Civil Liability (Amendment) (Prevention of Benefits from Homicide) Bill 2017

Public bill · Private Member · Introduced

The bill would stop a person who is convicted of murder, attempted murder, or manslaughter from inheriting from the victim or otherwise gaining a financial benefit from the death, including through property held jointly, wills, insurance payouts, or estate claims. It also lets a court deal with cases civilly even if there was no prosecution or no conviction, and gives the court some discretion in manslaughter cases where justice calls for a different outcome. It matters because it closes a loophole that would allow someone to profit from killing another person and clarifies what happens to the victim’s property and estate.

Formal long title

Bill entitled an Act to amend the Civil Liability Act 1961 to provide for the effects in civil law of the principle that a person should be precluded from benefitting from committing any homicide and the principle that no cause of action arises from one's own wrongful act, to amend the Succession Act 1965 and to provide for related matters

Last updated 13 February 2020