Tēnā koe,

 

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Tēnā koe Yasir,

 

Thank you for contacting the Ministry of Justice. 

  

We acknowledge receipt of your request regarding the impact of LGBTQ+
identity on families and divorce register records.

  

This has been forwarded to the relevant business unit for consideration
and response. 

  

You can expect a response by 23 September 2024. 

  

The Ministry of Justice 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). 

 

Ngā mihi,

   

Ministerial Relations and Services |

Corporate Services

Ministry of Justice | Tāhū o te Ture
Level 6 Justice Centre | Aitken Street

DX Box SX 10088 | Wellington

[1]www.justice.govt.nz

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Yasir Shaikh <[FOI #28183 email]>
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2024 10:00 AM
To: [Ministry of Justice request email]
Subject: Official Information request - Official Information Act Request:
Impact of LGBTQ+ Identity on Families and Divorce Register Records

 

I am writing to request information under the Official Information Act
1982.

 

I would like to request the following information:

 

Impact of LGBTQ+ Identity on Families:

 

How many families in New Zealand have been identified as being affected by
a parent coming out as LGBTQ+ (specifically, instances where a mother has
identified as lesbian or a father has identified as gay)?

 

Divorce Register Records:

 

Is it possible to determine from divorce register records how many
divorces in New Zealand have been influenced by one parent coming out as
LGBTQ+? If such information is available, I request aggregated data or any
relevant statistics.

I understand that privacy concerns may prevent the disclosure of detailed
personal information. Therefore, I am requesting aggregated or anonymized
data if specific details cannot be provided.

 

Thank you for your time and assistance. I look forward to your response.

 

Regards

Yasir Shaikh

 

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

 

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References

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1. http://www.justice.govt.nz/
2. mailto:[FOI #28183 email]
3. mailto:[Ministry of Justice request email]
4. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
5. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

hide quoted sections

Kia ora Yasir,

 

Thank you for request of 26 August 2024 to the Ministry of Justice (the
Ministry) under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) seeking
information about LGBTQ+ people and families.  Specifically, you
requested:

 

How many families in New Zealand have been identified as being affected by
a parent coming out as LGBTQ+ (specifically, instances where a mother has
identified as lesbian or a father has identified as gay)?

 

Divorce Register Records:

Is it possible to determine from divorce register records how many
divorces in New Zealand have been influenced by one parent coming out as
LGBTQ+? If such information is available, I request aggregated data or any
relevant statistics.

I understand that privacy concerns may prevent the disclosure of detailed
personal information. Therefore, I am requesting aggregated or anonymized
data if specific details cannot be provided.

 

The Ministry does not compile statistics about families about where a
parent identifies as LGBTQ+.  Nor does the Ministry collect statistics
where a divorce occurs where one parent identifies as being a Rainbow
community member. 

 

This information you are seeking sits on individual court files. While the
Ministry provides administrative support to the courts, they are a
separate and independent arm of government. Under section 2(6)(a) of the
Act, the courts are not subject to the Act.

 

Access to court information is managed by the courts under separate
legislation and court rules.  I must therefore refuse your request under
section 18(g) of the OIA on the grounds that the information you have
requested is not held by the Ministry or any other agency subject to the
Act.

 

If you want specific case files, you need to apply to the court under the
appropriate court rules.  The form to do so is available at:
[1]www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Forms/MOJ0148.2-Application-for-access-to-court-docs.pdf
 A decision on your request will be made by a registrar or judge and there
may be a charge.  The contact details for all courts are available at:
[2]www.justice.govt.nz/contact-us/find-us/   I must advise, however, that
this process is to access individual court files.  It cannot be used to
ask the court to generate statistics.

 

However, I can advise that Statistics New Zealand does hold some
information about LGBTQ+ New Zealanders.  The media release and link to
the data is available here:
[3]www.stats.govt.nz/news/1-in-20-adults-identify-as-lgbt-in-major-social-survey/ 
There is also information on same-sex marriages at:
[4]www.stats.govt.nz/news/over-4000-same-sex-marriages-in-new-zealand-since-becoming-legal-a-decade-ago/ 

 

Additionally, the Stats NZ website indicates that sexual identity was a
question in last year’s census, so it is likely updated data on this
subject will be released in the future:
[5]www.stats.govt.nz/news/2023-census-first-to-collect-gender-and-sexual-identity-from-everyone-in-aotearoa-new-zealand/

 

Regarding divorce statistics, Stats NZ also publishes some information,
although not to the level of granualarity that you are likely seeking:
[6]www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/marriages-civil-unions-and-divorces-year-ended-december-2023/ 

 

The Ministry also publishes information about the types of cases dealt
with by the Family Court of which dissolution of a marriage or civil union
(i.e., a divorce) is one type.  Again, the data does not go the granual
detail that you are seeking, but it is available at:
[7]www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Publications/13Wkrxl_Family-Court-applications_dec2023_v1.0.xlsx

 

Information about the grounds for a divorce are available at:

o [8]https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-la...
o [9]www.justice.govt.nz/family/separation-divorce/apply-for-a-divorce/

 

You have the right under section 28 of the OIA to seek a review of the
Ministry’s response from the Ombudsman.  The Ombudsman’s contact details
are available at: [10]www.ombudsman.parliament.nz

 

Ngā mihi

 

 

Antony Paltridge

Team Leader, Ministerial Relations and Services

Communication Services

Ministry of Justice - Te Tāhū o te Ture

[11][email address]

[12][Ministry of Justice request email]

 

 

References

Visible links
1. http://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Docume...
2. http://www.justice.govt.nz/contact-us/fi...
3. http://www.stats.govt.nz/news/1-in-20-ad...
4. http://www.stats.govt.nz/news/over-4000-...
5. http://www.stats.govt.nz/news/2023-censu...
6. http://www.stats.govt.nz/information-rel...
7. http://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Docume...
8. https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-la...
9. http://www.justice.govt.nz/family/separa...
10. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/
11. mailto:[email address]
12. mailto:[Ministry of Justice request email]