A deed must be—

An individual executes a deed if—

A body corporate executes a deed if—

A body corporate executes a deed if it executes the deed as provided in any other enactment relating to the execution of a deed by the body corporate.

A body corporate not incorporated by or under the law of New Zealand may execute a deed other than in accordance with subsections (3) and (4) if the mode of execution would be authorised by the law of the place in which the body corporate is incorporated were the deed executed in that place and governed by that law.

The Crown executes a deed if—

A witness—

No particular form of words is required for the purposes of subsection (7)(c).

A deed is binding when—

A deed that has been delivered comes into force,—

The rule of law that a deed becomes invalid if there is a material alteration after its execution is abolished.

Subsection (1) does not validate an alteration if it is invalid for another reason.

An attorney executing a deed must be appointed by deed.

This section applies to any contract or other obligation entered into by a body corporate if—

A contract or other obligation may be entered into as follows:

This section prevails over any other enactment.

A deed expressed to be supplementary to a previous deed or directed to be read as an annex to a previous deed must be read, and has effect, as if it were endorsed on the previous deed or contained a full recital of the previous deed.

A receipt for consideration in the body of a deed has the same effect as if the receipt had been endorsed on the deed.

Subsection (1) applies to avoid doubt.

Any rule of law inconsistent with subsection (1) is abolished.

An appointment to be made by deed or writing (but not a will) is valid if it is executed in accordance with the requirements for the execution of a deed.

Subsection (1) applies even though the instrument conferring the power of appointment requires some additional or other formality.

A disclaimer of land is not valid unless it is made by deed or by order of a court.

A court—

Subsection (1) applies to deeds coming into operation only on or after 1 January 2008.

Anything done by or to an attorney on behalf of the donor of a power of attorney has the same effect as if it had been done by or to the donor if—

Subsection (1) applies subject to subsection (3) and section 12.

An instrument executed by an attorney on behalf of the donor of a power of attorney must—

A power of attorney continues in force until notice of an event revoking the power is received by the attorney.

Subsection (1) applies unless the power of attorney provides otherwise.

A person dealing with an attorney may rely on a certificate of non-revocation of the power of attorney in the form set out in Schedule 1 as conclusive proof of the non-revocation of the power of attorney as at the date of the certificate if—

A person who knowingly gives a false certificate under subsection (3) commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000.

If the power of attorney is an enduring power of attorney within the meaning of Part 9 of the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988,—

Subsections (2) and (3) apply in favour of a purchaser.

An irrevocable power of attorney given for valuable consideration is not revoked by notice of an event that would otherwise revoke the power of attorney if the notice is received when the power of attorney cannot be revoked.

An irrevocable power of attorney not given for valuable consideration is not revoked by notice of an event that would otherwise revoke the power of attorney if the notice is received during—

In this section,—

A person who is 18 years old or older but under 20 years old may do 1 or more of the following:

Anything done by a person under subsection (1) has the same effect as if the person were 20 years old.

In an instrument, unless the context otherwise requires,—

In an instrument, unless the context otherwise requires,—

A contract for the disposition of land is not enforceable by action unless—

In this section, disposition does not include—

A disposition of any of the following must be in writing and signed by the person making the disposition:

A trust must be created in writing and signed by the settlor if—

This section does not apply to a short-term lease.

This section does not affect—

Sections 24 and 25 do not affect the operation of the law relating to part performance.

This section applies to contracts of guarantee coming into operation on or after 1 January 2008.

A contract of guarantee must be—

Subsection (2) does not require the consideration for a contract of guarantee to be in writing or to appear by necessary implication from a writing.

In this section, contract of guarantee means a contract under which a person agrees to answer to another person for the debt, default, or liability of a third person.

An acknowledgement in writing by a creditor, or by any person authorised by the creditor in writing, of the receipt of a part of the creditor’s debt in satisfaction of the whole debt operates as a discharge of the debt.

This section applies despite anything to the contrary in any rule of law.

This section applies—

The vendor may exercise the right to cancel the agreement—

This subsection has been complied with if—

The 2 ways (referred to in subsection (2)(b) and in section 29(2)(b)) of exercising the right to cancel the agreement are—

The notice required by section 28(3)(a) must adequately inform the purchaser of the following matters relating to the remedying of the breach complained of by the vendor:

The notice required by section 28(3)(a) must also adequately inform the purchaser of the following matters:

The notice required by section 28(3)(a) is not invalid, and does not prevent the purchaser from offering an amount as reasonable compensation for the breach, solely because all or any of the following apply to the notice:

Section 28 does not prevent a vendor from claiming, or affect the amount which the vendor may claim by way of, damages for the breach of—

A term has no effect if it—

A purchaser may apply to a court for relief against cancellation of an agreement for the sale and purchase of land only if—

The application may be made either in the proceeding on the vendor’s application for an order for possession (the possession order proceeding), or in a separate proceeding brought for the purpose by the purchaser—

The court may, on the application, grant any relief against cancellation, on any conditions, it thinks fit.

In particular, the court may grant relief under this section even though either or both of the following apply:

No relief against the cancellation of an agreement for the sale and purchase of land can be granted otherwise than under the powers given by section 33.

An application under section 33 must not, in itself, be taken as an admission by the purchaser that—

A court may grant relief under section 33 without determining all or any of the things in subsection (1).

A term has no effect if it—

This section applies to an agreement for the sale and purchase of land if—

The purchaser may apply to a court for relief under this section in respect of the agreement.

On the application, the court may make an order doing all or any of the following in respect of the agreement:

The granting of relief under section 37 in respect of an agreement for the sale and purchase of land does not deprive the vendor of any right to claim damages from the purchaser for the failure to perform the agreement.

However, a court awarding damages against the purchaser for the failure to perform the agreement must take into account any relief granted under section 37.

A term has no effect if it—

This section applies to an agreement for the sale and purchase of a leasehold estate or interest in land if the vendor produces for the purchaser a copy of a receipt for the payment of the instalment of rent under the lease or sublease last due before the time of settlement.

The purchaser must, in the absence of evidence to the contrary and unless the agreement provides otherwise, treat the copy of the receipt as establishing that the following have been done so far as they are required to be done up to the time of settlement:

This section applies to an agreement for the sale and purchase of land comprised in a register or record of title that—

The vendor must, before the time of settlement, and unless the agreement provides otherwise,—

This section applies to a person who acquires property, for valuable consideration and without fraud or notice of fraud, from some other person who became entitled to the property under an order of a court.

The person’s title to the property is not, and does not become, invalid solely because of a defect (whether known to the person or not) in either or both of the following:

This subsection applies to an electronic instrument—

On the production, through an electronic workspace facility, of an electronic instrument to which subsection (1) applies, the person liable under the contract to pay or give the money or other consideration may, without further authority than the instrument, pay or give the money or other consideration to the practitioner who gave the certification.

This subsection applies to a paper instrument—

On the production by a practitioner of an instrument to which subsection (3) applies, the person liable to pay the money or give the other consideration referred to in the receipt may, without further authority than the instrument, pay or give to the practitioner that money or consideration.

In this section,—

This section applies to a periodical payment in respect of a fixed or ascertainable period (whether the payment is reserved or made payable under an instrument or not).

The payment must be regarded as accruing from day to day, and is apportionable in respect of time accordingly, as to both—

Subsection (2) does not apply if a contrary intention is expressed in an instrument.

An apportioned part of a periodical payment is payable and recoverable,—

A person entitled to an apportioned part of a periodical payment—

Subsection (2) is subject to section 47(2).

Rent from property, if payable in advance in respect of a period, is apportionable as between the parties to—

A proceeding for the recovery of rent reserved out of, or charged upon, land may be brought only by the person who, if the rent had not been apportioned, would have been entitled to the entire rent, but that person is liable for the apportioned part to the person entitled to it under the apportionment.

Rent, in this section, includes—

Subsection (2) overrides section 46(2).

In this subpart, unless the context otherwise requires,—

This subpart applies to an assignment of a thing in action made only on or after 1 January 2008.

A thing in action that is not capable of being assigned cannot be assigned under this subpart.

However, subsection (2) applies subject to section 53.

This subpart does not affect the application of section 18.

If only part of a thing in action is assigned, the rights and obligations under this subpart of the assignor, the assignee, and the debtor relate only to the part assigned.

The absolute assignment in writing of a legal or equitable thing in action, signed by the assignor, passes to the assignee—

Subsection (1) applies whether or not the assignment is given for valuable consideration.

Subsection (1) applies subject to—

The priority of an assignment to which subsection (1) applies and which is not given for valuable consideration is to be determined as if the assignment had been given for valuable consideration.

A legal or equitable thing in action is to be treated as having been assigned in equity (whether the assignment is oral or in writing) if—

Subsection (5)—

An assignment to which subsection (5) applies is complete when the assignor has done everything that needs to be done by the assignor to transfer to the assignee (whether absolutely, conditionally, or by way of charge) the rights of the assignor in relation to the thing in action.

Subsection (7) applies even though some other thing may remain to be done, without the intervention or assistance of the assignor, in order to confer title to the rights on the assignee.

This section applies to a thing in action assigned in accordance with section 50(1) or in equity.

Payment of all or part of the debt to the assignor by a debtor who does not have actual notice of the assignment discharges the debtor to the extent of the payment.

The debt owing by a debtor who has actual notice of the assignment is payable to the assignee.

However, the debt is payable to another assignee if,—

A debtor may interplead in any proceeding brought against the debtor for the payment of the debt, or apply to a court for an order determining the entitlement to any right in relation to a thing in action, if the debtor has actual notice—

The registration of an assignment under an enactment does not, of itself, give actual notice of the assignment to the debtor.

Subsection (1) overrides anything to the contrary in the enactment under which the assignment is registered.

Joint debtors have actual notice of the assignment of a thing in action or of any matter referred to in section 51 if any of them has actual notice of the assignment or matter.

The assignor must be joined in any proceeding brought by the assignee against the debtor if—

For the purposes of subsection (4), an assignor may be joined in proceedings—

An assignment of an amount that will or may be payable in the future under a right already possessed by the assignor (whether the right arises before, on, or after 1 January 2008) is to be treated as an assignment of a thing in action.

In this subpart, debt and payment of a debt have the same meanings as in section 48.

Every person (person A) who pays the debt of another person (being surety for the debt or liable with another person for the debt) is entitled to have assigned to person A, or a trustee for person A, every judgment, specialty, or other security held by the creditor in respect of the debt.

Subsection (1) applies whether the judgment, specialty, or other security is or is not deemed at law to be satisfied by the payment of the debt.

Person A is entitled to stand in the place of the creditor, and to use all the remedies, and if need be, and upon a proper indemnity, to use the name of the creditor in any civil proceedings in order to obtain from the principal debtor or any co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debtor, as the case may be, indemnification for the advances made and loss sustained by person A in paying the debt.

The payment by person A may not be pleaded as a defence against any action or other proceeding by person A referred to in subsection (1).

In this section, person A means the person referred to as person A in section 53B.

A co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debtor is not entitled to recover from any other co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debtor (person B) by the means referred to in section 53C more than the proportion to which, as between those parties themselves, person B is liable.

This section applies to an instrument (whether coming into operation before, on, or after 1 January 2008) if—

The following provisions apply to an instrument:

Subsection (2) applies to avoid doubt.

In this section, no registration clause means—

Two or more persons beneficially entitled to property as tenants in common may, by deed, declare that they are joint tenants of the property.

A declaration made under subsection (1) takes effect on and from the date of the declaration.

A person may dispose of an estate or interest in property to himself, herself, or itself, alone or jointly with some other person.

A disposition to which subsection (1) applies is enforceable in the same manner as a disposition to another person.

A Crown grant of land, or a record of title having the force and effect of a Crown grant of land, whether issued before, on, or after 1 January 2008, for an estate in fee simple confers on the person named in the Crown grant or the record of title a right of freehold tenure (free and common socage) without any incident of tenure for the benefit of the Crown.

An estate in fee simple is transferable, and has always been transferable, without the permission of the Crown or the need to make any payment to the Crown.

An instrument purporting to create, transfer, or assign an estate in fee simple in any land subject to the reservation to the person executing the instrument of an estate in fee simple (subinfeudation) continues to create, transfer, or assign an estate in fee simple without any such reservation.

The following may not be created or done:

In an instrument coming into operation on or after 1 January 1953, words which, before that date, would have created an estate tail are to be treated as creating an estate in fee simple.

Words in an instrument which, but for the abolition of the rule of law known as the rule in Shelley’s case (by section 5(1)(a) of the Property Law Amendment Act 1951 and section 22 of the Property Law Act 1952), would have operated to give a person an interest in fee simple are to be treated as words of purchase and not of limitation.

Estates and interests in property may be created that take effect at a future time.

Subsection (1) applies subject to the rule against perpetuities and the Perpetuities Act 1964.

The legal doctrine of interesse termini is abolished.

A lessee acquires an estate in the land at the time fixed for the commencement of the lease, whether or not the lessee enters into possession of the land at that time.

Subsection (2) applies subject to sections 24 and 36 of the Land Transfer Act 2017.

Subsection (3) does not limit section 8.

An estate for life may be created in relation to a leasehold estate in land.

Every estate, interest, or right in property that can be created or disposed of may be created or disposed of by an individual—

However, subsection (1) does not make a joint tenancy severable by will.

A contingent remainder or contingent interest in land may follow a leasehold estate in the land.

A contingent remainder or contingent interest in land, expressed to take effect on the ending of a preceding estate in the land, does not become void because the preceding estate ends before the occurrence of the event or the fulfilment of the condition on which the contingent remainder or contingent interest depends.

Different estates in land vested in the same person do not merge if the estates are separated by the contingent remainder or contingent interest in the land of some other person.

In this section, contingent remainder or contingent interest means a remainder or interest that depends on—

This section applies if—

The gift over ceases to be capable of taking effect as soon as there is issue, or a member of the specified class of issue, who attains the age of 20 years.

Subsection (2) applies even if the issue may subsequently fail.

In this section, gift over includes a gift over expressed to take effect on the ending of an estate or interest preceding that of the person whose estate or interest is the subject of the gift over.

This section applies—

Subsection (3) applies to an instrument conferring an estate or interest in property on—

The instrument is to be treated as conferring the estate or interest on the persons who, on the intestacy of the person referred to in subsection (2), would take beneficially under the Administration Act 1969, and in the same shares.

Subsection (5) applies to an instrument conferring an estate or interest in property on the heir or heirs of the body of a person.

The instrument is to be treated as conferring the estate or interest on the person who would take beneficially on the intestacy of the person referred to in subsection (4) in accordance with a direction under the Administration Act 1969 to hold the person’s property for the issue of the intestate on the statutory trusts.

Subsection (7) applies to an instrument conferring an estate or interest in property on—

The instrument is to be treated as conferring the estate or interest on the male or female issue of the person (as the case may be) who would take beneficially on the intestacy of the person in accordance with a direction under the Administration Act 1969 to hold the person’s property for the issue of the intestate on the statutory trusts.

This section applies to an interest in property—

The interest in the property carries the income from the property that accumulates during the period—

This section applies subject to the instrument making some other provision for the disposition of income during that period.

A vendor of land has no legal or equitable lien over the land because of unpaid purchase money.

A life tenant or a lessee of land is liable in damages for the tort of voluntary waste and the tort of equitable waste to the person entitled to the reversion or remainder expectant on the estate for life or the lease.

Subsection (1) applies unless the liability is excluded by an express or implied term of the grant of the estate for life or the lease.

However, liability for equitable waste—

A co-owner of land is liable in damages to the other co-owners of the land for any loss arising from an act or omission that would be the tort of voluntary waste or of equitable waste if done or omitted by a life tenant or lessee.

The tort of permissive waste is abolished.

This section applies if an encumbrance over land securing a rentcharge is released in relation to part of the land.

The rentcharge remains secured by the encumbrance over the residue of the land.

If the owner of the residue is not the owner of the part released and has not consented to the release, the owner of the residue is entitled (in relation to the rentcharge) to the same contribution from the owner of the part released as would have been payable by that owner if there had been no release.

If a body corporate has power to acquire and hold property, the body corporate may acquire and hold property as a joint tenant with 1 or more individuals or other bodies corporate.

If a body corporate is a joint tenant of property, its interest as joint tenant devolves on the surviving joint tenant in the following cases:

This section—

This section—

The person who can exercise a power may—

The release of a power extinguishes the power.

If a power is disclaimed—

Subsection (4)(b) applies subject to the terms of the instrument creating the power.

If an instrument creates a power to appoint property among several objects, the power may be exercised—

Subsection (1) applies subject to the terms of the instrument creating the power.

If relief in respect of any payment that has been made under mistake is sought in any court (whether in civil proceedings or by way of defence, set-off, counterclaim, or otherwise) and that relief could be granted if the mistake were wholly one of fact, that relief must not be denied by reason only that the mistake is one of law, whether or not it is in any degree also one of fact.

Nothing in this section enables relief to be given in respect of any payment made at a time when the law required, or allowed, or was commonly understood to require or allow, the payment to be made or enforced, by reason only that the law was subsequently changed or shown not to have been as it was commonly understood to have been at the time of the payment.

Relief, whether under section 74A or in equity or otherwise, in respect of any payment made under mistake, whether of law or of fact, must be denied wholly or in part if the person from whom relief is sought received the payment in good faith and has so altered his or her position in reliance on the validity of the payment that in the opinion of the court, having regard to all possible implications in respect of other persons, it is inequitable to grant relief, or to grant relief in full, as the case may be.