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The course aims to provide a sound academic grounding in the Property (Relationships) Act 1976, Child Support Act 1991, and the adult maintenance provisions of the Family Proceedings Act 1980.
Relationship Property and Family Finance Law is an important area of property law that is practised by both general legal practitioners and specialist family lawyers alike.This course examines the law and policy of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976, which is the statute dealing with the division of the property of married and de facto couples upon their separation. Particular attention will be paid to current topical issues such as the New Zealand Courts' treatment of family trusts.
On successful completion of this course, students will be able to: critically examine issues of principle and policy raised by New Zealand’s current relationship property law framework and its operation in practice. locate, evaluate and synthesise information from a range of primary and secondary sources relevant to a given research topic. produce a written research essay that follows the conventions set out in the New Zealand Law Style Guide. identify and articulate issues arising in a multi-issue relationship property law problem. apply legal reasoning to generate suitable responses to issues arising in a multi-issue relationship property law problem and, if appropriate, make a reasoned choice amongst alternative responses and/or exercise professional judgment. work independently and manage their time in order to meet course deadlines.
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:
Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award
Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.
(i) LAWS101; and (ii) LAWS110
LAWS317
LAWS202-LAWS206
John Caldwell
Andrew Watkins
Assessment may be by way of a compulsory essay and a final examination.The assessment will be confirmed in the first week of lectures.
Henaghan, M. & Atkin; Family Law Policy in New Zealand ; 4th edition; LexisNexis, 2013 (chapter on 'Family Property').
Henaghan, M. et al; Family Law in New Zealand ; 18th edition; LexisNexis, 2017.
Henaghan, M. et al; Family Law in New Zealand ; 17th edition; LexisNexis, 2015 (chapter on 'Relationship Property').
Palmer, J. et al; Law and Policy in Modern Family Finance : Property Division in the 21st Century ; Intersentia, 2017.
There is no set text for this course. You will be expected to read relevant sections of statutes and the cases and articles listed on the reading list. However, to help with context, you may also like to review parts of the Recommended Reading texts, which are available in the High Demand section of the Central Library.
Domestic fee $806.00
International fee $3,775.00
* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.
For further information see Faculty of Law .