(1) There is hereby constituted the Real Estate Agents Licensing Board.

(2) The Board shall consist of—

• (a) A barrister or solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand, who shall be the Chairperson, appointed by the Minister:

• (b) Two persons appointed by the Minister on the recommendation of the Council:

• (c) Two persons appointed by the Minister, of whom only one shall be a real estate agent who is licensed or eligible to hold a licence.

(3) Subject to this section, each member of the Board shall hold office for a term of 3 years, and may from time to time be reappointed.

(4) No member of the Board shall, during his or her term of office, hold any elected office of the Institute.

(5) Any member of the Board may resign his or her office at any time by written notice given to the Minister.

(6) Any member of the Board may be removed from office at any time by the Minister for inability to perform the functions of the office, bankruptcy, neglect of duty, or misconduct, proved to the satisfaction of the Minister.

(7) If any member of the Board dies, resigns, or is removed from office, the vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as the appointment of the vacating member. Every person so appointed shall hold office for the residue of the term for which his or her predecessor was appointed.

(8) Notwithstanding subsection (3) of this section, unless he or she sooner vacates his or her office or is removed from office under this section, every member shall continue in office until his or her successor is appointed.

(9) The powers of the Board shall not be affected by any vacancy in its membership.

(1) The Minister may, from time to time and at any time, appoint such persons as he or she thinks fit to be deputies to act for members of the Board in any case where—

• (a) A member of the Board is incapacitated by illness, absence, or other sufficient cause from performing the duties of his or her office; or

• (b) The member is unable to perform those duties for any other reason and the Board resolves that a deputy shall act for him or her.

(1A) The Minister shall not appoint any person as a deputy who would not be qualified in his or her own right to be appointed to the Board in the place of the member for whom he or she is deputising; and any appointment made under this section may be revoked at any time by the Minister.

(1B) Notwithstanding that the member of the Board for whom he or she is deputising is again available to perform the duties of office, the deputy of that member shall continue to act as such until the determination of any matter which the deputy has heard or part heard and which has not been determined.

(2) Any deputy appointed under this section shall, while he or she acts as such, be deemed to be a member of the Board, and any deputy acting for the Chairperson shall have all the powers of the Chairperson.

(3) No appointment of a deputy and no acts done by him or her as such, and no act done by the Board while any deputy is acting as such, shall in any proceedings be questioned on the grounds that the occasion for his or her appointment or for his or her or it so acting had not arisen or had ceased.

(1) Meetings of the Board shall be held at such times and places as the Chairperson may from time to time appoint.

(2) The Chairperson of the Board shall preside at all meetings he or she attends, and in his or her absence his or her deputy shall preside.

(3) Subject to subsection (4) of this section,—

• (a) Three members shall form a quorum:

• (b) Each application before a meeting shall be determined by a majority of the members present:

• (c) The Chairperson or other person presiding shall have a deliberative vote and, in the case of an equality of votes, shall also have a casting vote.

(4) The presence of every appointed member of the Board or his or her deputy shall be necessary to determine any business arising pursuant to the provisions of Part 7 of this Act (which relate to disciplinary provisions) except for the holding of an inquiry under section 97 of this Act or for an application for an order of interim suspension pursuant to section 98 of this Act.

(5) Subject to this Act and to any regulations made under it, the Board may regulate its procedure in such manner as it thinks fit.

(1) Except as provided by subsections (2) to (4) of this section, every hearing of the Board shall be in public.

(2) The Board may deliberate in private as to its decision in any matter or as to any question arising in the course of any proceedings before it.

(3) Where the Board is satisfied that it is desirable to do so either by reason of the confidential nature of any evidence or matter, or that the interests of any party to the hearing in having the whole or any part of the proceedings conducted in private outweigh the public interest in having the hearing conducted in public, the Board may, of its own motion or on the application of any party to the proceedings, order that the whole or any part of the hearing shall be in private.

(4) Every application to the Board under subsection (3) of this section shall be heard in private, but the other parties to the proceedings shall be entitled to be present and to make submissions with regard to the application.

(5) In any case where a hearing of the Board is held in private, the Board may allow any particular person to attend the private hearing if it is satisfied that that person has a special and proper interest in the matter to be heard.

(1) The Board shall pay to its members out of funds provided by the Institute, such remuneration by way of fees, salary, or allowances, and travelling expenses and allowances, as the Board, with the approval of the Minister, may from time to time determine.

(2) Except as provided in this section, no member of the Board shall be entitled to receive as a member any remuneration or other payment out of the funds of the Institute.

(1) The principal functions of the Board shall be those conferred on it—

• (a) By Part 2 of this Act in respect of the licensing of real estate agents and the granting of permits:

• (b) By Part 3 of this Act in respect of the approval of salespersons:

• (ba) By sections 54B to 54D of this Act in respect of branch managers:

• (c) By Part 7 of this Act in respect of disciplinary provisions:

• (d) By section 118 of this Act which provides for a right of appeal to the Board.

(2) The Board shall also have such other functions as are conferred on it by this or any other Act.

(3) The Board shall have all the powers necessary to carry out its functions.

(1) Notwithstanding anything in any of the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act, the Chairperson of the Board may, on behalf of the Board,—

• (a) Exercise the Board's jurisdiction in respect of any application, pursuant to section 34 of this Act, for a permit except where the Institute, or any other person entitled under this Act to do so, has objected to the application within the time allowed:

• (b) Make an order relating to the interim suspension of a licensee, officer of a company, or salesperson pursuant to section 98 of this Act.

(2) Every decision of the Chairperson in relation to any matter under this section shall, for all purposes, be the decision of the Board.

(1) Notwithstanding anything in any of the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act, the Board may from time to time authorise the Registrar to exercise, on behalf of the Board, the Board's jurisdiction in respect of any of the following applications except where the Institute, or any other person entitled under this Act to do so, has objected to the application within the time allowed:

• (a) An application, pursuant to section 25 of this Act, for the approval of a name under which a licensee may conduct his or her business:

• (b) An application, pursuant to section 27 of this Act, for approval to carry on business at a place not presently specified in the applicant's licence:

• (c) An application, pursuant to section 29 of this Act, for the renewal of a licence:

• (d) An application, pursuant to section 45 of this Act, for approval of a salesperson:

• (e) An application, pursuant to section 48 of this Act, for the renewal of a certificate of approval of a salesperson:

• (f) An application, pursuant to section 54B of this Act, for approval of a branch manager:

• (g) An application, pursuant to section 48 of this Act (as applied by section 54D(8) of this Act ), for the renewal of a certificate of approval of a branch manager.

(2) Every decision of the Registrar in relation to any matter under this section shall, for all purposes, be the decision of the Board.

(3) The Board may at any time revoke in whole or in part any authorisation granted to the Registrar pursuant to subsection (1) of this section.

(1) All fees and other money received by the Board pursuant to this Act shall, subject to subsection (2) of this section, be held on behalf of the Institute.

(2) The Institute may enter into an agreement with the Board that the amounts or kinds of deductions specified in the agreement may be made by the Board from money otherwise held on behalf of the Institute.

The Registrar of Real Estate Agents appointed pursuant to section 35 of this Act shall also act as secretary of the Board.

(1) The Board shall have a seal, which shall be judicially noticed in all Courts and for all purposes.

(2) The seal shall be in the custody of the Registrar, and shall be applied to every licence and certificate of approval granted by the Board, and to such other documents of the Board as the Chairperson may direct.

(1) Subject to any provision to the contrary in this Act, every person making an application to the Board shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(2) Where any person is entitled under this Act to appear and be heard in relation to proceedings before the Board, that person may appear in person or by his or her counsel or agent, and shall have the right to produce evidence and to cross-examine witnesses.

(1) The Board may receive in evidence any statement, document, information, or matter that may, in its opinion, assist it to deal effectively with the matter before it, whether or not the same would otherwise be admissible in a Court of law.

(2) The Board may, if it thinks fit in respect of any application before it, examine, on oath or otherwise, the applicant or any other party to the application, or require any person to verify by statutory declaration any statement made by him or her with respect to the application.

(3) The Chairperson or his or her deputy if presiding, or any other member of the Board not being the deputy of a member, or the Registrar, may administer an oath to any person for the purposes of this Act.

Where any application under this Act is made to the Board and is refused by the Board, the applicant, and, in respect of any application made on behalf of a salesperson or branch manager by a licensee or an applicant for a licence, the salesperson or branch manager, shall, upon request in writing to the Board, obtain a written statement of the reasons for its refusal.

(1) Subject to section 34 of this Act, no person shall carry on the business of a real estate agent unless he or she is the holder of a licence issued in accordance with this Part of this Act.

(2) Every person, not being the holder of a licence, commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000 who describes himself or herself in writing as or holds himself or herself out to be a real estate agent, or carries on business as a real estate agent, and, in addition to any fine that may be imposed, shall be liable to forfeit to Her Majesty the Queen all money received by him or her by way of commission, profit, or remuneration for any services or work performed by him or her as an unlicensed real estate agent.

(3) All money forfeited to Her Majesty under subsection (2) of this section shall be recoverable at the suit of Her Majesty in any Court of competent jurisdiction, or may be assessed by the Court by which the defendant is convicted, and be recoverable in like manner as a fine.

(4) In any proceedings in respect of an offence under this section a certificate, signed by the Registrar, to the effect that the defendant or any other named person was not at the time of the alleged offence the holder of a licence shall, in the absence of proof to the contrary, be sufficient evidence of that fact.

(1) Subject to this Part of this Act, every person who—

• (a) Has attained the age of 20 years and has passed the examinations for the time being prescribed by the Institute and has been approved by the Board for the purposes of this section; or

• (b) Is a company; or

• (bb) Is a building society; or

• (c) Was, at any time within 5 years before the commencement of this Act,—

  • (i) The holder of a real estate agent's licence issued under the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 or a partner of such holder; or

  • (ii) A director or officer of a licensee company, in either case approved under section 21(2) of the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 ; or

• (ca) Has surrendered a licence pursuant to section 31 of this Act and has been approved by the Board for the purposes of this section; or

• (d) Is, and has been, an associate member of the Institute since before the 1st day of January 1966 and who has, at least since that date, been continuously engaged or employed as an approved salesperson by the same or different real estate agents—

shall be eligible to hold a licence under this Act.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, no person shall apply for or obtain or be eligible to hold a licence under this Act if—

• (a) He or she is a bankrupt and has not obtained his or her order of discharge, or, if he or she has obtained his or her order of discharge, it is suspended for a term not yet expired or is subject to conditions not yet fulfilled; or

• (b) He or she holds a practising certificate as a barrister or solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand; or

• (c) He or she has not, during the preceding 5 years, had at least 3 years' practical experience working full-time or primarily and predominantly in real estate agency work; or

• (d) He or she has not, during the preceding 5 years, had at least 3 years' practical experience working full-time or primarily and predominantly as an officer or employee in the real estate agency business of a stock and station agent holding a real estate agent's licence under this Part of this Act or under the Real Estate Agents Act 1963.

(3) No company shall apply for or obtain a licence under this Act if such of the officers of the company (if it is granted a licence) as the Board may designate upon application made to it in that behalf are not eligible under this section from applying for or obtaining a licence in their own right.

(4) Every person who applies for or obtains a licence knowing that he or she is not eligible to do so under the foregoing provisions of this section commits an offence.

(1) Every person who desires to obtain a licence under this Act shall make application to the Board in the prescribed form.

(2) Every application—

• (a) Shall state the place or places of business of the applicant, including every branch office:

• (b) Shall, where the applicant has or proposes to have 2 or more places of business, specify which of those places of business is to be his or her principal place of business:

• (c) Shall specify the person who is to be the branch manager of each branch office (if any).

(1) The applicant shall serve on the Institute a copy of his or her application together with a copy of every document (not being a document relating exclusively to the applicant's financial position) filed in support of the application.

(2) Within 1 month after the receipt by the Institute of a copy of an application under subsection (1) of this section it may give written notice to the Board of its desire—

• (a) To object to the issue of a licence to the applicant, in which case it shall state in the notice the grounds of its objection; or

• (b) To be heard in respect of the application, in which case it shall state in the notice the reasons why it desires to be heard.

(3) The Institute shall send a copy of the notice to the applicant.

(1) In addition to complying with section 19 of this Act, every applicant for a licence shall cause a notice of the application in the prescribed form to be published twice, at an interval of not more than 14 days, in a newspaper or newspapers approved for the purpose by the Registrar.

(2) Any person (other than the Institute) may, within 1 month after the date of the first publication of the notice, give to the Board written notice of his or her desire to object to the issue of a licence to the applicant.

(3) No objection may be made under subsection (2) of this section except on one or more of the following grounds:

• (a) That by virtue of the provisions of section 17 of this Act the applicant is not eligible to apply for or obtain a licence:

• (b) Where the applicant is a person other than a company, that the applicant is not, by reason of his or her personal character or financial position, a proper person to be the holder of a licence:

• (c) Where the applicant is a company, that it is not, by reason of its financial position, or of the nature of any other business carried on or to be carried on by it, a proper person to be the holder of a licence:

• (d) Where the applicant is a company, that any person who will be an officer of the company if the application is granted is not, by reason of his or her personal character or financial position, a proper person to be an officer of a licensee company.

(4) Every notice of objection filed under subsection (2) of this section shall state, with brief particulars, each ground on which the objection is made.

(5) The Registrar shall send a copy of each such notice to the applicant and to the Institute.

(1) Subject to section 22(3) of this Act, as soon as practicable after the receipt of any application for a licence, the Board shall appoint a convenient time and place for hearing the application, and shall give at least 14 days notice thereof in writing to the applicant and to any person (including the Institute) who has given notice of his or her intention to object to the issue of a licence to the applicant.

(2) The applicant and any person objecting to the issue of a licence to the applicant (including the Institute) shall be entitled to be present and to be heard.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, in any case where no objection to any application for a licence under this Act is made within the prescribed periods and the applicant advises the Board in writing that he or she does not wish to be heard in support of his or her application, the Board may, if it thinks fit, decide to consider the application without any hearing under this section. If it appears that the application is unlikely to be successful, the Board shall advise the applicant accordingly, and the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall apply.

(1) The Board shall not hear or consider an application for a licence under this Act until it is satisfied that the applicant has—

• (a) Served on the Institute a copy of every document that is required to be served on it under section 19(1) of this Act ; and

• (b) Published a notice of his or her application in a newspaper in accordance with section 20(1) of this Act ; and

• (c) Paid to the Institute all fees payable in respect of the application under the rules of the Institute; and

• (d) Paid the contribution to the Fidelity Guarantee Fund as required under section 76 of this Act ; and

• (e) Given notice to the Institute of the appointment of an auditor of his or her trust accounts and received the Council's approval thereto; and

• (f) Where the applicant is not a company, passed the examinations for the time being prescribed by the Institute.

(2) For the purpose of subsection (1) of this section, a certificate under the hand of the Secretary of the Institute to the effect that the applicant has complied with the requirements of paragraphs (a), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of that subsection shall, in the absence of proof to the contrary, be sufficient evidence of compliance.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, no application for a licence shall be heard or considered before the expiration of 1 month after the applicant has complied with the requirements of section 19(1) of this Act, or within 1 month of the first publication of the notice required by section 20(1) of this Act, whichever is the later.

If, after hearing and considering any application for a licence and all objections (if any) to its issue, the Board is satisfied—

• (a) That the applicant is, under the provisions of section 17 of this Act, entitled to hold and not disqualified from holding a licence; and

• (b) That, having regard to the applicant's character and financial position, and to the interests of the public, and where appropriate, to the matters specified in section 24 of this Act, the applicant is a fit and proper person to carry on the business of a real estate agent,—

the Board shall grant the licence, which shall be issued to the applicant in the prescribed form on payment of the prescribed fee. If the Board is not so satisfied, it shall not issue a licence to the applicant unless ordered to do so by the Court.

At any hearing or consideration of an application for a licence the Board shall require evidence of the following matters:

• (a) In any case where the applicant proposes to carry on business as a real estate agent in partnership with any other person, that each partner holds a licence granted under this Act or the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 or has applied for a licence under this Act:

• (b) In any case where the applicant is a company, the financial position of the company, and the eligibility of such of the officers of the company, as the Board thinks fit, to hold a licence under this Act:

• (c) In any case where the applicant has, since he or she was last issued with a licence under this Act or, as the case may require, under the Real Estate Agents Act 1963, been suspended from carrying on the business of a real estate agent, that the period of suspension has expired, and that all penalties, costs, and expenses which he or she may have been ordered to pay have been paid:

• (d) In any case where the applicant proposes to carry on business from any branch office, that the person, under whose control each such branch office will be, is entitled to hold a certificate of approval as a branch manager, and that that person will be in effective control of that branch office.

(1) No licensee shall carry on business as a real estate agent under any name that is not—

• (a) His or her own name; or

• (b) Where the licensee is in partnership with any other person, the name of the firm or of one of the partners; or

• (c) [Repealed]

unless the name has first been approved by the Board.

(2) An applicant for a licence, or a licensee, may at any time apply in writing to the Board to approve a name for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section.

(3) The applicant shall, forthwith after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(4) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(5) The Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(6) The Board shall not approve a name under subsection (2) of this section if it considers that the name so nearly resembles the name of any other person, firm, or company carrying on business as a real estate agent in or outside New Zealand as to be likely to deceive, or that the name is that of any person, firm, or company—

• (a) Whose licence has been surrendered under section 31 of this Act ; or

• (b) Whose application for a licence has at any time been refused, and who or which has not subsequently obtained such a licence; or

• (c) Who is not eligible to hold a licence under this Act; or

• (d) Who, having been the holder of a licence under the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 or any former Act, had that licence cancelled under section 23 of the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 or the corresponding provisions of any former Act.

(7) Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions of this section, no licensee shall carry on the business of a real estate agent under more than 1 name or description.

(8) Every licensee who contravenes subsection (1) or subsection (7) of this section commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $1,500.

A licence shall authorise the licensee to carry on the business of a real estate agent in any part of New Zealand at any place of business that is from time to time endorsed on the licence.

(1) No licensee shall carry on business as such at any branch office not specified in his or her licence unless he or she has first obtained the approval of the Board.

(2) A licensee may at any time apply in the manner prescribed by the Board to the Board for approval for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, and in the application shall—

• (a) Give the address of the proposed branch office; and

• (b) Give the name of the person who is to be the branch manager.

(3) The applicant shall, forthwith after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(4) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(5) The Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(5A) The Board shall not give an approval under this section unless it is satisfied that the person under whose control the branch office will be is entitled to hold a certificate of approval as a branch manager, and that that person will be in effective control of that branch.

(5B) The Institute may at any time apply to the Board for an order cancelling the approval granted under this section in respect of the branch manager purporting to be in effective control of the branch office on the grounds that that person is not in effective control of that branch.

(6) If a real estate agent states in any application made under subsection (2) of this section that he or she proposes to change his or her principal place of business to the place to which the application relates, that statement shall, if the place of business is approved by the Board, be sufficient notice for the purposes of section 54(2B) of this Act.

(7) Where the Board gives its approval to any application under this section, the licence of the applicant shall be endorsed accordingly upon payment of the prescribed fee (if any), and the Registrar shall note the Register.

(8) Every person who knowingly acts in contravention of subsection (1) of this section commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

A licence shall, unless it is sooner cancelled, or the licensee is sooner suspended, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, continue in force until the expiration of the year in respect of which it is issued, and may from time to time be renewed for the next succeeding year.

(1) An application for the renewal of a licence shall be made in the prescribed form to the Board not earlier than the 1st day of January and not later than the 15th day of February preceding the date of the expiry of the licence.

(2) Forthwith upon making application to the Board, the applicant shall send a copy of his or her application to the Institute.

(3) The Institute may, before the 15th day of March preceding the date of expiry of the licence, give to the Board notice of its desire to object to the renewal of the licence, or to be heard in respect of the application, in the same manner as if the application were an application for the issue of a licence, and section 21 of this Act, with any necessary modifications, shall apply accordingly.

(4) Any person other than the Institute may, before the 15th day of March preceding the date of the expiry of the licence, give to the Registrar notice of that person's desire to object to the renewal of the licence on any of the following grounds:

• (a) Any of the grounds specified in section 20(3) of this Act in relation to objections to the issue of a licence to any person; or

• (b) That the applicant has not properly been in effective control of his or her business as a real estate agent at his or her registered office and each of his or her branch offices, either personally or through a branch manager as required by section 54 of this Act ; or

• (c) That the applicant has permitted any person, other than a person lawfully carrying on the business of a real estate agent, to act as his or her agent in the conduct of his or her business; or

• (d) That the applicant has not shown that each branch office from which he or she carries on business was under the effective control of a branch manager as required by section 54 of this Act ; or

• (da) [Repealed]

• (e) Having regard to the character or fitness of any salesperson or branch manager employed or intended to be employed by the applicant, it is not in the public interest that the licence be renewed,—

and subsections (4) and (5) of section 20 of this Act, with any necessary modifications, shall apply as if the notice of objection were a notice of objection to the issue of a licence.

(5) In any case where no notice of objection is given under subsection (3) or subsection (4) of this section, the Board may either—

• (a) Grant the application without further inquiry; or

• (b) Call and hear the applicant on any matter affecting the application.

(5A) After calling and hearing the applicant under subsection (5)(b) of this section, the Board—

• (a) May grant the application; or

• (b) Where it considers the Institute would have made an objection under this section if it had been aware of the matters known to the Board in respect of the application, shall refer the matters to the Institute.

(5B) The Institute may, within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of any matters referred to it under subsection (5A)(b) of this section, give to the Board notice of its desire to object to the renewal of the licence, and any such notice shall, for the purposes of subsection (6) of this section, be deemed to have been given within the time allowed.

(6) Where a notice of objection is given within the time allowed, the application shall be heard and determined by the Board and sections 22, 23, and 24 of this Act, with any necessary modifications, shall apply as if the application were an application for the issue of a licence.

(7) Where an objection is made on the ground set out in subsection (4)(d) of this section and is allowed by the Board, the Board may nevertheless grant a renewal of the licence, but all references to the branch office in respect of which the objection was made shall be deleted from the licence and from the Register.

(8) An application for the renewal of a licence, or any objection to the renewal of a licence, may be heard and determined under this section notwithstanding that the application or notice of objection is not filed by the date specified in this section, if the application or notice is filed before the date of the expiry of the licence.

(9) Where an application for the renewal of a licence is granted, the licence shall be endorsed accordingly on payment of the prescribed fee.

(10) Where an application for the renewal of a licence has been made but not determined before the date on which the licence would otherwise expire, the licence shall, notwithstanding section 28 of this Act, continue in force until the application is determined.

(1) No person shall, after the issue to him or her of a licence, enter into partnership with any person in respect of his or her business as a real estate agent without the prior approval of the Board; and the Board shall refuse to grant its approval unless it is satisfied that the proposed partner holds a licence as a real estate agent.

(2) Where a company is the licensee, no person who was not, at the date of the issue of the licence, an officer of the company shall act in such capacity in respect of that company without the prior approval of the Board upon an application made in that behalf; and the Board shall refuse to grant its approval unless it is satisfied that—

• (a) That person is eligible to apply for or obtain a licence; or

• (b) That person does not hold an office in respect of which the Board has required the holder under section 17(3) of this Act to be eligible to apply for or obtain a licence; or

• (c) If that person is not eligible to apply for or obtain a licence, the real estate agency business of the company is disproportionately small in relation to any other business of the company.

(3) The applicant shall, forthwith after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(4) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(5) The Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(6) Any person who knowingly acts in contravention of subsection (1) or subsection (2) of this section commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

(1) A licensee may at any time surrender his or her licence by forwarding a written notice to that effect, together with the licence, to the Registrar.

(2) The Registrar shall endorse on the notice and the Register the date on which he or she receives the notice, and the licence shall, as from that date, cease to have effect.

(3) Where a licensee forwards to the Registrar a notice under subsection (1) of this section, the Registrar shall forthwith forward a copy of it to the Institute and to the auditor of the licensee's trust accounts, together with written notice of the date from which the licence ceased to have effect.

(4) The surrender of a licence under this section shall not affect the licensee's liability—

• (a) To pay any fees or other money payable or to be payable in accordance with this Act on or before the date on which the licence would, but for its surrender, expire:

• (b) To perform any obligation required to be performed by him or her by or under this Act on or before that date:

• (c) For any act done or default made before the date on which the licence ceased to have effect.

(1) Any person who—

• (a) In the case of a licensee who is a person subject to a property order under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988, is the manager of his or her estate; or

• (b) In the case of a licensee in respect of whom a property order is in force under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988, is the manager of his or her estate; or

• (c) In the case of a licensee who is deceased, is his or her personal representative; or

• (d) In the case of a licensee who has been adjudicated bankrupt, is his or her assignee in bankruptcy; or

• (e) In the case of a licensee company that is in liquidation or receivership, is the liquidator or receiver of that company, as the case may be; or

• (f) In the case of a licensee who is sick, absent, or is otherwise temporarily prevented from carrying on business as a real estate agent, is his or her agent; or

• (g) In the case of a licensee building society that is being dissolved, is the liquidator or other person conducting its dissolution, or a trustee appointed under an instrument of dissolution of the building society,—

may apply to the Board in the prescribed form for authority to carry on or appoint some other person to carry on the licensee's business as a real estate agent for such period as the Board determines.

(2) While any person authorised under subsection (1) or subsection (7) of this section carries on any such business he or she shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be the holder of the licence, and shall have sufficient authority to operate the trust account of the licensee concerned.

(3) A copy of every application made under subsection (1) of this section shall be sent by the applicant to the Institute not later than 21 days before the date fixed for the hearing of the application, and the Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard at the hearing of the application.

(4) In any case where the Board has, under subsection (1) of this section, authorised any person to carry on a licensee's business, the Institute may at any time apply to the Board for the revocation of the authority on the ground—

• (a) That it is not in the interests of the public for the business to be carried on; or

• (b) That the person carrying on the business has been convicted of an offence against this Act or against any regulations for the time being in force under this Act; or

• (c) That the person carrying on the business has failed to comply with the rules or code of ethics of the Institute.

(5) A copy of every application made under subsection (4) of this section shall, not later than 10 days before the date fixed for the hearing of the application, be sent to the person to whom the authority was granted, and that person shall be entitled to appear and be heard at the hearing of the application.

(6) On the hearing of an application under subsection (4) of this section, the Board, if the ground of the objection is proved to its satisfaction, may cancel the authority, and thereupon the person who had been carrying on the business shall no longer be deemed to be the holder of a licence in respect of that business, and shall no longer have sufficient authority to operate the trust account of the licensee concerned.

(7) Where under subsection (1) of this section a person mentioned in that subsection has applied to the Board for authority to carry on or to appoint some other person to carry on a licensee's business, then, until the application has been determined, the Registrar may, in writing, authorise the applicant to carry on the licensee's business, either personally or by an agent, for any period not exceeding 2 months.

(8) Notwithstanding subsection (7) of this section, an authority given under that subsection shall in any event cease to have effect when the application for the Board's authority under subsection (1) of this section is determined.

(1) This section shall apply in any case where the Board is satisfied that any real estate agent—

• (a) Is, owing to physical or mental disability, unable properly to administer his or her trust account; or

• (b) Has died; or

• (c) Has been adjudicated a bankrupt; or

• (d) Has had his or her licence revoked; or

• (e) Has been suspended from carrying on the business of a real estate agent; or

• (f) Has ceased to carry on the business of real estate agent and has neglected to wind up his or her trust account after reasonable notice has been given to him or her by the Council requiring him or her to do so,—

and that any money entrusted to that real estate agent is held by a banker in any trust account of the real estate agent.

(2) Subject to subsection (4) of this section, in any case to which this section applies the Board may, if it is satisfied that it is expedient that any such trust account be administered by the Institute, on an application in that behalf made by the Institute (after an inspection of the real estate agent's books and documents under section 88 of this Act or otherwise), make an order authorising the Institute to administer the trust account for such period as the Board thinks fit.

(3) A copy of every order made by the Board under this section shall be served on the banker, and on receipt of such copy the banker shall allow any 2 nominated members of the Institute to administer the trust account on behalf of the Institute.

(4) No order shall be made under this section in any case where an order made under section 32 of this Act is in force in respect of the real estate agent concerned.

(1) Notwithstanding section 16 of this Act, the Board may, on the application of any person (not being a licensee), issue a permit in writing to that person, after payment of the prescribed fee (if any), enabling him or her to carry on any specified business or enter into any specified transaction or series of transactions which, but for the provisions of this section, may constitute an offence under section 16 of this Act, upon such terms and conditions and for such period as the Board thinks fit.

(2) Forthwith after receiving an application under subsection (1) of this section and before considering the application, the Board shall send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(3) The application shall not be considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(4) The Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(5) If, after the issue of a permit under this section, the Board is satisfied that the holder of the permit has not complied with all the conditions of the permit, the Board may, by notice in writing to the holder, revoke the permit.

(6) Any permit issued by the Board under subsection (1) of this section may from time to time, on application by the holder and on payment of the prescribed fee (if any), be extended for such further period as the Board thinks fit.

(7) A copy of every permit, revocation of a permit, or extension of a permit shall be given by the Board to the Institute.

(1) The Board shall, from time to time and after consultation with the Institute, appoint a Registrar of Real Estate Agents.

(2) The Institute shall pay to the Registrar, out of the funds of the Institute, such salary, fees, and allowances as it from time to time thinks fit.

(1) For the purpose of this Act the Registrar shall set up and maintain a Register of Real Estate Agents.

(2) The Register shall be open to inspection by the public during ordinary office hours on payment of the prescribed fee (if any).

(3) On payment to him or her of the prescribed fee, the Registrar shall send to any person requesting the same in writing a copy of any specified entry in the Register.

(1) Wherever a licence or certificate of approval is issued, renewed, or cancelled under this Act, or a licensee or holder of a certificate of approval is suspended, the Registrar shall make an appropriate entry in the Register, showing—

• (a) In the case of the issue of a licence, the name and address of the licensee, the qualification by virtue of which he or she is entitled to hold a licence under this Act, the address of his or her registered office and of any approved branch office, and the name of the branch manager of such branch office, and the date on which the application was granted:

• (b) In the case of the issue of a certificate of approval, the name and address of the holder and his or her employer, and the date on which the application was granted:

• (c) In the case of the renewal of a licence or certificate of approval, the date on which the application was granted:

• (d) In the case of the cancellation of a licence or certificate of approval or the suspension of a licensee or holder of a certificate of approval, the date and the grounds on which the cancellation or suspension was made.

(2) The Registrar shall also, in respect of any entry, record such other particulars as may be required by this Act or as may from time to time be prescribed.

(3) As soon as practicable after making any entry in the Register, the Registrar shall give notice in writing to the Institute of the entry, together with all relevant particulars.

(1) If any person has been issued with a licence or certificate of approval under this Act by reason of any false or fraudulent representation or statement, or if any person not entitled to be issued with a licence or certificate of approval under this Act has one so issued, the Board shall cancel that licence or, as the case may require, that certificate, and cause the name of the licensee or holder to be removed from the Register, and the fact of the cancellation and removal shall be notified by the Registrar in the Gazette.

(2) If any particulars appearing in the Register in respect of the qualifications of any licensed real estate agent are proved to the satisfaction of the Board to be, or are to the knowledge of the Board, false or erroneous in any respect, the Board shall direct the Registrar to remove those particulars from the Register, and the Registrar shall amend the Register accordingly.

(3) Subsection (2) of this section shall apply notwithstanding that at the time when the entry in the Register was made the real estate agent was actually possessed of the qualifications particulars of which appear in the Register, or that at that time the entry was otherwise correct.

(1) The Registrar shall keep and maintain a file containing a copy of every permit issued pursuant to section 34 of this Act, together with all associated correspondence.

(2) The file shall be open to inspection by the public during ordinary office hours on payment of the prescribed fee (if any).

Every person commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000 who wilfully makes or causes to be made any false entry in or falsification of the Register, or who procures or attempts to procure himself or herself or any other person to be issued with a licence, certificate of approval, or permit, or a renewal of a licence or certificate of approval, or an extension of time for a permit or, under section 44 of this Act, for the employment of an unqualified person, by making or producing, or causing to be made or produced, any false or fraudulent representation or statement, whether verbally or in writing.

Where the Registrar is satisfied that any licence, certificate of approval, or permit has been lost he or she may, on payment to him or her of the prescribed fee (if any), issue to the holder of the licence, certificate of approval, or permit a substitute licence, certificate of approval, or permit.

Every person commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $1,500 who—

• (a) Being a licensed real estate agent, engages or employs as a salesperson in his or her business as a real estate agent any person in respect of whom a certificate of approval issued under section 46 of this Act is not then in force; or

• (b) Not being the holder of a certificate of approval then in force, acts as a salesperson on behalf of a licensed real estate agent; or

• (c) Acts as a salesperson for more than one licensed real estate agent in any case where the agents are not partners of one another in the business in which that person is engaged or employed as a salesperson.

(1) An application for the approval of a salesperson may be made to the Board at any time by a licensee or an applicant for a licence on behalf of any person who intends to become a salesperson and who passed the examination (if any) prescribed by the rules of the Institute for salespersons.

(2) The application shall be made in the prescribed form.

(3) The applicant shall, as soon as practicable after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(4) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(5) The Institute shall be entitled to appear before and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(1) If, after considering any application for a certificate of approval, the Board is satisfied that—

• (a) The Institute does not wish to appear before and be heard by the Board in respect of the application; and

• (b) Having regard to the character and general knowledge of the person in respect of whom the application is made, and to the interests of the public, the person is a fit and proper person to be employed as a salesperson by a real estate agent—

• (c) [Repealed]

the Board shall, on payment of the prescribed fee, issue to the applicant a certificate of approval in the prescribed form.

(2) If the Board is not so satisfied, it shall appoint a time and place for hearing the application, and shall give at least 14 days' notice of the hearing to the applicant and the Institute.

(3) In any case to which subsection (2) of this section applies, the person in respect of whom the application is made shall be entitled to appear and be heard as a party to the application.

(4) If, after hearing an application, the Board is satisfied of the matters specified in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section, it shall, on payment of the prescribed fee, issue to the applicant a certificate of approval in the prescribed form.

(5) Where the Board is not satisfied of the matters specified in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section, it shall not issue a certificate of approval to the applicant unless ordered to do so by the Court.

Every certificate of approval shall, unless sooner cancelled under this Act, continue in force until the expiration of the year for which it is issued, whether or not the salesperson continues to be employed by the person on whose application it was issued, and may from time to time be renewed for the next succeeding year.

(1) An application for the renewal of a certificate of approval shall be made to the Board in the prescribed form by the licensee by whom the salesperson is employed not earlier than the 1st day of January and not later than the 15th day of February preceding the date of the expiry of the certificate.

(2) After making application to the Board, the applicant shall serve a copy of it on the Institute in the same manner as if it were an application for the issue of a certificate of approval.

(3) The application shall not be determined before the expiration of 14 days after the applicant has complied with subsection (2) of this section.

(4) The Institute may, before the 15th day of March preceding the date of the expiry of the certificate of approval, give to the Board a notice of its desire to object to the renewal of the certificate, or to be heard in respect of the application.

(5) Subject to subsection (8) of this section, where no notice is given to the Board under subsection (4) of this section within the time allowed, the Board shall grant the application without further inquiry.

(6) Where a notice is given to the Board within the time allowed, the application shall be determined by the Board in the same manner as if it were an application for the issue of a certificate of approval.

(7) [Repealed]

(8) An application for the renewal of a certificate of approval, or any objection thereto, may be determined under this section notwithstanding that the application or the notice of objection is not filed within the time limit specified in this section, if the application or notice, as the case may be, is filed before the date of the expiry of the certificate of approval.

(9) Where an application for the renewal of a certificate of approval is granted, the certificate of approval shall be endorsed accordingly on payment of the prescribed fee.

(10) Where an application for the renewal of a certificate of approval has been made but not determined before the date on which the certificate would otherwise expire, the certificate shall continue in force until the application is determined.

(1) The Institute may at any time by notice in writing direct any licensee to supply it with a list containing the full name, residential address, and place of employment, of every salesperson employed by him or her.

(2) Every licensed real estate agent who fails within 14 days to comply with a direction given under subsection (1) of this section, or who supplies to the Institute an incorrect or incomplete list of salespersons, commits an offence.

(1) Every certificate of approval and every renewal thereof shall at all times be kept in the custody of the real estate agent who employs the salesperson in respect of whom the certificate or renewal was issued.

(2) When a salesperson leaves the employ of a real estate agent, the agent shall, within 7 days after the salesperson leaves his or her employment, forward the salesperson's current certificate of approval to the Registrar.

(3) If any such salesperson, in respect of whom a certificate of approval is for the time being in force, commences employment with a real estate agent, the agent shall forthwith request the Registrar to forward to him or her the certificate of approval; and the Registrar shall as soon as practicable after payment of the prescribed fee (if any) forward the certificate accordingly.

(1) A salesperson may at any time surrender his or her certificate of approval by giving written notice to that effect to his or her employer, who shall forthwith send the notice together with the salesperson's certificate of approval to the Registrar.

(2) The Registrar shall endorse on the notice and the Register the date on which he or she receives the notice, and the certificate shall, as from that date, cease to have effect.

(3) Where a licensee forwards to the Registrar a notice under subsection (1) of this section, the Registrar shall forward a copy of it to the Institute, together with written notice of the date from which the certificate of approval ceased to have effect.

(4) The surrender of a certificate of approval under this section shall not affect the salesperson's liability for any act done or default made before the date on which the certificate ceased to have effect.

(1) This section applies (or, as the case may be, shall be deemed to have applied) to a salesperson and a real estate agent at any time if—

• (a) Before that time and before the commencement of the Real Estate Agents Amendment Act 1992, they agreed, whether expressly or by implication, that the relationship between them at that time should be that of employer and independent contractor; or

• (b) Before that time and on or after the commencement of the Real Estate Agents Amendment Act 1992, they agree expressly that the relationship between them at that time should be that of employer and independent contractor.

(2) At a time before the 19th day of July 1990 when this section is deemed to have applied to a salesperson and a real estate agent, the salesperson shall for all purposes (other than the purposes of the Income Tax Act 1976 and the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 ) be deemed to have been engaged by the agent under a contract for services.

(3) At a time after the 31st day of March 1991 and before the 22nd day of August 1991 when this section is deemed to have applied to a salesperson and a real estate agent, the salesperson shall for the purposes of the Income Tax Act 1976 be deemed to have been engaged by the agent under a contract for services.

(4) At a time after the 21st day of August 1991 and before the 1st day of April 1992 when this section applies (or is deemed to have applied) to a salesperson and a real estate agent, the salesperson shall for all purposes (other than the purposes of the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 ) be deemed to be (or to have been) engaged by the agent under a contract for services.

(5) At a time after the 31st day of March 1992 when this section applies to a salesperson and a real estate agent, the salesperson shall for all purposes be deemed to be engaged by the agent under a contract for services.

(6) Notwithstanding subsections (2) to (5) of this section, a real estate agent is liable for the acts and omissions of a salesperson engaged under a contract for services in the same manner, and to the same extent, as for the acts and omissions of a salesperson engaged under a contract of service.

(1) Every licensee shall exhibit and keep exhibited in a prominent place at each of his or her places of business, so as to be read easily from outside the place of business, a notice of his or her name and of the fact that he or she is a licensed real estate agent, together with the name or style under which he or she carries on business as a real estate agent, if the business is not carried on in his or her own name.

(2) The information referred to in subsection (1) of this section shall also be clearly shown on all notices, advertisements, and other publications issued by or on behalf of the licensee, on all hoardings and other signs erected on land advertised by the licensee as being for sale or to let or lease, and in all letters, accounts, agreements, and other documents sent out, entered into, or published by or on behalf of him or her in the course of or in connection with his or her business as a real estate agent.

(3) It shall be sufficient compliance with the provisions of this section requiring a licensee to exhibit at any place or to show on any document the fact that he or she is a licensed real estate agent if he or she exhibits at that place or shows on that document the letters “MREINZ”.

(4) Every licensee who fails to comply with subsection (1) or subsection (2) of this section commits an offence.

(1) A licensee or, if the licensee is a company, an officer of the company who is eligible to hold a licence shall be in effective control of the principal place of business of a real estate agent.

(2) Every branch office of a real estate agent (as specified in the agent's licence) shall be under the effective control of a person approved by the Board, in accordance with sections 54B to 54D of this Act, as a branch manager.

(3) A licensee may at any time, by notice in writing given to the Registrar, change the address of his or her principal place of business to that of any of his or her branch offices, and shall forward a copy of any such notice to the Institute within 7 days after the notice is given to the Registrar.

(4) For the purposes of this section, the Board may, on application made in writing in that behalf by either the licensee or the Institute, determine which place of business of that licensee is his or her principal place of business.

(5) Every real estate agent commits an offence against this Act who, for any continuous period of more than 4 weeks, allows any person other than one specified in subsection (1) or (as the case may require) subsection (2) of this section to be in effective control of his or her principal place of business or any branch office.

(1) In this section, the term remote located salesperson means a salesperson who is not under the effective control of a branch manager and who is employed or engaged to work at or from a place of business which is neither an approved principal place of business nor a branch office.

(2) A licensee may apply to the Board for approval to employ or engage remote located salespersons in the following circumstances:

• (a) Each salesperson will work solely within a defined geographical area; and

• (b) Each salesperson will be under the effective supervision of the licensee or a branch manager who is at the approved place of business of the applicant nearest to the place at or from which the salesperson will be working.

(3) The applicant shall, as soon as practicable after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(4) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board within 14 clear days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(5) The Institute shall be entitled to appear and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

(6) The Board, after being satisfied of the matters referred to in subsection (2) of this section, may grant an approval under this section subject to such conditions as it thinks fit and, where it grants an approval, the licence of the applicant shall be endorsed accordingly upon payment of the prescribed fee (if any), and the Registrar shall note the Register.

(7) The Institute may at any time apply to the Board for an order cancelling an approval granted under this section on either or both of the following grounds:

• (a) That the remote located salesperson is not being effectively supervised pursuant to subsection (2)(b) of this section:

• (b) That the licensee has breached or failed to comply with any condition imposed by the Board in granting its approval.

(8) Any approval granted pursuant to this section shall cease to have effect—

• (a) Where an order is made by the Board pursuant to subsection (7) of this section, from the day specified in the order:

• (b) Where the licensee who engages or employs the remote located salesperson receives approval from the Board to establish a branch office within the area in which the salesperson works, from the date of the approval.

(9) Where any other licensee establishes an approved place of business within the area in which a remote located salesperson works, that licensee may apply to the Board for an order cancelling the approval for that or any remote located salesperson working within the area on the ground that a sufficient real estate agency service is being offered in that area, and subsections (3) to (4) of this section shall apply in respect of any such application as if it were an application to which those subsections relate.

(10) The Board may, if it thinks fit, order the cancellation of an approval pursuant to an application made under subsection (9) of this section, and the approval shall thereupon cease to have effect from a day specified in the order, being any day not earlier than 3 months from the day the order was made.

(1) An application for the approval of a branch manager may be made to the Board at any time by a licensee or an applicant for a licence on behalf of any person who intends to become a branch manager.

(2) The applicant shall, as soon as practicable after making application to the Board, send a copy of the application to the Institute.

(3) The application shall not be heard or considered by the Board until the expiration of 14 days after the date of the receipt of the copy of the application by the Institute.

(4) The Institute shall be entitled to appear before and be heard by the Board in respect of the application.

On an application made under section 54B of this Act, a person may be approved as a branch manager if—

• (a) That person is—

  • (i) Eligible under this Act to hold a licence; and

  • (ii) The holder of a certificate of approval to act as a salesperson issued under section 46 of this Act ; or

• (b) That person—

  • (i) Has attained the age of 20 years; and

  • (ii) Is the holder of a certificate of approval to act as a salesperson issued under section 46 of this Act ; and

  • (iii) Has passed the examinations for the time being prescribed by the Institute for persons intending to become branch managers; and

  • (iv) Has had, during the preceding 5 years, at least 3 years' practical experience working full-time or primarily and predominantly in real estate agency work; or

• (c) That person—

  • (i) Has attained the age of 20 years; and

  • (ii) Is the holder of a certificate of approval to act as a salesperson issued under section 46 of this Act ; and

  • (iii) Is recognised by the Board as having been, at any time within the period of 5 years immediately preceding the date of the commencement of section 3 of the Real Estate Agents Amendment Act 1989, the person in effective control of a branch office; and

  • (iv) Has had, during the preceding 5 years, at least 3 years' practical experience working full-time or primarily and predominantly in real estate agency work; or

• (d) That person—

  • (i) Holds the position of branch manager for a stock and station agent licensee; and

  • (ii) In that position, supervises any salesperson employed or engaged primarily or predominantly in work relating to the sale of rural land; and

  • (iii) Is an associate member of the Institute.

(1) If, after considering an application made under section 54B of this Act, the Board is satisfied—

• (a) That the Institute does not wish to appear before and be heard by the Board in respect of the application; and

• (b) That the proposed branch manager is, under the provisions of section 54C of this Act, entitled to hold, and is not disqualified from holding, a certificate of approval as a branch manager; and

• (c) That, having regard to the interests of the public, the proposed branch manager is a fit and proper person to be employed as a branch manager by a real estate agent,—

the Board shall, on payment of the prescribed fee (if any), issue to the applicant a certificate of approval.

(2) If the Board is not so satisfied, it shall appoint a time and place for hearing the application, and shall give at least 14 days' notice of the hearing to the applicant and the Institute.

(3) In any case to which subsection (2) of this section applies, the person in respect of whom the application is made shall be entitled to appear and be heard as a party to the application.

(4) If, after hearing an application, the Board is satisfied of the matters specified in paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (1) of this section, it shall, on payment of the prescribed fee (if any), issue to the applicant a certificate of approval.

(5) Where the Board is not satisfied of the matters specified in paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section, it shall not issue a certificate of approval to the applicant unless ordered to do so by the Court.

(6) Subject to subsection (7) of this section, a certificate of approval issued under this section shall authorise the employment or engagement of the person named in it as the branch manager of any branch office.

(7) A certificate of approval issued under this section on the ground specified in section 54C(d) of this Act shall authorise the employment or engagement of the person named in it as the branch manager only of a branch office of a stock and station agent licensee.

(8) The provisions of sections 47 to 51 of this Act shall apply with any necessary modifications to a certificate of approval as a branch manager granted under this section as if it were a certificate of approval as a salesperson.

Where a licensee transfers a branch manager from one branch office to another, the licensee shall give notice in writing to the Registrar of the transfer, and shall forward a copy of the notice to the Institute within 7 days after the notice is given to the Registrar.

For the purposes of sections 56 to 59 of this Act and of any regulations made under this Act relating to the audit of the trust accounts of real estate agents,—

• (a) Any money received by any real estate agent by way of rent from the letting of any land, and any principal or interest received by any real estate agent arising out of any transaction affecting land, shall be deemed to be money received by him or her in his or her capacity as a real estate agent:

• (b) Any insurance premiums received by a real estate agent on behalf of an insurance company, and any other money received by a real estate agent in the course of any agency business conducted by him or her in conjunction with his or her business as a real estate agent, shall be deemed not to be money received by him or her in his or her capacity as a real estate agent.

(1) Subject to subsection (4) of this section, all money received by a real estate agent in respect of any transaction in his or her capacity as a real estate agent shall be paid to the person lawfully entitled thereto or as that person may in writing direct:

Provided that where the real estate agent is in doubt on reasonable grounds as to the person who is lawfully entitled to any such money, he or she may retain that money in his or her trust account until the person lawfully entitled has been ascertained, but shall take all reasonable steps to ascertain as soon as practicable the person so entitled.

(2) Pending the payment of any such money, it shall be paid by the real estate agent into a general or separate trust account at any bank carrying on business in New Zealand under the authority of any Act, and, subject to subsection (4) of this section, shall not be drawn upon except for the purpose of paying it to the person entitled or as that person may in writing direct.

(3) No money to which this section applies shall be available for payment of the real estate agent's debts, nor shall it be liable to be attached or taken in execution under the order or process of any Court at the instance of any of the real estate agent's creditors.

(4) Nothing in this section shall be construed as to take away or affect any just lien or claim which the real estate agent may have on or in respect of any money received by him or her, being money to which this section applies.

(5) Every licensee who contravenes or fails to comply with any of the provisions of this section commits an offence.

(1) Except in pursuance of an order of a Court of competent jurisdiction or an authority signed by all the parties to the transaction, where a real estate agent receives any money (other than money received by way of rent from the letting of any land) in respect of any transaction, he or she shall not pay that money to any person for a period of 10 days after the date on which he or she received it; and, if at any time while he or she holds any money on behalf of any party to the transaction he or she receives written notice of any requisitions or objections in respect of the title to any land affected by the transaction, he or she shall not at any time pay that money to any person except in pursuance of such an order or authority.

(2) Every person who contravenes or fails to comply with subsection (1) of this section commits an offence.

(1) Forthwith on the demand of the person for whom he or she has acted as agent, or if no such demand is made, then within 28 days after the receipt by him or her of any money in respect of the sale, lease, or other disposal of land, or in respect of any other transaction in his or her capacity as a real estate agent, every real estate agent shall render to the person lawfully entitled thereto an account in writing, setting forth particulars of all such money, and as to its application.

(2) It shall be sufficient compliance with the provisions of this section in respect of rent or interest collected by a real estate agent if he or she renders an account to the person lawfully entitled at monthly intervals or at such longer intervals as that person may in writing approve.

(3) Where a real estate agent is in doubt on reasonable grounds as to the person who is lawfully entitled to any such money, he or she shall not be required to render an account under this section until the person lawfully entitled has been ascertained, but he or she shall take all reasonable steps to ascertain as soon as practicable the person so entitled.

(4) If any real estate agent refuses or, for a period of 7 days after demand, neglects or fails to render an account, or, in the absence of a demand, neglects or fails to render an account within the period of 28 days allowed under subsection (1) of this section, he or she commits an offence.

(5) Subject to section 57 and to the proviso to section 56(1) of this Act, where any real estate agent who is required pursuant to section 56(1) of this Act to pay any money received by him or her to the person lawfully entitled thereto refuses or for a period of 10 days after demand fails to pay that money to that person or as that person directs, he or she commits an offence.

Every person is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to a fine not exceeding $2,000 who renders an account purporting to be an account of any money received by him or her in his or her capacity as a real estate agent, knowing the account to be false in any material particular.

(1) Every general or particular trust account of a real estate agent shall be audited at the times and in the manner prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

(2) Every real estate agent commits an offence who fails to appoint an auditor within the time prescribed, or who fails to comply with the provisions of any regulations relating to the audit of real estate agents' trust accounts.

(3) All information obtained by an auditor in the course of the audit of any trust account under this Act shall be treated as confidential, subject only to such rights of publication as may be prescribed in furtherance of the proper purposes of the audit.

No person shall be entitled to sue for or recover any commission, reward, or other valuable consideration in respect of any service or work performed by him or her as a real estate agent, unless—

• (a) He or she was the holder of a licence as a real estate agent under this Act or the holder, or the partner of a holder, of a licence as a real estate agent under the Real Estate Agents Act 1963 at the time of the performing of the service or work; and

• (b) His or her appointment to act as agent or perform that service or work is in writing signed either before or after the performance of that service or work by the person to be charged with the commission, reward, or consideration or by some person on his or her behalf lawfully authorised to sign the appointment.

(1) No real estate agent shall, without the consent on the prescribed form of his or her principal, directly or indirectly and whether by himself or herself or by any partner or sub-agent,—

• (a) Purchase or take on lease, or be in any way concerned or interested, legally or beneficially, in the purchase or taking on lease of any land or business which he or she is commissioned (at the instigation of the principal or otherwise) by any principal to sell or lease; or

• (b) Sell or lease to his or her spouse, civil union partner, de facto partner, or child any such land or business.

(2) No partner or employee of a real estate agent and no officer of a company that is a real estate agent shall, without the consent on the prescribed form of the principal of the real estate agent, directly or indirectly,—

• (a) Purchase or take on lease, or be in any way concerned or interested, legally or beneficially, in the purchase or taking on lease of any land or business which the real estate agent of whom he or she is a partner or by whom he or she is employed, or of which he or she is an officer, is commissioned (at the instigation of the principal or otherwise) by any principal to sell or lease; or

• (b) Sell or lease to his or her spouse, civil union partner, de facto partner, or child any such land or business.

(3) Any contract made in contravention of this section shall be voidable at the option of the principal. No commission shall be payable in respect of any such contract, whether the principal has avoided it or not; and any commission paid in respect of the contract shall be repayable by the real estate agent to his or her principal and shall be recoverable by the principal as a debt.

(1) This section shall apply to every real estate agent, partner or employee of a real estate agent, or officer of a company that is a real estate agent; but, in relation to any real estate agent (whether a company or not) that carries on other business in addition to its business as a real estate agent, shall not apply to any employee of that real estate agent whose work primarily and predominantly relates to that other business.

(2) Every person to whom this section applies shall either—

• (a) Before seeking the consent of a principal for the purposes of section 63 of this Act ; or

• (b) With the agreement of the principal, within 14 days after obtaining that consent—

supply, at his or her own expense to that principal, a valuation made by an independent registered valuer of the land or business in question.

(3) Every consent given under section 63 of this Act without the valuation being supplied to the principal in accordance with subsection (2) of this section shall be deemed not to have been given.

(4) Where—

• (a) A principal gives his or her consent under section 63 of this Act before a valuation is supplied to the principal in accordance with subsection (2) of this section ; and

• (b) The valuation, when supplied, is greater than the valuation specified in the prescribed form of consent as the provisional valuation,—

any contract to which the principal is a party and to which the consent relates shall be voidable at the option of the principal.

(1) Every real estate agent shall, forthwith after any person has signed an offer or an agreement or other form of contract to purchase or to take on lease any land through the agency of the real estate agent, give to that person a true copy of the offer or the agreement or other form of contract.

(2) Every real estate agent who fails to comply with subsection (1) of this section commits an offence.

(1) Every licensee shall be a member of the Institute, whether or not he or she applies for membership.

(2) Every member of the Institute who ceases to hold a licence for the time being in force shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Institute, unless he or she retains his or her membership in accordance with the rules of the Institute.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, such of the officers of a licensee company as the rules of the Institute provide shall be members of the Institute.

(4) Every member of the Institute shall from time to time pay to the Institute the fees or other payments, annual or otherwise, that are payable in respect of his or her membership.

(5) If any fee or other payment payable to the Institute by a member under subsection (4) of this section is not paid within 4 months after it is due, the Council may apply to the Board for an order for the suspension of that person, and the Board may make an order accordingly.

(6) While a person is suspended under subsection (5) of this section, he or she shall—

• (a) If he or she is a licensee, be deemed not to be licensed:

• (b) If he or she is an officer of a licensee company, be deemed not to hold a certificate of approval.

(7) If any person suspended under this section satisfies the Board that all fees and other payments have been paid, the Board shall cancel the suspension of that person.

(1) Notwithstanding section 67 of this Act, a licensee or officer of a licensee company who has a conscientious objection to being a member of the Institute may apply to the Board for an order exempting him or her from membership, and the Board may make an order accordingly.

(2) While any such exemption continues in force, and all conditions relating to the exemption are duly complied with, the person granted the exemption shall be excused from membership of the Institute.

(3) Every person who is for the time being exempted from membership of the Institute shall from time to time pay to the Institute the fees or other payments, annual or otherwise, that he or she would be required to pay to the Institute if he or she were a member.

(4) If any fee or other payment payable to the Institute under subsection (3) of this section is not paid within 4 months after it is due, the Council may apply to the Board for an order for the suspension of that person, and the Board may make an order accordingly.

(5) While a person is suspended under subsection (4) of this section, he or she shall—

• (a) If he or she is a licensee, be deemed not to be licensed:

• (b) If he or she is an officer of a licensee company, be deemed not to hold a certificate of approval.

(6) If any person suspended under subsection (4) of this section satisfies the Board that all fees and other payments have been paid, the Board shall cancel the suspension of that person.

(7) All the provisions of this Act and of the rules and code of ethics of the Institute relating to the discipline of members of the Institute, all the decisions of the Institute regulating the charges that may be made by real estate agents for work as such, and all other provisions of those rules and that code that are not inconsistent with the provisions of this section, shall apply with respect to every person exempted from membership of the Institute under this section as if he or she were a member of the Institute.

Every person commits an offence who, not being a member of the Institute, holds himself or herself out to be a member of the Institute, or uses or causes or permits to be used any written words, titles, or initials, or any abbreviation of any words, titles, or initials, which are intended to cause or may reasonably cause any other person to believe that he or she is a member of the Institute.

(1) The Institute may from time to time make rules (not inconsistent with this Act or any regulations made under it) for all or any of the following purposes:

• (a) The regulation and good government of the Institute, its members, and affairs:

• (b) Prescribing the qualifications for membership of the Institute, and for different classes of members:

• (c) The creation of districts, and the constitution, election, and tenure of office of the Council, and the filling of extraordinary vacancies thereon:

• (d) Regulating the election of the President and Vice-Presidents of the Institute, and the filling of extraordinary vacancies in those offices:

• (e) Providing for the constitution of branches of the Institute:

• (f) Regulating the audit of the accounts of the Institute and the appointment of auditors, and prescribing their qualifications:

• (g) Providing for and regulating the granting of certificates of membership:

• (h) Prescribing the examination in any subjects to be passed by persons intending to apply for a licence, or by persons intending to become salespersons or branch managers, in matters relating to the knowledge required by real estate agents, salespersons, or branch managers, and their duties, obligations, and conduct, and providing for the appointment of examiners, and regulating the conduct of examinations:

• (i) Regulating the members of the Institute who are not holders of licences:

• (j) Providing for the convening of ordinary and special meetings of the Institute and of the Council, and regulating the quorum, the representation of members, and the procedure:

• (k) Providing for the conferring of fellowships, honorary memberships, and other distinctions:

• (l) Prescribing the fees or other payments, annual or otherwise, to be paid by members of the Institute, not being licence fees or payments to be made into the Fidelity Guarantee Fund:

• (m) Prescribing a code of ethics for regulating the professional conduct of members of the Institute and the conduct of salespersons and branch managers employed by members:

• (ma) For the purposes of establishing Regional Disciplinary Committees within a region to deal with matters relating to the discipline of persons engaged in real estate business in that region, creating regions by amalgamating 2 or more districts, and amalgamating or abolishing any such region created:

• (mb) Establishing Regional Disciplinary Committees, one in each region, constituted pursuant to section 101 of the Real Estate Agents Act 1976, prescribing the matters relating to discipline to be dealt with by a Regional Disciplinary Committee, and regulating the methods and powers of investigation and determination by a Disciplinary Committee of those matters:

• (mc) Establishing sub-committees of Regional Disciplinary Committees within each district (consisting of not more than 3 members of the Institute who need not be carrying on business outside that district) for the purpose of determining such minor matters relating to discipline as may be referred to it from time to time by the Institute, and regulating the procedure of, and methods of determination by, such a sub-committee of those minor matters:

• (n) [Repealed]

• (o) Imposing fines not exceeding $750 upon any member of the Institute for the breach of any rule of the Institute:

• (p) Generally for carrying into full effect the objects for which the Institute is formed.

(2) The subject-matter and syllabus of the examinations to be prescribed by the Institute shall be approved by the Minister.

(3) Any fine imposed upon any member under any rule shall be a debt due from the member to the Institute, and shall be recoverable accordingly.

(4) No rule or amendments to rules made under paragraphs (f), (l), (m), and (p) of subsection (1) of this section shall come into force unless they are approved by the Minister.

(5) The rules of the Institute in force at the commencement of this Act, as far as they are applicable and are not inconsistent with this Act, shall continue in force as if they had been made under this section and approved by the Minister.

(1) There shall continue to be a Fund known as the Real Estate Agents Fidelity Guarantee Fund.

(2) The Fund shall continue to be the property of the Institute, and to be held in trust for the purposes specified in this Part of this Act.

(3) The Fund shall consist of—

• (a) All sums paid to or on account of the Fund by real estate agents, either as annual contributions or as levies, in accordance with the provisions of this Act in that behalf:

• (b) The interest from time to time accruing from the investment of the Fund in accordance with section 80 of this Act:

• (c) All money recovered by or on behalf of the Institute in the exercise of any right of action conferred by this Part of this Act:

• (d) Any other money that may be lawfully paid into the Fund.

(4) All money belonging to the Fund shall, pending its investment or application in accordance with this Part of this Act, be paid into a bank to the credit of a separate account to be called the Real Estate Agents Fidelity Guarantee Fund Account.

The accounts of the Fund shall be audited by a chartered accountant (within the meaning of section 19 of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand Act 1996 ) appointed for the purpose by the Council, but no person shall be so appointed unless he or she is authorised to audit real estate agents' trust accounts in accordance with any regulations for the time being in force relating to the audit of such accounts.

(1) Subject to section 74 of this Act, the Fund shall be administered on behalf of the Institute by the Council, together with a barrister or solicitor of the High Court to be appointed for that purpose by the Council on the nomination of the President of the New Zealand Law Society, such barrister or solicitor to hold office for a period of 3 years or until he or she sooner resigns or otherwise ceases to hold office.

(2) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, the barrister or solicitor so appointed shall be deemed to be a member of the Council.

(3) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, the quorum for meetings of the Council shall be the number of members specified in the rules of the Institute, together with the barrister or solicitor appointed under this section.

(1) The Council may, by resolution, delegate its powers in relation to the Fund, or any of those powers, to a committee of management consisting of not less than 3 and not more than 8 members of the Council, together with the barrister or solicitor who is a member of the Council under section 73(2) of this Act.

(2) Any such resolution may at any time be varied or revoked by the Council.

(3) Where the Council has delegated any of its powers to a committee of management under this section, every reference in this Part of this Act to the Council shall, in relation to those powers, be deemed to include a reference to the committee of management.

(1) There shall from time to time be paid out of the Fund, as required—

• (a) The amount of all claims, including costs, allowed or established against the Fund in accordance with this Act:

• (b) All legal and other expenses incurred in defending claims made against the Fund, or otherwise incurred in relation to the Fund:

• (c) All premiums payable in respect of contracts of insurance entered into by the Council under section 86 of this Act:

• (d) All refunds made to real estate agents under section 76(3) of this Act:

• (e) The expenses involved in the administration of the Fund, including allowances to members of the Council and to members or officers of the Institute in respect of their services, and their reasonable travelling expenses incurred in connection with the management of the Fund:

• (f) All other money payable in respect of any matter for which payment is required or considered necessary by the Council for the purposes of this Part of this Act or the rules made thereunder, including the cost of investigations directed by the Council.

(2) While the amount of the Fund exceeds $500,000, the income derived from the investment, in accordance with section 80 of this Act, of any money that is in the Fund may be expended by the Council in or towards meeting the costs involved in—

• (a) The administration of any regulations for the time being in force under this Act relating to the audit of trust accounts:

• (b) The provision of educational programmes and other facilities for the purpose of improving the efficiency and promoting the welfare of real estate agents:

• (c) The administration by the Institute of the provisions of this Act, and the conduct of the affairs of the Institute to such extent and in accordance with such conditions (if any) as the Council from time to time determines.

(1) Subject to section 78 of this Act and to this section, every real estate agent, on making application in any year for a licence or the renewal of a licence, shall, in addition to all other fees payable to the Board in respect of the licence, pay to the Council such basic contribution as may be prescribed, and no such licence shall be issued until the Board is satisfied that the payment has been made.

(2) Where the applicant for a licence or the renewal of a licence is a company, the contribution of that company under subsection (1) of this section shall be an amount equal to 3 times the amount of the basic contribution payable under that subsection.

(3) Where a real estate agent who for any year has paid the amount prescribed by this section remains in business as such for less than 3 months in that year, the Council may, out of the money received by it under subsection (1) of this section, refund to the real estate agent such portion of the amount paid as it thinks fit.

(4) If any real estate agent commences business as such during the last 3 months of any year for which the amount prescribed by this section is payable, the Council may accept, in full satisfaction of the contribution for that year, such portion of the contribution as it thinks fit.

(5) The person receiving any amounts paid to the Council under this section shall forthwith pay them into the Fund.

If a claim under this Part of this Act has not been made or, if made, not sustained against a licensed real estate agent, then, on the retirement from business of that agent or on his or her death, the Council may, in its discretion, pay to him or her or, as the case may require, his or her personal representatives, a sum not exceeding the aggregate amount of his or her contributions to the Fund:

Provided that no refund shall be made unless the amount remaining in the Fund after the refund is made will be not less than $500,000.

While the amount of the Fund (including any investments, and after deducting the amount of all unpaid claims and other liabilities outstanding against the Fund) exceeds $500,000, the amount payable by a real estate agent under section 76 of this Act shall, from a date fixed by resolution of the Council, be such amounts as may be prescribed.

(1) If at any time the Fund is not sufficient to satisfy the liabilities of the Institute in relation thereto, the Council may, by resolution, impose on every licensed real estate agent, for payment into the Fund, a levy of such amount as it thinks fit, but not exceeding the amounts specified in that behalf in the Schedule to this Act.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section,—

• (a) No real estate agent, being an individual, shall be required to pay by way of levy under this section, whether as the holder of a licence or as a partner of the holder of a licence, more than $100 during the whole period of his or her carrying on business as a real estate agent:

• (b) No real estate agent, being a company, shall be required to pay by way of levy under this section more than $500 during the whole period of its carrying on business as a real estate agent.

(3) The amount of every such levy shall become payable on a date and in a manner to be fixed by the Council, and, if not paid earlier shall be paid together with the next annual contribution payable to the Fund under section 76 of this Act.

Any money in the Fund that is not immediately required for the purposes thereof may be invested in any manner in which trustees are for the time being authorised to invest trust funds.

Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, the Fund shall be held and applied for the purpose of reimbursing persons who may suffer pecuniary loss by reason of the theft by a licensed real estate agent, or by his or her partner, employee, or agent, or, where the real estate agent is a company, by an officer or employee or agent of the company, of any money or other valuable property entrusted to the licensed real estate agent, or to the partner, employee, agent, or officer of the real estate agent, in the course of the business of the real estate agent.

(1) Subject to this section, the Council may receive and settle any claim against the Fund at any time after the cause of the claim has arisen.

(2) No person shall have any claim against the Fund—

• (a) In respect of any theft committed before the 1st day of February 1963; or

• (b) In respect of any theft committed after that date—

  • (i) Unless written notice of the claim is given to the Council within 12 months after the claimant has become aware of the theft; and

  • (ii) Except with leave of the Council, until the claimant has exhausted all relevant rights of action and other legal remedies available against the defaulting real estate agent or any other person in respect of the loss suffered by the claimant.

(3) No person shall be entitled to recover from the Fund an amount greater than the balance of the loss suffered by him or her after deducting from the total amount of his or her loss the amount or value of all money or other benefits received or receivable by him or her from any source other than the Fund in reduction of his or her loss, including any benefits received by reason of services rendered or payments made by the defaulting real estate agent or other person.

(4) No amount shall be paid or payable out of the Fund as interest on the amount of any judgment obtained or of any claim admitted against the Fund.

(5) No right of action shall lie in relation to the Fund in respect of any loss suffered by any person by reason of any theft committed by a real estate agent at any time after the claimant or his or her privies have received a notification in writing from the Council or from the committee of management established under section 74 of this Act warning him, her, or them against the employment or continued employment of that real estate agent.

(6) No right of action shall lie in relation to the Fund in respect of any loss suffered by the spouse, civil union partner, or de facto partner of a real estate agent by reason of any theft committed by that real estate agent, or in respect of any loss suffered by any real estate agent by reason of any theft committed by any partner of that real estate agent, or by reason of any theft committed by an employee or agent of the real estate agent or an employee or agent of any firm of real estate agents in which the real estate agent is a partner or, where that real estate agent is a company, by reason of any theft committed by an officer, or an employee or agent of the company.

(7) No action for damages shall lie against the Institute or the Council or any member or employee of the Institute or of the Council for any notification given in good faith and without malice for the purpose of subsection (5) of this section.

In any action brought against the Institute in relation to the Fund, all defences which would have been available to the defaulting real estate agent shall be available to the Institute.

(1) On payment out of the Fund of any money in settlement in whole or in part of any claims under this Part of this Act, the Institute shall be subrogated, to the extent of that payment, to all rights and remedies of the claimant against the real estate agent in relation to whom the claim arose, or in the event of the death or insolvency or other disability of the real estate agent, against his or her personal representatives or other persons having authority to administer his or her estate, and to all other rights and remedies whatsoever of the claimant in respect of the theft to which the claim relates.

(2) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Companies Act 1955 or the Companies Act 1993 or in any other Act or in any rule of law, if a claim is made against the Fund in respect of theft by a director, officer, employee, or agent of a company licensed under this Act, a District Court Judge may, if he thinks fit, on the application of the Institute, declare that any person who was knowingly a party to the theft shall be personally responsible, without any limitation of liability, for the repayment to the Fund of the amount paid from the Fund in settlement of the claim.

(1) No money or other property belonging to the Institute (other than the Fund) shall be available for the satisfaction of any judgment obtained against the Institute in relation to the Fund, or for the payment of any claim allowed by the Council; but if at any time the Fund is not sufficient to provide for the satisfaction of all such judgments and claims they shall, to the extent to which they are not so satisfied, be charged against future accumulations of the Fund.

(2) The Council may, having regard to the rules set out in subsection (3) of this section, determine the order in which judgments and claims charged against the Fund shall be satisfied, and may, if the amount accumulated is not sufficient to satisfy all such judgments and claims in full, satisfy any such judgments or claims in whole or in part.

(3) Without limiting the discretion of the Council, it shall, in applying the Fund towards the settlement of any such judgments and claims, have regard to the following rules:

• (a) It shall take into consideration the relative degree of hardship suffered or likely to be suffered by the several claimants in the event of their claims against the Fund not being satisfied in whole or in part:

• (b) Claims for amounts not exceeding $1,000 shall, except in special circumstances, be satisfied in full before claims for amounts exceeding $1,000 are satisfied to a greater extent than $1,000:

• (c) Where all other considerations are equal, claimants shall have priority as between themselves according to the dates of the judgments or the dates when the claims were received by the Council, as the case may require.

(1) Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act, the Council may, in its discretion, enter into any contract of insurance with any person carrying on fidelity insurance business in New Zealand, whereby the Institute will be indemnified to the extent and in the manner provided by the contract against liability to pay claims under this Part of this Act.

(2) Any such contract may be entered into in relation to licensed real estate agents generally, or in relation to any licensed real estate agent or agents named in the contract.

(3) No action shall lie against the Institute, or against any member or employee of the Institute, or against any member or employee of the Council, for injury alleged to have been suffered by any real estate agent by reason of the publication in accordance with fact of a statement that any contract of insurance entered into under this section does or does not apply to that real estate agent.

(4) If any contract of insurance is entered into in respect of any specified real estate agent or agents, the Council shall, on the application of any other real estate agent, enter into a like contract of insurance in respect of the last-mentioned real estate agent if the insurer signifies his, her, or its willingness to enter into such a contract on like terms and conditions.

(1) All money paid to the Institute in accordance with any contract of insurance entered into by the Council under section 86 of this Act shall be paid into the Fund, and shall be applied in or towards the settlement of relevant claims.

(2) No claimant against the Fund shall have any right of action against any person with whom any such contract of insurance was entered into, or have any right to claim any money paid by that person in accordance with the contract.

(1) This section applies in any case where the Council is satisfied, in respect of any real estate agent,—

• (a) That there is reasonable cause to believe that he or she, or, where the real estate agent is a company, any officer of the company, has been guilty of theft or of any improper conduct in relation to the money or other property of any other person; or

• (b) That there is reasonable cause to believe that any money or other property entrusted to the real estate agent has been stolen by his or her employee or agent, or, where the real estate agent is a company, by any officer, employee, or agent of the company; or

• (c) That he or she is, owing to physical or mental disability, unable properly to administer his trust account; or

• (d) That he or she has died; or

• (e) That he or she has been adjudicated a bankrupt; or

• (f) Where the real estate agent is a company, that the company is being wound up, whether by the Court or voluntarily or subject to the supervision of the Court; or

• (ff) Where the real estate agent is a building society, that the building society is being dissolved; or

• (g) That the licence of the real estate agent has been cancelled or that the real estate agent has been suspended; or

• (h) That the real estate agent has ceased to carry on business and has neglected to wind up his or her trust account after reasonable notice has been given to him by the Council requiring him or her to do so.

(2) In any case to which this section applies, the Council may, if in its opinion it is expedient to do so, take possession of any ledgers, books of account, records, deeds, or other documents belonging to the real estate agent or held in the course of his or her business in his or her possession or under his or her control or, where the real estate agent is a company, in the possession or under the control of any officer, employee, or agent of the company.

(3) Every person having possession or control of any such ledgers, books of account, records, deeds, or other documents who refuses or fails without lawful justification to deliver them or cause them to be delivered to the Council forthwith upon demand by the Council commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $1,500.

(1) If the Council has reason to believe that any money entrusted to a real estate agent has been stolen by him or her, or by his or her employee, or agent, or, where the real estate agent is a company, by an officer, employee, or agent of the company, the Council shall be entitled to inspect all ledgers, books of account, pass books, cheques, or records relating to any money received by the real estate agent or by his or her employee, or agent, or, as the case may require, the officer, employee, or agent of the company, whether the money has been paid into a private or trust account at a bank or not.

(2) Every person commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $1,500 who, having possession or control of any such ledgers, books of account, pass books, cheques, or records, refuses or fails without lawful justification to permit the Council or any person authorised by the Council to inspect them and to make copies of them and any entries in them forthwith upon demand by the Council.

(1) Upon taking possession of any document under section 88 of this Act, the Council shall forthwith serve upon the real estate agent concerned a notice giving particulars of the document and the date on which it was taken into the Council's possession.

(2) If any such document is the property of a firm of real estate agents in which the real estate agent is a partner, a copy of the notice shall be served on each partner in the firm.

(3) Within 14 days after any such notice has been served, the real estate agent, or any of his or her partners, may apply to a District Court Judge for an order directing the Institute to return any document specified in the order to the person from whom it was received, or for such other order as the District Court Judge may think fit.

(1) For the purpose of safeguarding the Fund, the Council may at any time appoint a chartered accountant (within the meaning of section 19 of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand Act 1996 ) to examine the accounts of real estate agents, and to furnish to it a confidential report of any irregularity in the accounts of any real estate agent or firm of real estate agents that may be disclosed by the examination, or as to any other matter that in the opinion of the person so appointed should, in the interests of the Fund, be further investigated.

(2) Every appointment under this section shall be in writing and shall be signed on behalf of the Council by the Chairperson or any 2 members of the Council.

(3) Upon production by any person so appointed of his or her letter of appointment he or she shall be entitled, in respect of any real estate agent or firm of real estate agents, to exercise any of the powers conferred upon the Council by sections 88 and 89 of this Act:

Provided that he or she shall not exercise the power conferred by section 89 of this Act except pursuant to a resolution of the Council passed in relation to any specified real estate agent or firm of real estate agents.

(4) The person so appointed to make any examination of accounts for the purposes of this section shall not, otherwise than in the course of his or her report to the Council, communicate to any person any matter that may come to his or her knowledge in the course of his or her examination.

(5) The Council shall consider the report in committee, but may disclose the contents to any Police employee, or to the Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand.

(6) No member or officer of the Council shall communicate to any person any information disclosed in the report, except in the performance of his or her duty.

The reasonable expenses of the Council acting in the exercise of any of the powers conferred by sections 88, 89, and 91 of this Act in respect of any real estate agent may, if disciplinary proceedings have been brought under this Act against the real estate agent who has accordingly been disciplined, be recoverable from that real estate agent.

For the purposes of this Part of this Act, the Institute may from time to time make rules for all or any of the following purposes:

• (a) Providing for the investment of so much of the Fund as is not immediately required for the purposes thereof:

• (b) Prescribing the forms of notices to be given to the Council in relation to claims against the Fund, and the conditions subject to which and the extent to which the Council may settle any such claims without recourse being had to legal proceedings:

• (c) Prescribing the duties of an accountant appointed to conduct an examination of any accounts under section 91 of this Act ; and prescribing also the corresponding duties of the real estate agent concerned, or, where the real estate agent is a company, the duties of the officers and employees of the company, and the circumstances in which the real estate agent may be required to pay the cost of the examination:

• (d) Generally, for such other matters as may be considered necessary for the purpose of protecting the Fund, or of giving full effect to the intent of this Part of this Act.

(1) The Institute, the Disciplinary Committee, or any other person with leave of the Board, may at any time apply in the prescribed form to the Board for an order cancelling a real estate agent's licence, and the Board may cancel the licence, on any of the following grounds:

• (a) That a licensee or, in the case of a licensee company, any officer of the company, has been convicted of a crime involving dishonesty:

• (b) That a licensee or, in the case of a licensee company, any officer of the company, has been guilty of misconduct in the course of his or her or the company's business as a real estate agent, and that by reason of that misconduct it is in the interests of the public that the licence be cancelled:

• (c) That a licensee or, in the case of a licensee company, any officer of the company, has been shown to the satisfaction of the Board to be of such a character that it is in the interests of the public that the licence be cancelled:

• (ca) That a licensee or, in the case of a licensee company, the chief executive officer of the company, has failed to be in effective control of any place of business in respect of which it is that person's duty to be in effective control or has failed to ensure that any branch manager of a branch office has been in effective control of that branch, and it is in the interests of the public that the licence be cancelled:

• (d) That a licensee or, in the case of a licensee company, any officer of the company, has been adjudicated bankrupt, or has made any assignment for the benefit of his or her creditors, or has made any composition with his or her creditors:

• (e) That in the case of a licensee company, the company is in receivership or in liquidation:

• (f) That, in the case of a licensee building society, the building society is being dissolved.

(2) No licence shall be cancelled on the ground set out in subsection (1)(a) of this section by reason of any offence committed prior to the issue of the licence, if, at the date when the licence was issued, the Board was aware of the conviction.

(1) On any application under section 94(1) of this Act, or on any other application made to the Board in that behalf in the prescribed form by the Institute, the Disciplinary Committee, or other person with the leave of the Board, the Board may, if it is satisfied that a ground exists for ordering the cancellation of a real estate agent's licence, instead of ordering the cancellation of that licence, suspend the licensee or, where the licensee is a company, the company or any officer of the company, from carrying on the business of a real estate agent for any period not exceeding 3 years as the Board thinks fit.

(2) While any order of suspension continues in force the person to whom the order relates shall not carry on the business of a real estate agent, or assist in the operation of any company that is a licensee.

(3) Any person commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000 who knowingly acts in contravention of subsection (2) of this section.

(4) Any order of suspension made under this section may, on application to the Board by the person to whom the order relates, be varied or revoked by the Board at any time.

On any application made under section 94 or section 95 of this Act, the Board may in addition to or instead of cancelling the licence of a licensee or, as the case may require, suspending any real estate agent or officer of a licensee company from carrying on the business of a real estate agent, impose a penalty upon the real estate agent or officer not exceeding $5,000.

(1) Every application made to the Board under section 94 or section 95 of this Act may be investigated by a person appointed for that purpose by the Board, and he or she shall report thereon in writing to the Board.

(2) The Board shall, unless it is satisfied that there is no reasonable ground for the complaint, hold an inquiry into the complaint, and shall give to the real estate agent concerned, and to the complainant, at least 14 days notice in writing of its intention to hold an inquiry, and of the time and place of the hearing, and, in the case of the real estate agent, the nature of the complaint to be inquired into.

(3) The inquiry shall be conducted and the decision made by the Chairperson and at least 2 members of the Board, of whom 1 shall be a member who is not a real estate agent. If a member of the Board is appointed to investigate the complaint under subsection (1) of this section he or she shall not be entitled to take part in the conduct of the inquiry or in the making of the decision.

(4) At the inquiry the real estate agent and the complainant concerned shall be entitled to be present and to be heard.

(5) Every complaint shall be prosecuted at the inquiry—

• (a) Where the Institute is the complainant, by the Institute; and