Judge advises courts to seek guidance from Australia, NZ

SUPREME Court judge Justice Berna Collier, pictured, has advised the courts to seek guidance using international laws to interpret the new Personal Property Security Act (PPSA) 2011.
Collier, an Australian federal judge, said during a workshop in Port Moresby yesterday that PNG should look to Australia and New Zealand case laws for guidance in interpreting this new law with caution.
“The PPSA statutes in each of the jurisdictions have been inevitably drafted by reference to financial services and consumer laws as well as commercial practices in each jurisdiction,” she said.
Collier said those conditions might not be replicated in the other jurisdictions.
She told judges, magistrates and others at the workshop that the explanatory memorandum noted that special circumstances in the country required drafters to add, delete or modify provisions to fit PNG circumstances.
The new legislation has been in operation since May 2016.
Asian Development Bank private sector development initiative coordinator Rosanda Kora said it gave lenders such as banks certainty to give out loans and the enforcement of security interests in certain properties.