Report No. 193
New Zealand:
In New Zealand, the foreign law of limitation is treated as substantive since 1996. The N.Z. Limitation Act, 1950 has been amended in 1996 and Part 2A consisting of sections 28A, 28B, 28C, under the heading 'Application of limitation law of overseas countries', has been inserted. We shall refer to the new section in this Part 2A in detail. Section 28A deals with 'Interpretation'. It says that in that Part (i.e. Part 2A), the word 'country' includes a State, territory, province or other part of a country.
The word 'Limitation Law' is defined, in relation to a matter, as 'a law that limits or excludes liability or bars a right to bring proceedings or to have the matter determined by arbitration by reference to the time when proceedings or an arbitration in respect of the matter are commenced; and includes a law that provides that proceedings in respect of the matter may be commenced within an indefinite period'. Sec. 28B and 28C read as follows:
"Section 28B: Application of this Part of this Act: (1) This Part of this Act applies to the Commonwealth of Australia or any State or Territory of Australia, the United Kingdom, and to 33any country to which this Part of this Act is declared to apply by an Order in Council made under subsection (2) of this section.
(2) The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, declare that this Part of this Act applies to a country specified in the Order.
(3) In the case of a country that is responsible for the international relations of a territory, an Order in Council under subsection (2) of this section may apply to the country and all or some of those territories.
Section 28C: Characterisation of Limitation Law: (1) Where the substantive law of a country to which this Part of the Act applies, is to be applied in proceedings before a New Zealand Court or in an arbitration, the limitation law of that country is part of the substantive law of that country and must be applied accordingly.
(2) If, in any case to which subsection (1) of this section applies, a New Zealand Court or an arbitrator exercises a discretion under the limitation law of another country, that discretion, so far as practicable, must be exercised in the manner in which it is exercised in that other country."
This legislation is on the same lines as in UK and Australia.
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