New Zealand: Money Laundering: R v Liava'a

On 1st September, 1995 New Zealand acquired a specific money‐laundering provision in its criminal code: s. 257A Crimes Act 1961. As is often the case with new legislation, s. 257A made its way onto the statute books without fanfare and has been relatively unused by Crown prosecutors. The recently reported decision of R v Liava'a will hopefully generate interest among New Zealand law enforcement authorities and Crown prosecutors.