Legal Project Management Plan & Checklist
Purpose of this Guide: Use this fork when the client Final Protection Order has been discharged and the 10-year Arms Act 1983 disqualification period has expired, and the client wants to restore their firearms licence with Te Tari Pureke (Firearms Safety Authority). Also use if the client was subject only to a Temporary Protection Order (not a Final Protection Order) and wants to recover surrendered firearms after the TPO is discharged.
Jurisdiction: Arms Act 1983, administered by Te Tari Pureke (Firearms Safety Authority). For TPO-only surrender, recovery may be available before any court proceedings on discharge of the TPO. For FPO disqualification, the 10-year period runs from the date the FPO was made, not the date it was discharged.
The Process at a Glance: Counsel verifies both the FPO discharge date and the disqualification expiry date (calculated from the FPO made date, not the discharge date). Counsel then commissions a psychological report addressing the fit and proper person criteria under s 24 Arms Act 1983. Counsel prepares the application package including the sealed court order discharging the FPO, the psychological report, character references, and evidence of non-violence programme completion. The completed application is lodged with Te Tari Pureke. If Te Tari Pureke refuses, counsel advises on appeal to the District Court under s 62 Arms Act 1983.
Key Legislation and Case Law: Arms Act 1983 - s 27A (TPO - licence suspension and mandatory surrender), s 27B (TPO - mandatory surrender of firearms), s 27C (FPO - 10-year disqualification from holding a firearms licence, running from the date the FPO was made), s 27F (restoration application on discharge of FPO), s 24 (fit and proper person criteria for licence grant), s 27 (grounds for refusal of licence), s 62 (appeal to District Court). Te Tari Pureke (Firearms Safety Authority) at firearmssafetyauthority.govt.nz.
* Disclaimer: We're nobody's lawyer, because we aren't lawyers. You are, so you know better than to take legal advice from an app. We also aren't accountants or dog trainers - just digital spirit guides taking zero liability for any of this. This site exists to gather the collective knowledge of practitioners like you. Verify everything and submit your feedback on the Family Violence Act: Protection Order (Respondent) - Weapons and Firearms Licence Restoration - Arms Act 1983 matter plan to improve the playbook. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, it's a request for input.
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