Kia ora Henricus,

Thank you for your email received 4th November 2024, in which you submitted an Official Information Act request as follows:

Part A:

1. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as responsible for maintaining the special advocate panel under s 16 of the SIPA?
2. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as responsible for meeting the costs of special advocates and special advisers under ss 24 and 27 of the SIPA?

Part B:

In this request, “special advocate” means a lawyer who is a member of the special advocate panel.

1. Please provide a list of special advocates and date they were first appointed to the panel.
2. How many special adovcates currently sit on the special advocate panel?
3. How many special advocates are men?
4. How many special advocates are King’s Counsel?
5. What is the median post-qualification experience of special advocates?

Questions 2–5 may be answered implicitly through the answering of Question 1.

6. Please provide any policies, application forms (unfilled), questionnaires (unfilled), selection criteria, agreements, memoranda, details of how potential candidates for appointment are identified or discovered, or other documents used in the appointment process and administration of the special advocate panel.
7. What is (are) the current remuneration rate(s), if any, agreed between the designated agency and special advocates?
8. How many proceedings have special advocates been appointed in since the commencement of the SIPA?
9. Do special adovcates maintain a security clearance independently of their appointment to the special advocate panel (e.g. as a result of other government legal work), or is the designated agency the sponsoring/granting agency of special advocates’ security clearances?

Your request is being considered in accordance with the Act, and you can expect a response by 2nd December 2024 (date determined by the OIA calculator).

Ngā mihi nui

Sonya Ford
Correspondence Lead Advisor | Office of Rt Hon Christopher Luxon
Prime Minister
Minister for National Security and Intelligence
Minister Responsible for Ministerial Services

Private Bag 18041, Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160, New Zealand

-----Original Message-----
From: Henricus <[FOI #29059 email]>
Sent: Monday, 4 November 2024 8:40 PM
To: Christopher Luxon (MIN) <[email address]>
Subject: Official Information request - Designated agency and special advocates under the Security Information in Proceedings Act 2022

Tēnā koe Prime Minister,

This email is a request for information and is to be answered as required by the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA).

This request is in two parts, Part A and Part B. Both relate to the “designated agency”, which is a public service agency (or agencies) designated by you, the Prime Minister, to meet certain requirements under the Security Information in Proceedings Act 2022 (the SIPA).

I acknowledge that the information requested in Part B of this request is more closely connected with the functions of the designated agency responsible for maintaining the special advocate panel under s 16 of the SIPA. Because the name of the designated agency is not yet publicly known, I trust that you will transfer Part B of this request to the relevant designated agency in accordance with s 14 of the OIA. This saves me from having to wait for your response in order to request the information from the designated agency directly.

Part A:

1. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as responsible for maintaining the special advocate panel under s 16 of the SIPA?
2. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as responsible for meeting the costs of special advocates and special advisers under ss 24 and 27 of the SIPA?

Part B:

In this request, “special advocate” means a lawyer who is a member of the special advocate panel.

1. Please provide a list of special advocates and date they were first appointed to the panel.
2. How many special adovcates currently sit on the special advocate panel?
3. How many special advocates are men?
4. How many special advocates are King’s Counsel?
5. What is the median post-qualification experience of special advocates?

Questions 2–5 may be answered implicitly through the answering of Question 1.

6. Please provide any policies, application forms (unfilled), questionnaires (unfilled), selection criteria, agreements, memoranda, details of how potential candidates for appointment are identified or discovered, or other documents used in the appointment process and administration of the special advocate panel.
7. What is (are) the current remuneration rate(s), if any, agreed between the designated agency and special advocates?
8. How many proceedings have special advocates been appointed in since the commencement of the SIPA?
9. Do special adovcates maintain a security clearance independently of their appointment to the special advocate panel (e.g. as a result of other government legal work), or is the designated agency the sponsoring/granting agency of special advocates’ security clearances?

Yours faithfully,

Henricus

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This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #29059 email]

Is [Christopher Luxon request email] the wrong address for Official Information requests to Christopher Luxon? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

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Tēnā koe Henricus,

 

The Ministry of Justice (the Ministry) acknowledges receipt of your
request under the Official Information Act 1982 regarding Security
Information in Proceedings Act 2022. This was transferred from the Office
of Rt Hon Christopher Luxon to the Ministry on 13 November 2024.

 

This has been forwarded onto the relevant business unit to respond to. 

 

The Ministry may publish the response to your request on our website, you
can expect that if your OIA is to be published that this will take place
at least 10 working days after it has been sent you. Your name and any
other personal information will be withheld under Section 9(2)(a) (protect
the privacy of natural persons). 

 

You can expect a response by 11/12/2024.

 

 

Ngā mihi

 

   

Communications and Ministerial Services |Corporate Services

Ministry of Justice | Tāhū o te Ture
DX Box SX 10088 | Wellington

[1]www.justice.govt.nz

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Henricus <[2][FOI #29059 email]>

Sent: Monday, 4 November 2024 8:40 PM

To: Christopher Luxon (MIN) <[3][email address]>

Subject: Official Information request - Designated agency and special
advocates under the Security Information in Proceedings Act 2022

 

Tēnā koe Prime Minister,

 

This email is a request for information and is to be answered as required
by the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA).

 

This request is in two parts, Part A and Part B.  Both relate to the
“designated agency”, which is a public service agency (or agencies)
designated by you, the Prime Minister, to meet certain requirements under
the Security Information in Proceedings Act 2022 (the SIPA).

 

I acknowledge that the information requested in Part B of this request is
more closely connected with the functions of the designated agency
responsible for maintaining the special advocate panel under s 16 of the
SIPA. Because the name of the designated agency is not yet publicly known,
I trust that you will transfer Part B of this request to the relevant
designated agency in accordance with s 14 of the OIA.  This saves me from
having to wait for your response in order to request the information from
the designated agency directly.

 

Part A:

 

1. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as
responsible for maintaining the special advocate panel under s 16 of the
SIPA?

2. What is the name of the public service agency you have designated as
responsible for meeting the costs of special advocates and special
advisers under ss 24 and 27 of the SIPA?

 

Part B:

 

In this request, “special advocate” means a lawyer who is a member of the
special advocate panel.

 

1. Please provide a list of special advocates and date they were first
appointed to the panel.

2. How many special adovcates currently sit on the special advocate panel?

3. How many special advocates are men?

4. How many special advocates are King’s Counsel?

5. What is the median post-qualification experience of special advocates?

 

Questions 2–5 may be answered implicitly through the answering of Question
1.

 

6. Please provide any policies, application forms (unfilled),
questionnaires (unfilled), selection criteria, agreements, memoranda,
details of how potential candidates for appointment are identified or
discovered, or other documents used in the appointment process and
administration of the special advocate panel.

7. What is (are) the current remuneration rate(s), if any, agreed between
the designated agency and special advocates?

8. How many proceedings have special advocates been appointed in since the
commencement of the SIPA?

9. Do special adovcates maintain a security clearance independently of
their appointment to the special advocate panel (e.g. as a result of other
government legal work), or is the designated agency the
sponsoring/granting agency of special advocates’ security clearances?

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Henricus

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

 

This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

 

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[4][FOI #29059 email]

 

Is [5][Christopher Luxon request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Christopher Luxon? If so, please contact us using this form:

[6]https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

 

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:

[7]https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

 

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.

 

 

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________________________________

 

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The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.

 

References

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