The purpose of this Act is to—

• (a) transfer all the property, rights, and obligations of the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trust Board to The Bishop Suter Trust; and

• (b) dissolve the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trust Board and remove it from the register of charitable trust boards under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957; and

• (c) provide that certain persons have no legal liability for donations given to the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trust Board for the redevelopment of the Suter Art Gallery should the redevelopment differ from the basis on which the donations were given, or not proceed, or be postponed; and

• (d) repeal the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trustees Act 1896.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

(1) On and from the commencement of this Act, the property, rights, and obligations of the old Board become the property, rights, and obligations of the new Board.

(2) Proceedings that could have been commenced or continued by or against the old Board before the commencement of this Act may be commenced or continued by or against the new Board on and from the commencement of this Act.

(1) The dissolution of the old Board and the transfer of its property, rights, and obligations to the new Board—

• (a) is not to be treated as placing a person in breach of, or default under, any contract, or in breach of trust, or in breach of confidence, or as otherwise making the person guilty of a civil wrong; and

• (b) is not to be treated as entitling a person to—

  • (i) terminate or cancel or modify a contract, agreement, or arrangement; or

  • (ii) enforce or accelerate the performance of an obligation; or

  • (iii) require the performance of an obligation not otherwise arising for performance; and

• (c) does not release any surety wholly or in part from all or any obligation; and

• (d) does not invalidate or discharge any contract or security.

(2) To avoid doubt, the dissolution of the old Board and the transfer of its property, rights, and obligations to the new Board does not alter the terms and conditions of any trust, agreement, or arrangement under which items are held in the collection of the Suter Art Gallery.

(1) This section applies to a person who is an employee of the old Board immediately before the commencement of this Act.

(2) On and from the commencement of this Act, the person becomes an employee of the new Board.

(3) For the purposes of every enactment, law, award, determination, contract, and agreement relating to the employment of the person—

• (a) his or her employment agreement is unbroken; and

• (b) the period of his or her service with the old Board is to be treated as a period of service with the new Board.

(4) The terms and conditions of employment of the person with the new Board are—

• (a) identical to the terms and conditions of his or her employment with the old Board immediately before the commencement of this Act; and

• (b) capable of variation in the same manner.

(5) The person is not entitled to receive any payment or other benefit because he or she has, under this Act, ceased to be an employee of the old Board and become an employee of the new Board.

(1) On the commencement of this Act, the old Board is dissolved.

(2) The Registrar of Incorporated Societies must, as soon as practicable after the commencement of this Act, remove the name of the old Board from the register kept under Part 2 of the Charitable Trusts Act 1957.

On and from the commencement of this Act, references to the old Board in any contract, lease, notice, order, proceedings, or other document have effect as if they were references to the new Board.

(1) Neither the Registrar-General of Land nor any other person charged with the keeping of any records or registers is obliged solely by reason of any provision of this Part to change any name in those records or registers or in any document.

(2) In the absence of evidence to the contrary, it is sufficient proof that any property, rights, or obligations of the old Board become, under this Part, the property, rights, and obligations of the new Board if a person presents to the Registrar-General of Land or the other person, as the case may require, an instrument, whether or not comprising an instrument of transfer,—

• (a) executed or purporting to be executed by or on behalf of the new Board; and

• (b) relating to any property, rights, or obligations of the old Board in existence immediately before the commencement of this Act; and

• (c) containing a recital that the property, rights, or obligations have become the property, rights, or obligations of the new Board under this Act.

The Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trustees Act 1896 is repealed.

In this Part,—

(1) Subsection (2) applies if the new Board decides—

• (a) to proceed with the redevelopment of the Suter Art Gallery in a way that is different from that provided in the Project Charter; or

• (b) to postpone the redevelopment of the Suter Art Gallery; or

• (c) to cancel the redevelopment of the Suter Art Gallery.

(2) Neither the new Board nor the Nelson City Council is liable for, and proceedings may not be brought or continued against either of them in relation to, any donation, grant, or gift—

• (a) paid or given by The Suter 2000 Appeal Trust to the old Board under the Funding Agreement; and

• (b) applied by the old Board as provided in the Project Charter before the new Board makes a decision referred to in subsection (1).