Every trustee company shall be deemed to be—

Any trustee company may apply for and obtain administration in respect of a deceased person, either with or without the will annexed, and may perform and discharge all other acts and duties of an administrator as fully and effectually as a private individual may do when granted letters of administration.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in section 73 of the Court of Probate Act 1857 of the United Kingdom Parliament, it shall not be necessary, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, for any trustee company to prove in the case of any estate, whether insolvent or not, that there is any circumstance rendering it necessary or convenient to appoint it rather than any other person who would by law be entitled to a grant of administration of the estate.

Letters of administration shall not be granted to a syndic or nominee on behalf of a trustee company.

Where any interest in any estate which was vested in a syndic on behalf of a trustee company acting as administrator under letters of administration of a deceased person became, by virtue of section 3 of the Statutes Amendment Act 1945, vested in the trustee company, the syndic shall be kept indemnified by the company in respect of that interest.

All securities registered or subscribed in the name of a syndic on behalf of a trustee company or any estate or interest in land registered under the Deeds Registration Act 1908 or under the Land Transfer Act 2017 in the name of a syndic shall be transferred by the syndic to the trustee company or as it directs.

This section shall have effect whether the testator or the intestate died before or after the commencement of this Act, and no such vesting or transfer as aforesaid shall operate or be deemed to have operated as a breach of any covenant or condition against alienation or give or be deemed to have given rise to forfeiture.

In every case in which any trustee company is empowered to apply for administration in respect of any deceased person, it shall be lawful for the court in which, or the officer before whom, the application is made to receive and act upon an affidavit made by a director or manager of the company in place of any affidavit required by the said court to be made by persons making application for administration.

The capital, both paid and unpaid, and all other assets of every trustee company shall be charged with all liability of the company for any failure of the company to ensure—

The said liability of the capital and other assets of the company shall be sufficient security for the discharge of those duties in place of any bond required from other persons when appointed to any of the offices or positions mentioned in subsection (2) of section 7; and in any case where, to secure the discharge and performance of its duties, the trustee company has deposited with Public Trust a sum of money invested in securities approved by Public Trust or executed any bond as set out in Schedule 1, then, to the extent (if any) required from time to time by the provisions of any other Act, that deposit shall be maintained as part of the assets of the company liable for the discharge of those duties, and the bond shall in like manner be kept in full force and effect.

In all cases in which any court or any person, company, or corporation appoints any trustee company to any of the offices or positions mentioned in subsection (2), it shall, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any other enactment, be lawful for but not obligatory on the company to accept appointment to and act in the office or position, and to perform and discharge all acts and duties pertaining to the office or position, either in its corporate capacity or (where the circumstances so require) by any director or officer of the company.

The offices and positions referred to in section 6 and in subsection (1) are:

With the consent of the High Court, and subject to the approval of the appointee or appointees being obtained thereto,—

Where, pursuant to subsection (1), any executor or administrator with a will annexed appoints any trustee company as executor or administrator, or appoints any trustee company and any other person or persons as co-executors or co-administrators, the appointee or appointees shall, by virtue of the appointment, be also the sole trustee or co-trustees (as the case may be) in all cases where the executor or administrator was trustee, or where there was no trustee appointed by the trust instrument or in existence at the date of the appointment under this section.

Where there are more trustees, or persons having power to appoint a trustee, or executors, or administrators, than 1, any one trustee, or any one of those persons having power to appoint a trustee, or any one executor (whether before or after proving a will), or any one administrator, may, with the consent of the proposed appointee or appointees, apply to the High Court to have any trustee company appointed as sole trustee, executor, or administrator, or to have appointed as co-trustees, co-executors, or co-administrators any trustee company and any other person or persons, whether or not the other person or persons include all or any of the trustees, persons having power to appoint a trustee, executors, or administrators.

On any application to the High Court under this section, the court shall have power to make such order as it thinks fit.

Where the consent of any person is requisite to the appointment of an administrator or other trustee and the person refuses to consent to a specified trustee company being appointed, or where the person to consent is absent from New Zealand, or is not of full age or full mental capacity or is under any other disability, an appointment of the trustee company may be made without that consent if the High Court consents thereto.

In every case in which the personal attendance of the holder of any office or position mentioned in subsection (2) of section 7 is required in a court or elsewhere, if a trustee company is the holder of the office or position, the company shall be entitled to make the attendance in the person of any director or officer of the company, and the personal duties of the company as holder of the office or position may be discharged on behalf of the company by any director or officer of the company.

Subject to section 42A of the Administration Act 1952, as inserted by section 4 of the Administration Amendment Act 1960, the power of any trustee company to act as executor of the will, or administrator (with or without the will annexed) or trustee of the estate, of any deceased person, and the power of any trustee company to act in any of the offices or positions mentioned in subsection (2) of section 7 of this Act, may be exercised by the company either alone or jointly with another person, firm, company, or corporation.

Where by any power of attorney any trustee company is appointed attorney by any person, company, or corporation, all powers conferred upon the company by the power of attorney may be exercised by any 2 directors of the company, or by a manager of the company acting in conjunction with any director of the company; but in all cases the company shall be liable to ensure the due execution of the powers so conferred on the company.

The provisions of sections 19 and 20 of the Property Law Act 2007 and section 343 of the Companies Act 1993 shall extend and apply, as the case may require, to every power of attorney by which any trustee company is appointed by any person, company, or corporation.

Where any trustee company executes any document as attorney, it shall not be obligatory for the company, nor shall any person require the company, to furnish evidence by way of statutory declaration that no notice or information of the revocation of the power of attorney by death or otherwise has been received by the company.

The execution by any trustee company of any document as attorney shall be accepted by all courts and persons as conclusive proof of the non-revocation of the power of attorney at the time when the document was executed.

Any trustee company, acting or paying money in good faith under or in pursuance of any power of attorney, shall not be liable for any such act or payment by reason of the fact that at the time of the payment or act the person who gave the power of attorney was dead or had done some act to avoid the power, if this fact was not known to the company at the time of its so acting or paying.

With the consent of the company, any trustee may pay to any trustee company any money, being the whole amount, or the whole remaining amount, of any legacy or share in any estate to which an infant is entitled, whether indefeasibly or contingently, under a will, instrument, trust, or intestacy; and by writing in a form approved by the company direct the company to account for the legacy or share according to the provisions of the will, instrument, trust, or intestacy.

The writing shall declare that the amount therein stated is the whole amount or (as the case may be) the whole remaining amount to which the infant is so entitled, and how much of the amount is capital and how much thereof is income and how much (if any) of the capital and income has been expended, whether for the maintenance, education, advancement, or benefit of the infant or otherwise, and (in the case of money to which the infant is contingently entitled) the person or persons who will become entitled to the money or so much as remains in the event of the infant failing to become indefeasibly entitled, and the shares and interests of those persons, and such other matters as the company may require. The writing shall be certified correct by the trustee; and the company shall not be under any obligation to inquire into the accuracy of the certificate nor shall the company incur any liability through acting upon any statement contained in the writing.

Upon the foregoing provisions of this section being complied with in any case, the writing shall vest in the company all the powers of the trustee in respect of the legacy or share, whether conferred by the will or trust instrument or by any enactment or in any other manner howsoever.

The trustee shall, at the time of completing the certificate and directions referred to in the foregoing provisions of this section, furnish to the company where applicable a true copy of the will or trust instrument affecting the legacy or share; and the company shall act in pursuance of the trusts therein contained.

The provisions of this section shall extend to all wills, trusts, trust instruments, intestacies, and transactions, whether they took effect before or after the commencement of this Act.

In any case where a fund is raised by public or private subscriptions for the benefit or relief of any person or class of persons, the following provisions shall apply:

This section shall apply to funds raised as aforesaid either before or after the commencement of this Act.

Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, where the fund does not exceed $40,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations,—

Nothing in this section shall restrict section 67 of the Public Trust Office Act 1957.

Any trustee company (if it consents) may be appointed or directed by any court to represent any party in any proceedings or any person or class of persons interested therein.

The company shall be entitled to be represented in the proceedings, and the costs and expenses of any such representation as between solicitor and client, together with a reasonable fee for the company’s services, shall be paid to the company out of any estate or funds or property the subject of the proceedings, or otherwise as the court thinks fit.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the constitution of the company, no transfer of shares in any trustee company (whether the transfer has been executed before or is executed after the commencement of this Act) shall be registered unless and until the transfer has been approved by the directors of the company, and subject to the provisions of any trustee company Act the said directors shall have an absolute discretion to register or refuse to register any such transfer and shall not be bound to assign any reason for refusing to register any such transfer nor shall the exercise of any such discretion be called in question in any proceedings whatsoever.

If any trustee company is deemed, for the purposes of the Companies Act 1993, to be a subsidiary of another company incorporated in New Zealand, the provisions of subsection (1) shall, so far as they are applicable and with the necessary modifications, apply to transfers of shares in that other company.

Subject to subsection (2), it shall be lawful for a trustee company to charge, demand, and receive for work done and services rendered by it such remuneration by way of commission or otherwise as may from time to time be fixed by the Board of Directors of the trustee company.

Remuneration charged, demanded, or received by a trustee company pursuant to subsection (1) for the administration or management of an estate or trust shall not exceed the greater of the following amounts:

In addition to the remuneration authorised by subsections (1) and (2), it shall be lawful for a trustee company to charge, demand, and receive a reasonable fee or other remuneration for work done or services rendered by it in respect of any of the following matters that arise in the course of administration or management of an estate or trust:

Any fee or other remuneration charged pursuant to subsection (3) shall be clearly identified in the account rendered in respect of the estate or trust.

An order under subsection (2)(b) is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act or any other enactment, if the High Court is of the opinion that any commission, fee, or remuneration charged by a trustee company is excessive, that court may reduce the amount of the commission, fee, or remuneration.

Application for any such reduction of any commission, fee, or remuneration of a trustee company may be made by or on behalf of any person who would receive a greater benefit from the capital or income of the estate out of which the commission, fee, or remuneration is payable in the event of the commission, fee, or remuneration being reduced.

No application to the court under the foregoing provisions of this section may be made by or on behalf of any person after the expiration of 6 months from the date of delivery to that person of accounts in which are shown the commission, fee, or remuneration to which the application relates.

When any trustee company, at or after the commencement of this Act, in connection with any estate under its administration or management, lawfully carries on or manages (whether alone or in partnership or through an agent) any business or undertaking, or (through a representative or otherwise) takes any active part in the management or direction of any company, or when any other circumstances have arisen which justify additional remuneration, the trustee company may apply to the High Court to fix, in addition to any commission, fee, or remuneration to which it is otherwise entitled, either an additional fee or an additional commission by way of percentage; and that court may allow to the trustee company such additional fee or additional commission by way of percentage as it thinks fit, having regard to the work, care, skill, and responsibility involved in administering the estate or carrying on or managing or directing the business, undertaking, or company, and the extent of the interest of the estate in the business, undertaking, or company, and the amount of its share in the profits or income therefrom.

Any trustee company may from time to time, by resolution of its Board of Directors,—

While any such local or special Board of Directors remains in existence, it shall have a seal which shall have the same force and effect as the seal of the company and shall for all purposes be deemed to be the seal of the company.

Any trustee company may from time to time, by resolution of its Board of Directors, delegate to any local or special Board of Directors of the company, or to such director or directors or officer or officers or employee or employees of the company, as it thinks fit, all or any of its functions, powers, authorities, discretions, rights, and duties, whether under this Act or any other Act or otherwise howsoever, including any functions, powers, authorities, discretions, rights, and duties delegated to it by or under any enactment or otherwise, and including this present power of delegation:

Subject to any general or special directions given or conditions attached by the trustee company, by resolution of its Board of Directors, the local or special Board of Directors, director, officer, or employee to which or to whom any functions, powers, authorities, discretions, rights, or duties are delegated or subdelegated under this section may exercise, perform, or discharge them in the same manner and with the same effect as if they had been conferred or imposed upon it or him directly by this section and not by delegation or subdelegation:

Every local or special Board of Directors, director, officer, and employee of any trustee company purporting to act in the course of its or his duties pursuant to any delegation or subdelegation under this section shall be presumed to be acting in accordance with the terms of the delegation or subdelegation in the absence of proof to the contrary; and no person, court, or Judge shall be concerned to inquire whether or not the delegation or subdelegation has been made; and all things done or omitted by any local or special Board of Directors, director, officer, or employee in the course of its or his duties shall have the same consequences and effect as if they had been done or omitted by the company.

Any delegation or subdelegation under this section may be made to a specified director or officer or employee or to directors or officers or employees of a specified class, or may be made to the holder or holders for the time being of a specified office or class of offices.

Every delegation and subdelegation under this section may be revoked or suspended at will, and no such delegation or subdelegation shall prevent the exercise, performance, and discharge of any function, power, authority, discretion, right, or duty by the Board of Directors of the company, or by any local or special Board of Directors, director, officer, or employee by which or whom it was delegated or subdelegated.

Any such delegation or subdelegation shall, until revoked, continue in force according to its tenor, notwithstanding that all or any of the members of the Board of Directors or local or special Board of Directors, or the director, officer, or employee by which or whom it was made may have ceased to hold office, and shall continue to have effect as if made by the members of the Board of Directors or local or special Board of Directors for the time being in office, or the successor in office of the director, officer, or employee, as the case may be.

In the event of the absence from his headquarters of the person for the time being holding any of the following offices in a trustee company, namely, general manager, assistant general manager, branch manager, or secretary, from whatever cause the absence arises, or on the occurrence from any cause of a vacancy in any such office (whether by reason of death, resignation, retirement, or otherwise), and from time to time while the absence or vacancy continues, all or any of the functions, powers, authorities, discretions, rights, and duties of the holder of the office or pertaining to the position may be exercised and performed by any other officer or employee of the trustee company for the time being appointed by the company either generally or for any particular occasion to exercise and perform them as a deputy; and any such appointment may be made before the absence or vacancy occurs or while it continues.

No such appointment and no acts done by any person acting or purporting in good faith to act pursuant to any such appointment shall be questioned by any person, court, or Judge on the ground that the occasion for the deputy to act as such had not arisen or had ceased, or on the ground that the person had not been so appointed.

Notice shall be taken judicially without further proof of—

Notwithstanding anything in the Land Transfer Act 2017 or the Deeds Registration Act 1908 or any rule of law or other enactment to the contrary, it shall be lawful for any trustee company, in any case where it is registered as the proprietor of any estate or share or interest in land by virtue of its appointment or status as administrator or trustee under this Act or under any other Act or under any will or deed or order or instrument, or in any case where it is otherwise so registered as proprietor, to transfer, assign, convey, mortgage, or lease the estate, share, or interest or any part thereof, or to grant easements in respect of the same, to itself in any other capacity, and to enter into covenants and agreements in respect of any such transaction with itself in the one capacity so as to bind itself in the other capacity as fully and effectually in all respects as if it were a separate person in each capacity, and every such covenant and agreement shall be binding upon or (as the case may be) operative in favour of any assignee of the trustee company taking from it in any such capacity.

In this section the term trustee shall be deemed to include a trustee company in its own corporate capacity, whether as trustee of funds comprised in a Group Investment Fund and the various investments of any such Fund or otherwise howsoever.

For the purposes of section 153 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 no instrument shall constitute notice of a trust by reason only of its being made by a trustee company in favour of itself.

Upon any such transfer, assignment, conveyance, mortgage, lease, or grant being registered under the Land Transfer Act 2017 or the Deeds Registration Act 1908, no person thereafter having dealings in respect of the estate, share, or interest or in respect of the transfer, assignment, conveyance, mortgage, lease, or grant shall be affected by any notice of trust contained in or evidenced by the transfer, assignment, conveyance, mortgage, lease, or grant, nor shall any person be concerned to see or inquire whether the trustee company possessed lawful authority to enter into the transaction.

The entry of a trustee company by its name in the register of shareholders of a company shall not constitute notice of a trust.

A company shall not be entitled to object to enter the name of a trustee company in its register of shareholders by reason only that the trustee company is a trustee or is a corporation.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Companies Act 1993 or any other enactment or rule of law, a trustee company may enter its own name, or the name of any company of which it is a subsidiary, in its register of shareholders in respect of any shares to which the trustee company is entitled in a fiduciary capacity; and the trustee company may hold any such shares:

Where any trustee company is realising the goods, chattels, and effects of any estate administered by it, and those goods, chattels, and effects are not in the opinion of the company of greater value than $5,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations, and are situated at a distance of more than 10 miles from the usual place of business of a registered auctioneer, those goods, chattels, and effects may be offered for sale by auction by some person to be appointed by the company; and that person, for the purpose of the sale, shall not be required to be a registered auctioneer.

Subject to any order of the court, where any person is equitable tenant for life of any land comprised in an estate being administered by a trustee company, that person shall not be entitled to the use, occupation, and enjoyment of, or to receipt of the income, rents, issues, and profits of the land, until he has given such undertaking, and (where necessary) such security, as the trustee company may require to comply with such terms and conditions as to keeping the trust property in repair and punctual payment of rates, taxes, insurance premiums, assessments, rents, impositions, and other outgoings, or otherwise, as the trustee company may think fit:

Should the person who is in occupation of the land fail to observe any of the duties or obligations attaching to him as such tenant for life or as imposed by the trustee company or the court, or should the trustee company for any other reason consider it necessary or expedient to enter into possession of the said land, the trustee company may, by notice in writing personally delivered to the person or forwarded by registered letter to him at his last known address, direct the person to give up possession of the land on or before a date to be specified in the notice not being less than 1 month from the date thereof.

Subject to any order of the court, on failure to give up possession of the land on the expiry of the date specified in the notice, the person shall be deemed to be a trespasser, and the trustee company may take the necessary legal proceedings to have the person ejected.

It shall be no defence to any such proceedings that the person sought to be ejected is an equitable life tenant of the land.

A trustee company may from time to time establish and keep in its books 1 or more Funds, each of which shall be called a Group Investment Fund. Where more than 1 Group Investment Fund is so established, each such Fund shall be given an appropriate distinguishing number.

All funds forming part of any Group Investment Fund shall be invested, as the company which establishes the Group Investment Fund determines at the time when the Fund is established,—

Subject to the provisions of this section, a trustee company may invest any trust funds in its possession, whether at the time in a state of investment or not, whether they came into its possession before or after the commencement of this Act, whether the trust estate to which they belong is under administration by the trustee company or by any other trustee or trustees, and whether they comprise the whole or part of that trust estate, either—

Where a trustee company is a co-trustee of any trust funds, those trust funds may be invested as aforesaid in a Group Investment Fund with the consent of every other co-trustee of those trust funds.

Where so authorised by the power of attorney or other written authority by which it is appointed as agent by any person, and subject to the provisions of this section, a trustee company may invest any funds held by it for that person in, or transfer any investments held by it for that person to, a Group Investment Fund as if they were trust funds.

Subject to subsection (5), where any funds of a trust estate or person are in the possession or control of a trustee company and are lawfully invested in an investment in which a Group Investment Fund established by the company may be invested, the company may transfer that investment to the Group Investment Fund and give credit in the Fund to the trust estate or person for the fair market value of the investment at the time of the transfer. Upon any investment being so transferred, it shall cease to belong to the trust estate which, or person who, formerly owned it.

Investments made from funds forming part of a Group Investment Fund shall not be made on account of or belong to any particular trust estate or person, but the trustee company which established the Fund shall cause to be kept in the books of the company an account showing at all times the entitlement of each trust estate or person in the Fund.

A trustee company may in its discretion withdraw any amount for the time being to the credit of a trust estate or person in a Group Investment Fund—

Where amounts are so withdrawn from a Group Investment Fund—

Any profit or loss upon the realisation of any investment in a Group Investment Fund shall be credited or debited (as the case requires) to the Group Investment Fund.

The trustee company which establishes a Group Investment Fund shall—

Each trustee company shall determine the capital value as at at least 1 day in every month of the investments and funds comprising each Group Investment Fund established by it. For the purpose of any such determination, in respect of any security listed on a stock exchange,—

No investment in or withdrawal from a Group Investment Fund shall be made, except—

On a withdrawal from a Group Investment Fund, interest shall be allowed, in accordance with paragraph (a) of section 30, to the day of the month as at which a determination is made nearest to the date of the withdrawal.

In this section, stock exchange has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Companies Act 1993.

Where the investments comprising a Group Investment Fund consist principally of investments in real property the trustee company which established the Fund shall determine as at a date not later than 6 months after the preceding determination the capital value of the investments and funds of that Fund.

Where reasonable grounds exist for believing that the capital value of any investment in the Fund has, or may have, altered significantly, the trustee company shall forthwith determine the capital value of that investment and shall redetermine the capital value of the Fund accordingly.

No investment in or withdrawal from such a Fund shall be made except—

On a withdrawal from the Fund, income shall be allowed in accordance with paragraph (a) of section 30, to the day as at which the determination is made.

A trustee company may reimburse itself out of a Group Investment Fund for all reasonable expenses incurred by it in the management or administration of the Fund.

A trustee company must make such initial disclosure and ongoing disclosure of any reimbursement of expenses as is prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

Subject to subsection (2), a trustee company may charge, demand, receive, or retain a reasonable fee or other remuneration for services rendered by it in the management or administration of a Group Investment Fund (a management fee).

A trustee company may charge, demand, receive, or retain a management fee in respect of any estate money invested in a Group Investment Fund only if—

A trustee company must make ongoing disclosure of any management fee charged or retained in accordance with regulations made under this Act.

The ongoing disclosure must be made at the time of the issue by the trustee company of the financial statements of the estate in question, or at such other time as may be prescribed by the regulations.

In this section, estate money means money that is part of any property administered or held, managed, or controlled by the trustee company, whether as administrator or other trustee or as guardian, committee, manager, liquidator, receiver, agent, or attorney, or in any other capacity.

Subject to the provisions of this Part, a trustee company may exercise in respect of the investments and funds comprising a Group Investment Fund—

Where any investments and funds comprising a Group Investment Fund are employed in an activity that the trustee company is empowered or authorised to carry on as a portfolio investment entity, the trustee company or the manager of the Fund may adjust the interests of the beneficiaries in the property in the way required by section HL 7 of the Income Tax Act 2004 despite any other provision in this Act or in any instrument creating the trust under which the investments and funds are held.

A trustee company may not make a regulated offer of managed investment products in a group investment fund established by it under this Part if the fund was established after the date on which this section comes into force.

Nothing in subsection (1) affects the rights, powers, and duties of a trustee company under sections 29 to 33B.

In this section, regulated offer and managed investment products have the same meanings as in section 6(1) of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013.

A solicitor or an accountant authorised in writing by an interested person is entitled to examine at any reasonable time the accounts, books, and vouchers of the Group Investment Fund that relate to—

In this section, interested person means a person who has—

Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Part, nothing in this Part shall affect the rights, powers, and duties of trustee companies.

Where any person has died intestate or testate, whether in or out of New Zealand and whether before or after the commencement of this Act, leaving property situated in New Zealand to be administered, the gross value of which as estimated by any trustee company does not at the time of the election hereinafter mentioned exceed $120,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations, and no person has obtained a grant of administration in New Zealand, the trustee company, in any case where it would be entitled to obtain such a grant, may, in accordance with this section, instead of obtaining such a grant, file in the High Court an election in writing, under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company, to administer the estate of the deceased person.

On any such election being filed, the trustee company shall be deemed to be the executor of the will or the administrator of the estate, as the case may be, in like manner and to the same extent in all respects as if administration had been duly granted to it.

Every such election shall set forth the name, residence, and occupation of the deceased so far as they are then known to the trustee company, and the date of the death of the deceased and the property situated in New Zealand of the deceased as then known.

The election shall contain in every case where the deceased died intestate a statement to that effect, and in every case where the deceased died testate a statement that after due inquiries the trustee company believes that the document annexed to the election is the testator’s last will (or an exemplification thereof where administration has been granted out of New Zealand) and that the will has been validly executed according to the law governing the execution of wills.

No such election may be filed under this section unless there is endorsed thereon a certificate by a solicitor (whether in the employment of the company or not) that (as the case may require) he is satisfied that the court would, on application duly made, grant to the trustee company—

Any such election to administer shall be filed in the registry of the High Court in which an application for a grant of administration of the will or estate of the deceased person is required to be filed.

If after filing any such election as aforesaid the gross value of the property situated in New Zealand to be administered is found to exceed the sum of $150,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations, the trustee company shall as soon as practicable thereafter file in the registry of the High Court in which the election to administer was filed a memorandum under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company stating the fact; and shall thereupon proceed in the ordinary manner to obtain a grant of administration in New Zealand; and for that purpose may uplift from the court any will or exemplification filed with the election.

An election may be filed under this section relating to a written informal will to which subpart 3 of Part 2 of the Wills Act 2007 or the Wills Amendment Act 1955 applies. This section does not apply to any other informal will.

Where a grant of administration (in this section referred to as the original grant) has been made in New Zealand in respect of the estate of any deceased person (in this section referred to as the original estate) and the persons to whom the original grant or any substituted grant of administration was made have died, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, leaving part of the original estate unadministered, and the gross value of the property situated in New Zealand so left unadministered, as estimated by the trustee company at the time of the election hereinafter mentioned, does not exceed the sum of $120,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations, and no person has since the death of the last administrator taken out letters of administration de bonis non in New Zealand in respect of the original estate, the trustee company may, in accordance with this section, instead of applying for an order to administer de bonis non in New Zealand, file in the registry of the High Court out of which the original grant was issued an election in writing under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company setting forth the fact of the original grant, the death of the executors or other administrators, and the particulars of the property situated in New Zealand so left unadministered, and electing to administer the part of the original estate so left unadministered.

On the election being filed, the trustee company shall be deemed to be administrator of the original estate left unadministered in like manner and to the same extent in all respects as if an order to administer de bonis non had been duly granted to it.

No such election may be filed under this section unless there is endorsed thereon a certificate by a solicitor (whether in the employment of the company or not) that he is satisfied that the court would, on application duly made, grant to the trustee company an order to administer de bonis non in respect of the part of the original estate so left unadministered.

If after the filing of any such election the gross value of the property situated in New Zealand to be administered by the trustee company is found to exceed the sum of $150,000, or such higher amount as is prescribed by regulations, the trustee company shall, as soon as practicable thereafter, file in the said registry of the High Court a memorandum under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company stating the fact, and shall thereupon proceed in the ordinary manner to obtain in New Zealand an order to administer de bonis non (either with or without the will annexed, as the case may be) in respect of the said estate, and for that purpose may uplift from the court any will or exemplification filed with the election.

Every trustee company shall notify the Commissioner of Inland Revenue in the form required by the Commissioner in all cases where it files an election under section 36 or section 37.

In determining the value of the property of any person that is situated in New Zealand for the purposes of the foregoing provisions of this Part, that property shall not include or be deemed to include property situated out of New Zealand at the time of the filing of any election to administer, whether or not the property may afterwards be transferred to New Zealand (whether to the trustee company or to any other person) in due course of administration, whether for the purposes of distribution to the persons beneficially entitled thereto or otherwise howsoever; but in all other respects every election referred to in the foregoing provisions of this Part shall extend and apply to and include the property situated out of New Zealand in the same manner and to the same extent in all respects as a grant of administration obtained by the trustee company would in the circumstances of each particular case extend or apply to or include that property.

Where any trustee company has, pursuant to any of the provisions of this Part, filed an election to administer the estate of a deceased person, and the trustee company subsequently discovers that the election is invalid or ineffective by reason of the discovery of a will or a later will, or of the revocation or invalidity of a will, or for any other reason, then and in any such case the company may file in the registry of the High Court in which the election to administer was filed a memorandum under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company setting out the facts and certifying that the election already filed is invalid or ineffective.

Upon any such memorandum being filed, the election to administer previously filed shall cease to be of any effect whatsoever, and thereafter an application for administration may be made or a fresh election may be filed in all respects as if the election to administer previously filed had not been filed.

The fee payable to the Registrar of the High Court for the filing of any election under this Part shall be such amount as may from time to time be prescribed by the Governor-General by Order in Council.

A copy of any such election certified as a correct copy under the seal of the High Court or a Registrar thereof shall be equivalent to an exemplification of that election for all purposes, and the only fee payable in respect thereof shall be a sealing fee of such amount as may be so prescribed.

An order under this section is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

Where the trustee company is executor or other administrator or is by law authorised to administer the estate of any deceased person, or where it is acting as trustee, guardian, manager, agent, attorney, liquidator, committee, or receiver, or in any other capacity, a certificate by the company under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company stating, in the case of a deceased person, the name, residence, and occupation of the deceased person at the time of his death, and the date of his death, and certifying that the trustee company has obtained a grant of probate or an order to administer or is otherwise authorised to administer the estate and stating the date when the probate or order to administer was granted or the manner in which and the time at which the trustee company became authorised to administer and, in any case where the trustee company is acting as trustee, guardian, manager, agent, attorney, liquidator, committee, receiver, or in any other capacity, certifying that the trustee company is authorised to act as such trustee, guardian, manager, agent, attorney, liquidator, committee, or receiver or in any other capacity, and stating the manner in which and the time at which it became so authorised to act shall, notwithstanding any law or statutory provision to the contrary, be accepted by all courts, officers, and persons, whether acting under any Act or not, as sufficient evidence in the case of a deceased person of the death of that person, and of the appointment of the trustee company as executor or other administrator, and of its right to administer, and in any of the other cases mentioned of the trustee company’s right to act, without any other proof whatsoever.

In any case where a trustee company is acting jointly with another person in any of the capacities mentioned in subsection (1), a certificate issued in accordance with the provisions of that subsection by the company under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company shall, notwithstanding any enactment or law to the contrary, be accepted by all courts, officers, and persons, whether acting under any Act or not, as sufficient evidence of the facts set out and authorised to be set out therein, and of the appointment of the trustee company and that other person, and of their right to administer or act, without any other proof whatsoever. It shall not be necessary for the certificate to be executed by any person with whom the trustee company is acting. References in subsection (2) to a trustee company shall be deemed to include references to a trustee company and any person or persons with whom the trustee company is acting.

In every case where a trustee company acquires title by operation of law in respect of any estate or interest in any land under the Land Transfer Act 2017, or of any mining privilege under the Mining Act 1926, or of any shares, stock, or property in any bank, company, body, or association, an appropriate certificate under this section shall be sufficient evidence that the company has so acquired the title; and no Registrar-General of Land, or Mining Registrar, or bank, or company, or body, or association to which any such certificate is produced shall be concerned to inquire concerning the trusts on which the trustee company holds any such land or mining privilege or shares or stock or property or as to its authority to transfer or deal with it. In the case of land under the Deeds Registration Act 1908, the certificate shall be equivalent for registration purposes to the probate, order to administer, election to administer, trust instrument, order, power of attorney, or other document or authority under which the trustee company is acting, and it shall not be necessary to register the probate, order to administer, trust instrument, order, power of attorney, or other document or authority.

A statement of the purport of any trust instrument, order, power of attorney, or other document or authority in any assurance, certificate, or instrument by a trustee company under the seal of the company or of a local or special Board of Directors of the company shall be sufficient evidence thereof, and no one shall be concerned to inquire beyond that statement.

The Minister may from time to time, by notice in the Gazette, apply this Part to any trustee company or trustee companies specified in the notice, and this Part shall apply only to those trustee companies to which it is for the time being so applied by the Minister.

Any notice given under subsection (1) may be at any time revoked by the Minister by notice in the Gazette.

No notice applying this Part to any trustee company shall be given except pursuant to a resolution passed by the Board of Directors of that trustee company, and transmitted to the Minister.

Every notice given under this section shall have effect according to its tenor, and shall come into force on a date to be specified therein in that behalf (being not earlier than the date of the notice).

For the purposes of this section the interests of the persons beneficially interested in the property held in trust or administered by a trustee company shall be the paramount consideration in determining whether this Part should be applied to that company. Where, having regard to those interests in relation to any trustee company,—

Every application for shares in a trustee company to which this Part applies, and every transfer of shares in any such trustee company that is lodged with the trustee company for registration, shall be accompanied by a certificate by the applicant or transferee (as the case may be) in form 1 of Schedule 2 or to the effect thereof, and no shares in any such trustee company shall be allotted, nor shall any transfer of shares in any such trustee company be registered, unless the application or transfer, as the case may be, is accompanied by such a certificate.

At any general meeting of shareholders in a trustee company to which this Part applies, the chairman of the meeting may, before calling for a show of hands or taking a poll, require each shareholder or any shareholder or shareholders present in person to sign and lodge with him a certificate in writing in form 2 of Schedule 2. No shareholder who, upon being required by the chairman of the meeting to sign and lodge such a certificate, refuses or neglects so to do, or refrains from so doing, shall be entitled to vote either upon a show of hands or upon a poll on any resolution submitted to that meeting.

No vote by any person acting on behalf of any shareholder at any general meeting of shareholders in a trustee company to which this Part applies shall be valid unless the vote is given under the authority of a proxy in writing under the hand of that shareholder complying with the constitution of the trustee company, accompanied by a certificate by that shareholder in form 3 of Schedule 2.

In the case of shares in a trustee company to which this Part applies belonging to the estate of any deceased person, or to any estate which is being administered under the Mental Health Act 1969, or the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988, the registered holder or other persons entitled to vote in respect of the shares shall not be deemed, for the purposes of any certificate to be signed by him under this section, to have given any undertaking or to be under any obligation to the beneficiary or beneficiaries of the estate as to the exercise of his voting or other rights or powers in respect of the shares.

Any person who signs for the purposes of this Part a false certificate commits an offence, and is liable on conviction to a fine of $200.

No trustee company to which this Part applies or to which this Part or the Trustee Companies Protection Act 1934–35 has at any time applied, nor any person dealing with the shares of any such company, nor the Registrar of Companies, shall be affected by notice of any trust, whether express, implied, or constructive, by reason of any information which may have been contained in any certificate made under any of the provisions of this Part or any declaration made under the corresponding provisions of the Trustee Companies Protection Act 1934–35.

The Governor-General may by Order in Council make regulations prescribing—

Regulations made under subsection (1)(b) may—

Regulations under this section are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

The enactments specified in Schedule 3 are hereby repealed.