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 For a traveller to
known, the
law in New Zealand is similar to Australian law.
The law courses are about the same except for
the part that refers to indigenous people. The
biggest difference between the Law of Australia
and New Zealand, is that New Zealand has a very
simple federal Law, which is the same for the
entire country, while Australia has also a
federal Law, but it is complemented by states
law, which are different from state to state,
especially when talking about traffic Laws.
Australia follows more or less the USA system,
while New Zealand when to the KISS principle.
The Maori people
also are allowed to follow the traditions of
theirs ancestors since the Waitangi Treat. Each
chief or elders of a community can impose
theirs customs, traditions, and village
rules to the young in theirs home or village to
follow, but anyway, the federal Law prevails to
everybody in New Zealand. It is important to
remind that New Zealand has the same justice
system of most occidental countries in the
world, meaning, everybody ifs free and innocent
until someone have a proof in court that the
person is guilty of committing an offence or
crime. Usually is a Police task to become the
prosecutor in court.
Offences and Breaking the Law will certainly call a fine or a penalty. Depending on
the offence, the person may be invited to attend
a Court of Law, were the Judge can declare the
person not guilty, or fine the person according
to how serious the infringement was. This
penalty can be just an order to pay the fine, or
the Judge can order a jail term for the
infractor. As an example, someone driving a car
at 120 Km/h on a 50 km/h street, can be
sentenced to a jail term, loss of license, and a
huge fine at the same time. On the top of that,
the Magistrate can even order the person to pay
for all the Court costs. Meaning, one has to
Think a thousand times before even think of
breaking the law in New Zealand. Just to make it
clear how seriously the law is taken, the
country has been known as one at the top of the
less corrupt country in the world. Bribes in
general, tax evasion, fraud, and some others
outlaw procedures are not tolerated in New
Zealand's judicial system.
The Immigration Department also has the power to
send an infractor to court, jail, or expel any
person that didn't comply with the rules of the
Visa which was given. Tourists working without
the appropriated Visa can be fined and deported
out of New Zealand. In this case the person
deported may have a penalty of a waiting period
before be able to apply again for any kind of
Visa to enter New Zealand. Another point to pay
attention is not to overstay your Visa. Yes, if
you didn't notice the expiration date of your
Visa and stay longer than that, at the time you
decide to leave New Zealand you may be asked to
pay a very heavy fine. Do not hesitate to
contact the Immigration Department for any Visa
matter. The guys there are very friendly and
will try to help you to solve your problem under
the law, but will not hesitate to give you a
penalty if you get out of the rail.
Fines in
New Zealand are heavy, but in my point of view
could be even higher for certain offences.
Speeding in certain roads, in front of schools,
in residential areas, drinking and driving,
should have a much tough penalties. Also, there
are people working for the Council called Council
Officers, whom can apply fines such as
prohibit parking, dispense cigarette butts on
the streets, and many more. There are some
offences, which the fine is applied on the spot.
If you don't agree to a fine for any reason, you
can talk to the issuer about the offence,
explaining why you didn't know about it before,
and they (Under their) discretion waive the
penalty. If you don't pay a fine in the time
given, this fine may grow to a point that you
are going to have to sell an arm to pay for it.
Most
common offence in New Zealand:
-
Drink
& Drive.
-
Speeding.
-
Not
wearing a seat belt inside a vehicle.
-
Drive
while talking on the mobile phone.
-
Drive
in a way that puts your life or others people's life
in risk.
-
Parking
in a No Parking zone.
-
Blow
the time, or not putting enough coins in a Parking
meter.
-
Agreetion
or domestic violence.
-
Agressão
física e violência doméstica.
-
Drug
trafficing and drug use.
-
Trespassing
private property.
Note:
The page about Law in
Australia complements this one.
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