ISSUE
COMMUNITY LEGAL SERVICES SOUTH TRUST
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LEGAL LOWDOWN
April 2015
ANZAC DAY 2015 ANZAC is the term used for a soldier in the Australia New Zealand Army Corps. Anzac Day occurs on 25 April. It commemorates all New Zealanders killed in war and also honours returned servicemen and women. The date itself marks the anniversary of the landing of New Zealand and Australian soldiers on the Gallipoli Peninsula in 1915. 2779 New Zealanders lost their lives in the Gallipoli campaign”Ka maumahara tonu tatou ki a ratou - Lest we forget” “MONDAYISED” PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ANZAC day is a public holiday. In 2015, ANZAC day will be “Mondayised” which means that, although ANZAC day will fall on a Saturday, New Zealand will observe the public holiday, the following Monday (28 April 2015)for employees who would not otherwise work on that Saturday or Sunday. This became law under the Holidays (Full Recognition of Waitangi Day and ANZAC Day) Amendment Act 2013 and also applies to Waitangi Day. ANZAC EMPLOYMENT ENTITLEMENTS Despite ANZAC day being “Mondayised”, for employees who would normally otherwise work on the Saturday, the public holiday must still be observed on that day. If a place of employment closes for ANZAC day, employees who would usually work that day must still be paid their regular holiday pay.
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PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ANZAC
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CLEAN SLATE ACT
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RANGATAHI COURTS
If the place of employment remains open on ANZAC day, employees are entitled to at least time and a half pay and a whole day’s alternative holiday (day in lieu) at a later date. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment have some helpful information about holiday pay entitlements on their website ANZAC TRADING RESTRICTIONS The Shop Trading Hours Act Repeal Act 1990 (“STHA”) provides that (unless your business is exempt) every shop must remained closed until 1pm on ANZAC day. Information on shops permitted to stay open on ANZAC day can be found at s 4 of the STHA Any shop owner/operator who breaches this restriction will be liable, on conviction, for a fine not exceeding $1,000. NOTE TO EMPLOYERS Attending commemorative ANZAC services may be important to your staff. Please take this into consideration when arranging working rosters for ANZAC day this year. For more information, please see the links in this article or below:
Sources: New Zealand History website & Business.govt.nz
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UNINVITED DIRECT SALES
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LEGAL LENS Guarantor
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CLEAN SLATE SCHEME CRIMINAL RECORDS (CLEAN SLATE) ACT 2004 CRIMINAL RECORDS (CLEAN SLATE) ACT 2004
Exceptions
The Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004 (“the Act”) came into force in November 2004. The purpose of the Act was to “limit the effect of an individual’s convictions in most circumstances if the relevant criteria is satisfied, through being deemed to have either no criminal record or have the right to conceal criminal record if asked”.
It is important to note that there are a number of exceptions
Eligibility The Act applies to those who have:
provided for under the Act where disclosure of convictions, that would otherwise be concealed, is necessary: For the exercise of prevention, de-
“allow low level offenders to conceal their convictions”
NOT had any convictions within the past 7 years; and Never been sentenced to a prison term (custodial sentence); and Never been ordered by a Court, at the end of a criminal case, to be held in a hospital because of a mental condition, instead of being sentenced; and Never been convicted of any of the sexual offences listed in the Act (most of which involve sexual offending against children or young people); and Paid all fines, reparations or costs that you’ve been ordered to pay by the criminal courts; and Never been indefinitely disqualified from driving under the Land Transport Act 1998 (or earlier Act).
tection, investigation, or prosecution functions of a law enforcement agency or overseas agency; or
Where an individual has applied under the Arms Act 1983 and Police must consider whether the individual is fit for the application; or Where an individual has applied for employment in a position of national security in New Zealand or as a Justice of the Peace, Community Magistrate;, Police employee or prison/probation/security officer; or Where an individual applies for a role involving care and protection of children or young person (e.g. foster parent or caregiver).
For all the exceptions, see s19 of Act Overseas,
If you are convicted again within 7 years of your last conviction, the Act will not apply to you. You will need to wait another 7 years for the Act to apply.
“Clean Slate Scheme only applies in NZ”
Immigration
&
Visas
(exceptions) The Act only applies in New Zealand and does not affect border requirements of overseas jurisdictions (laws in other
How does it apply?
countries). This means that, if another Country requires de-
The Act is an “automatic scheme” which means that no formal application is required for the provisions of the Act to occur. If an individual is eligible, his or her convictions will automatically be concealed. If an individual is not eligible, his or her convictions will remain on their criminal record.
tails of an individuals convictions to be disclosed, then they will be disclosed. An example of when this might happen is when a person wants to apply for a visa to visit another country, the foreign country may refuse entry to the visa applicant, because of their convictions. For more information on the clean slate scheme and how it
A person may obtain a copy of their criminal record from the Ministry of Justice. A request form can be downloaded via the following link: http://www.justice.govt.nz/services/ criminal-records/forms/request-by-individual.pdf
works, please see the Ministry of Justice website. They have information, in several languages, that will be helpful in understanding the scheme.
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YOUTH
INTERACTIVE YOUTH RESOURCES DEALING WITH PROBLEMS AT SCHOOL We have created more online interactive youth resources, which can be accessed via our website.
Our updated resources cover stand-down periods and truancy.
To access all our interactive youth resources, follow the links below:
STAND-DOWN PERIODS
TRUANCY
EMPLOYMENT
TENANCY
CONSUMER
For more information about youth rights and responsibilities please see the Community Law Manual.
If you have any legal issues regarding youth rights, please contact our office. 3
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NGĀ TAKE MĀORI
Issues affecting Māori communities NGA KOOTI RANGATAHI: Young people appearing in the Rangatahi Courts Kua tohaina e te Minita mo nga kooti, etahi tatauranga e pa ana ki nga rangatahi kua tau ki mua I te Kooti Rangatahi, mai I te orokohanga o tenei kaupapa. Ka whakaatu enei tatauranga I te nui o nga mahi kei nga kooti o te rohe whanui o Tamaki. The first Rangatahi Court was established at Te Poho o Rawiri Marae in Gisborne, in 2008. Now there are 12 Rangatahi Courts in total, throughout New Zealand.
The table, below, provides the figures of youth who have appeared, for the first time, in a Rangatahi Court within the wider Auckland area. We have also included statistics for the Te Poho o Rawiri Rangatahi Court, for comparative purposes. Rangatahi Courts were established to reduce reoffending by Maori youth and to provide the best possible rehabilitative response, by encouraging strong cultural links and meaningful involvement of whanau, hapu and iwi in the youth justice process.
TE POHO O RAWIRI MARAE (Gisborne) Established May 2008
MANUREWA MARAE (Manukau) Established September 2009
HOANI WAITITI MARAE (Waitakere) Established March 2010
ORAKEI MARAE (Auckland) Established June 2010
PUKEKOHE RANGATAHI (Pukekohe) Established September 2011
PAPAKURA RANGATAHI (Papakura) Established October 2011
201
Youth appearances
230
Youth appearances
155
Youth appearances
75
Youth appearances
26
Youth appearances
54
Youth appearances
*statistics are current as at 28 February 2015—source: New Zealand Law Society 5
PASEFIKA ISSUES UNINVITED DIRECT SALES – Part II Faatauga Tuu-sao E Le’i Vala’aulia O le auala masani ete faatau ai se oloa po’o se auaunaga a se kamupani o le faatino lea o le faatau i le fale-oloa po’o le ofisa o le kamupani. Peitai, e i ai taimi e afea ai pe telefoni atu foi se faatau-oloa i lou laoa po’o lou maota, e faatau atu ia te oe sa latou oloa po’o se auaunaga. O faatauga oloa po’o auaunaga e le sili atu ma le $100 e faatino i lou laoa po’o lou maota e tau lea i le tulafono o le “Faatauga Tuu-sao e le’i Vala’aulia”. E tatau ona faautagia e faatau oloa aiaiga o le tulafono e faasino i faatauga tuu-sao e le’i vala’aulia i le taimi o feutagaiga ma le faatinoina o le faatauga. O se faamatalaga lenei e faaau’au ai le faamatalaga toe faamanatu o tulaga masani e faasino i faatauga tuu-sao e le’i vala’aulia sa amataina i le lomiga ua tuanai. CANCELLATION In our last edition, we wrote about uninvited direct sales (“UDS”). We covered in general terms some unique features of an uninvited direct sale. a salesperson on behalf of a supplier (referred here as “the company”), turns up at your home or office uninvited, or telephones you without invitation, with the sole purpose of selling you a good or service on behalf of the company; if the uninvited salesperson makes a sale s/he must give you written evidence of the sale, referred here as the Uninvited Direct Sale Contract (“the UDS Contract”); the UDS Contract must be in plain language, written clearly, signed and must include in the front page the following information: Clear description of the sale, i.e. the goods or services supplied; Summary of your rights to cancel; Total price payable or the method in which the total price is calculated In this edition, we will write more about cancellation. We will cover when and how to cancel a UDS Contract, and the effect of cancellation of the USD Contract. So, when can you cancel a UDS Contract? You may cancel the UDS Contract as follows: You have the right to cancel (for whatever reason) your sale within the first 5 working days after the date you received a copy of the UDS Contract (regardless of whether your UDS Contract was made at home, office or over the phone). For example, you change your mind after you signed the UDS Contract but you can only cancel if you changed your mind within the first 5 days after receiving your copy of the UDS Contract.
You have the right to cancel your sale at any time if the uninvited salesperson failed to give you a copy of the UDS Contract (i) at the time the UDS Contract was made face to face, or (ii) within 5 working days after the date a UDS Contract was made over the phone. In addition to the above cancellation rights under the act, a UDS Contract would normally state that the good will be delivered within 21 days after you complete payment of the total price of the good. You will have the right to cancel if delivery is not affected within 21 days. How do you go about cancelling your UDS Contract? You must give notice of cancellation. The notice could be verbal or in writing. We strongly advise written cancellation and use any form that may have been given to you to communicate your intention to cancel. Your notice of cancellation must show a clear intention to cancel the UDS Contract. IMPORTANT – You must transmit or give your written notice to cancel to the company’s street address or email address unless the company and you have agreed otherwise. If your purported cancellation is ineffective, you will be bound by the terms of the UDS Contract and will be expected to perform them all. What happens when the UDS Contract is cancelled? A cancelled UDS Contract has no effect and is unenforceable. This means you are no longer required to pay any more money to the company and on the other hand the company must return to you all money you have paid. The company must immediately pay back to you all money paid under the UDS Contract. When the company has paid you all money after cancellation you must: allow the company to take possession of the good, and you must take reasonable care of the good until the good is collected by the company. If you do not take reasonable care of the good and the good is damaged while in your care (before the company takes possession), the company may seek compensation against you. If the company has not immediately paid you all money after cancellation, you are not obligated to allow the company to take possession of the good or take reasonable care of the good. If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us Happy shopping
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LEGAL LENS
The law through public eyes
LEGAL LENS The purpose of the legal lens is to gauge public perception & knowledge of the law and identify areas where CLSST can inform and educate communities on specific legal issues. Very often legal issues are “lost in translation” and it is the aim of the legal lens to present the law in a simple and easy way, so that it is more understandable to the lay person.
BECOMING A GUARANTOR This month our Legal Lens looks at becoming a Guarantor Please click on the link below to watch this month’s Legal Lens:
For past episodes of our Legal Lens, please visit our Youtube channel
Thank you for watching.
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Legal Education LEGAL EDUCATION Our legal education sessions are part of our preventative services which aim to reduce the number of legal disputes occurring in our communities.
UPCOMING SESSIONS
LEGAL LUNCHBOX FREE Legal Education
Through our legal education services, we seek to inform, and educate the community on their legal rights and responsibilities in relation to various legal topics. It is also an opportunity for individuals to ask questions about specific areas of law they may not understand. For more information on our Legal Education sessions visit the education tab on our website to download/view our education booklet or contact us on (09) 274 4966
EMPLOYMENT LAW Week 1: Employment Law Overview Week 2: Minimum Entitlements Week 3: Redundancy & Dismissal Week 4: Personal Grievances & Resolving Disputes Papakura: May 5, 13, 20 & 27
Legal Services
ON AIR We currently have 2 on-air legal information slots which are part of our preventative services. We provide these services every Wednesday. Each week we look at a different area of law. The details of our on-air services are as follows:
CARE OF CHILDREN LAW Week 1: Care of Children Act 2004 Week 2: Parenting & Guardianship Week 3: Non-Removal Orders & The Hague Convention Week 4: Family Justice System Papakura: June 3, 10, 17 & 24
Planet FM: Kiribati Voice, from 1:00pm Radio 531pi: Pacific Drive Time, from 2:00pm
To listen to our on-air services, tune in, live via the links below:
Send in your news If you have any news or notices, please send them to newsletter@clsstlaw.com
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LEGAL LUNCHBOX FREE LEGAL EDUCATION Employment Law SERIES 2: May 2015 Week 1: Week 2:
Employment Law Overview Minimum Entitlements
Week 3: Week 4:
Redundancy & Dismissal PG & Resolving Disputes SERIES DETAILS
CAB PAPAKURA 4a Opaheke Road, PAPAKURA Wednesdays: 12.15pm-1.15pm May 6, 13, 20, & 27
Sign up for FREE! Community Legal Services South Trust Phone: (09) 274 4966 Email: education@clsstlaw.com Web: www.clsstlaw.com (education tab)
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MAORI LAND CLINIC
FREE MAORI LAND ADVICE
A free Māori Land Advisory Clinic provided in partnership with the Te Mata Law, Bennion Law and Manurewa Marae, (First Wednesday of every month - by appointment only). Below are the dates for the 2015 Māori Land Advisory Clinics:
TE MATA LAW:
BENNION LAW:
3 June 2015 5 August 2015 7 October 2015
6 May 2015 1 July 2015 2 September 2015 4 November 2015
CLINIC DETAILS: Manurewa Marae 81 Finlayson Ave MANUREWA 30mins appointments from 10am -1pm
For more information or to book an appointment (with a lawyer) contact Wi Pere Mita: (09) 274 4966 or wipere.mita@clsstlaw.com
OUTREACH CLINICS: Our Community Otara CLSST Office 120 Bairds Road Otara
Manukau Salvation Army 16B Bakerfield Place Manukau
Papakura Papakura Citizens Advice Bureau 4a Opaheke Road Papakura
Appointments available: Monday – Friday
Appointments available: Monday-Friday
Appointments available: Thursday
Pukekohe Heartland Services 2 King Street Pukekohe
Manurewa Manurewa Marae 81 Finlayson Ave Manurewa
Saturday Legal Advice Clinic
Appointments available: Fortnightly on Tuesday
Appointments available: Wednesday
CLSST Office 120 Bairds Road, OTARA Appointments or Walk-ins: Fortnightly on Saturday (30 mins appointments from 9am-12pm) NB: Walk-ins seen according to order of arrival
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