The Civil Union Act 2004 is an Act of Parliament in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It was passed into law on Thursday 9 December 2004 by a final vote of 65–55 in the

New Zealand Parliament The New Zealand Parliament ( mi, Pāremata Aotearoa) is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the King of New Zealand (King-in-Parliament) and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by hi ...

.Civil Union Bill Passed
The New Zealand Herald, 9 December 2004 The Act makes it legal for those in same-sex as well as heterosexual relationships to enter into a civil-union. The act was opposed by religious groups, including the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Then New Zealand National Party leader

Don Brash Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to ...

opposed the bill, but only as he believed it should be put to a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

. The Act was widely supported by the then-governing New Zealand Labour Party. It is administered by the

Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Just ...

and is under the jurisdiction of the Family Court. The ''Civil Union Act 2004'' is still in force, despite New Zealand providing same-sex marriages since 19 August 2013, under the ''

Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act 2013 The Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act 2013 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand, which since 19 August 2013, allows same-sex couples to legally marry. The Act was proposed as a member's bill by MP Louisa Wall in May 2012, and ...

''.

References

External links

Text of the Act
Statutes of New Zealand 2004 in New Zealand law Same-sex union legislation New Zealand family law 2004 in LGBT history {{NewZealand-law-stub

See also

References

External links