Instead of placing authority in the hands of one person, like a king, or even a small group of people, the U.S. Constitution divides power. Power is first divided between the national, or federal government, and the state and local government under a system known as Federalism. At the federal level, the Constitution again divides power between the three major branches of our federal government—the legislative, the executive, and the judicial. Show
The Constitution Act 1986 recognises the three branches of government - the Legislature (Parliament), the Executive (Cabinet and Ministers outside Cabinet, plus government departments), and the Judiciary. Each operates independently of the others. This is known as "the separation of powers". The independence of the Judiciary in these arrangements exists to ensure impartiality in judicial decision-making and is fundamental to the constitutional balance under the Constitution Act 1986 and to the principle of legality that underlies it. Judges when judging should be subject only to the law. This principle is not unique to New Zealand - it is well recognised in other democratic countries and is also spelt out in international documents such as the Beijing Statement of Principles of the Independence of the Judiciary in the LAWASIA Region (19 August 1995); the United Nations Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary (1985), and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976). Independence of the judges is secured by ancient guarantees of security of tenure and salary (s23 and s24 Constitution Act 1986) and by constitutional conventions which prevent the Executive directing the Judiciary. Parliament directs the Judiciary only by legislation. An important constitutional convention in this context is that the Attorney-General acts independently of political considerations in recommending judicial appointments. Judges also have immunity from being sued in their private capacity in respect of actions taken against them in their role as judges. Judges are protected against removal from office except on the grounds of misbehaviour or incapacity. The removal process requires an address from the House of Representatives. Independence does not prevent interaction between the various branches. The Executive may consult the Judiciary on policy and legislative proposals which impact upon the judiciary and the courts. The Judiciary may comment on issues relating to proposed and existing legislation that directly affect the operation of the courts, the independence of the judiciary, the rule of law, or the administration of justice. The Terms of Reference for the Judiciary’s Legislation and Law Reform Committee provide more information on the relationship between the Judiciary and the Executive and Parliament on law reform matters. For their part, members of the Executive respect the judicial function. The formal position is set out in the Cabinet Manual which states that: "the separation of the Executive and the Judiciary under the New Zealand system of government means that Ministers must exercise prudent judgment before commenting on judicial decisions - either generally or in relation to the specifics of an individual case (for example, the sentence). Ministers, following long established principle, do not involve themselves in deciding whether a person should be prosecuted or on what charge. Therefore, they should not express comment on the results of particular cases or on any sentence handed down by a court. Sentencing is a complex process. Ministers must avoid commenting on any sentences within the appeal period and should avoid at all times any comment that could be construed as being intended to influence the courts in subsequent cases. It is, however, proper for Ministers to comment on the effectiveness of the law, or about policies on punishment (that is, on those matters where the Executive has a proper involvement), but not where the performance of the courts is brought into question." The Chief Justice as the head of the Judiciary is the primary point of contact between the Executive and the Judiciary. Heads of Bench may also communicate directly with the Executive on matters of interest to their own courts. The Chief Justice occasionally attends Select Committees of the House considering legislation (for instance relating to judicial disciplinary procedures), usually with other judges. Heads of Bench sometimes attend as well in respect of pending legislation relevant to their jurisdictions (for instance family or employment related legislation). The Statement of Principles (from 2018) sets out the Principles Observed by Judiciary and Ministry of Justice in the Administration of the Courts which documents the responsibilities of the judiciary and Ministry in the operation of the courts . top
The Government is formed after a democratic election held every 3 years. NZ is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government. This means that our head of state is a sovereign (currently Queen Elizabeth II). The Queen is represented in NZ by the Governor-General, Dame Patsy Reddy. The Governor-General NZ uses a Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) voting system which makes it unlikely that any one political party (eg National, Labour, Greens) will win a majority of the seats in the House. The party with the most votes usually needs to form a coalition or agreement with another party or parties. MMP voting system NZ also uses the system of ‘responsible government’. This means government can only be made up of Ministers who are first elected members of the House of Representatives. The government can only stay in power while it has a majority of members in the House of Representatives. This is known as having the confidence of the House. Our system of government The system of government works by having 3 separate branches of government. This ‘separation of powers’ makes sure no one part of government has too much power. The different branches of governmentNew Zealand’s 3 branches of government The legislature (Parliament)This is the House of Representatives (where all the MPs sit) and it includes select committees. Members of Parliament (MPs) The House’s role is to:
The Executive branchThis is the Government. It runs the country and makes day-to-day decisions on how and what NZ should spend its money on. It brings proposed laws to parliament, and decides policies which get put into practice by government departments. It is made up of Ministers of the Crown supported by government agencies. List of Ministers The judiciaryThe judiciary are judges and the courts. Judges interpret the law in cases that come before the courts by hearing and deciding cases, and they can review decisions of government. New Zealand’s courts |