgage, such compensation, or so much thereof as is required for the purpose, shall, upon the application of the mortgagee, be paid in discharge of the mortgage debt, or of part thereof, so far as the compensation will go; and if such land is a part of lands subject to a mortgage debt, and the mortgagee requires a part of such debt to be discharged, the Court shall determine what part of the compensation shall be paid in discharge of part of the mortgage debt, so that the remaining part of the mortgaged lands shall constitute as good security as theretofore for the part of the mortgage debt remaining undischarged.

The words “mortgage debt” in this section shall include the interest payable on such mortgage up to six months beyond the day on which notice was received by the mortgagee of the lands affected being taken under this Act.

If the said land is subject to any rent-charge, the Court shall determine what part of such compensation shall be paid to the party entitled to such rent-charge in redemption thereof; and if the said land is part of land subject to any rent-charge, the Court shall determine what part of such rent-charge shall be redeemed and what part of such compensation shall be paid in the redemption thereof, so that the remaining part of the lands subject to such rent-charge shall be as good security as theretofore for the part of the rent-charge remaining unredeemed.

The expression “rent-charge” includes “annuity.”

If the said land is part of land in respect of which any rent is payable, the Court shall determine what part of such rent shall cease to be payable, so that the remaining rent payable shall bear the same proportion to the whole rent as the value of the land in respect of which compensation is awarded bears to the value of the whole land.

In any case where the amount of compensation or purchase-money to be paid to any person has been or may hereafter be determined by agreement between such person and the Minister, the Minister may agree to grant to such person, his heirs, executors, administrators, assigns, and successors, any easement, right of way, right of occupation, or any other right, privilege, or concession in, upon, over, or under any land taken or reserved for the purpose of any public work, in satisfaction or part satisfaction or mitigation of the compensation claimed by such person:

Provided that no such agreement shall be of any validity at law or in equity until notice of the assent of the Minister thereto has been duly gazetted.

In any case where the amount of compensation to be paid to any claimant has been or may hereafter be determined by the Court, the respondent may offer, and the Court may award to the claimant, his executors, administrators, assigns, and successors, in satisfaction or part satisfaction or mitigation of the compensation claimed, any easement, right of way, right of occupation, or any other right, privilege, or concession in, upon, over, or under any land taken or reserved for the purpose of any public work; and the Compensation Court may, by its award, declare which (if any) of such easements, rights, privileges, or concessions so offered shall be granted to the claimant in satisfaction or part satisfaction or mitigation of his claim to compensation.

In payment or satisfaction or in part payment or satisfaction of the compensation payable for any land which has been or which may hereafter be taken, purchased, or acquired, or for any damage done or which may hereafter be done by reason of the construction or use of a public work, the Governor may grant to the person entitled any Crown land or any land reserved or taken, purchased, or acquired for the use, convenience, or enjoyment of the said public work, but which is not required for such public work:

Provided that, before such land is conveyed, the Minister shall certify that the land to be conveyed has been valued by a competent person, and that the total value (with money compensation, if any) does not amount to more than the sum which would be paid by the Government for the land taken, purchased, or acquired and the damage done if compensation for the same were made wholly in money in the usual way.

Moneys payable as compensation or as costs under this Act shall,—

but neither the Minister nor any member of a local authority shall be personally liable for any compensation or costs which may become payable under this Act.

Notwithstanding anything contained in any law in force to the contrary, any Native land and any land owned by Natives under title derived from the Crown may be taken for any public work in manner hereinafter provided.

Whenever it may be necessary to take any such land for any public work other than a railway or than for defence purposes the following provisions shall apply:—

Title not derived from Crown.

Title derived from Crown.

Whenever it may be necessary to take any such land for any railway authorised to be constructed under the provisions of any special Act, or for defence purposes, whether the land to be taken is Native land or the title thereto is derived from the Crown, such land may be taken for any such railway in the manner prescribed in Part VII. of this Act, and, for defence purposes, in the manner prescribed in Part IX. of this Act.

For the purpose of ascertaining the amount of compensation to be paid to the Natives interested in any Native land, or to the Native owners of any land held or owned under title derived from the Crown, the following provisions shall apply:—