LGBT Rights in New Zealand - Relationships, Civil Unions and Same-sex Marriage

Relationships, Civil Unions and Same-sex Marriage

The Property (Relationships) Amendment Act 2001 gives de facto couples, whether opposite or same sex, the same property rights as existed since 1976 for married couples on the break-up of a relationship.

The Civil Union Act 2004 established the institution of civil unions for same-sex and opposite-sex couples. The Act is very similar to the Marriage Act with "marriage" replaced by "civil union". The following year, the Relationships (Statutory References) Act 2005 was passed to remove discriminatory provisions from most legislation.

Same-sex marriage in New Zealand was refused judicial approval by the Court of Appeal after Quilter v Attorney-General in 1994. However, unlike Australia and much of the United States, New Zealand has also refused to pre-emptively ban same-sex marriage if some future Parliament decided to approve it within an amended Marriage Act 1955. In December 2005, an abortive private members bill failed at its first reading to do so. Same-sex marriage and adoption now remains the final barrier before full LGBT formal and substantive equality in New Zealand.

In July 2012, a member's bill by Labour MP Louisa Wall which proposed defining marriage to be inclusive regardless of gender was drawn from the ballot. Preliminary reports show that there is widespread support for the bill both within Parliament (notably from Prime Minister John Key and Leader of the Opposition David Shearer) and amongst the New Zealand public, with polls conducted in May 2012 indicating 63% support. However, there has been opposition from religious and conservative groups. The bill passed its first reading on 29 August 2012, 80 votes in favour to 40 opposed (with one abstention), and was sent to the Government Administration Select Committee for closer scrutiny and public input, with the Committee required to report back to the House by 28 February 2013.

In December 2012, former Governor-General Catherine Tizard starred in an online video campaign supporting gay marriage, alongside New Zealand singers Anika Moa, Boh Runga and Hollie Smith, as well as Olympian Danyon Loader.