Family First Blocks Deregistration By Charities Board

Family First NZ has lodged an appeal with the Wellington High Court regarding the Charities Board’s second attempt to deregister the charity. Family First has also successfully applied for an order that the Board be restrained from deregistering Family First until the appeal is heard.

“This is simply a repeat of 2015 when the Charities Board failed to have us deregistered. The High Court allowed our appeal but directed the Board to deal with it again having regard to the decision of the Court. The Board has, in effect, repeated its earlier decision. Family First is going back to the same court to challenge again the belief of the Trust Board that our views about marriage and the traditional family “cannot be determined to be for the public benefit in a way previously accepted as charitable”,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.

Justice Collins in the earlier decision in the Wellington High Court in 2015 told the Board; “...Members of the Charities Board may personally disagree with the views of Family First, but at the same time recognise there is a legitimate analogy between its role and those organisations that have been recognised as charities.”

“Family First’s stated purposes are clearly charitable. The Board is confusing the distinction between purposes and activities and seem to be straining to find a basis to deregister Family First - the net effect of their whole approach is just to waste limited charitable and government resources involving taxpayer money,” says Mr McCoskrie.

“Family First will appeal this decision as far as we need to because of the threat it places on us and other charities and their freedom to speak and advocate on behalf of their supporters in a civil society,”

“We are now waiting on our day in court in the Wellington High Court.”

ENDS

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