{"id":"nsw:act-1989-190","name":"Jurisdiction of Courts (Foreign Land) Act 1989","slug":"jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"190 of 1989","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":106642,"registerId":"nsw-act-1989-190-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of Act","content":"#### 1 Name of Act\n\n1 Name of Act\n\n> This Act may be cited as the [Jurisdiction of Courts (Foreign Land) Act 1989](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1989-190).","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n2 Commencement\n\n> This Act commences on a day to be appointed by proclamation.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Jurisdiction with respect to foreign land (the Mozambique rule abolished)","content":"#### 3 Jurisdiction with respect to foreign land (the Mozambique rule abolished)\n\n3 Jurisdiction with respect to foreign land (the Mozambique rule abolished)\n\n> The jurisdiction of any court is not excluded or limited merely because the proceedings relate to or may otherwise concern land or immovable property situated outside New South Wales.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Court may decline jurisdiction with respect to foreign land","content":"#### 4 Court may decline jurisdiction with respect to foreign land\n\n4 Court may decline jurisdiction with respect to foreign land\n\n> A court is not required to exercise jurisdiction under this Act if the court considers that it is not the appropriate court to hear the proceedings.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application of Act","content":"#### 5 Application of Act\n\n5 Application of Act\n\n> This Act applies whether the cause of action concerned arose before, or arises after, the commencement of this Act.","sortOrder":4}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: abolishing the Mozambique rule and establishing that NSW courts have jurisdiction over foreign land disputes. It has not expanded beyond this narrow remedial function."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely short — only 5 sections total","No defined terms section","No cross-references to other legislation","Simple conditional logic (section 4 contains one discretionary condition)","Minimal exceptions — essentially one carve-out allowing courts to decline jurisdiction","Operates as a straightforward repeal of a common law rule with minimal procedural overlay"],"plain_english_summary":"This law changes the rules about when New South Wales courts can hear cases involving land located outside the state (or outside Australia).\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Abolishes the 'Mozambique rule'** — an old legal rule that stopped Australian courts from hearing cases about foreign land. Previously, if a dispute involved property overseas, you generally had to sue in that foreign country.\n- **Gives NSW courts power to hear these cases** — courts can now decide disputes about foreign land if they choose to.\n- **But it's optional** — courts can refuse to hear a case if they think another country's courts would be more appropriate (for example, if the land is in France, a French court might be better placed to decide).\n- **Works for past and future disputes** — applies to legal problems that happened before this law started, as well as new ones.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- People or businesses involved in property disputes overseas who want to sue in NSW (perhaps because the defendant lives here, or contracts were signed here).\n- Lawyers handling international property disputes.\n- NSW courts deciding whether to take on these cases.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nBefore this law, if you bought land in New Zealand and the seller breached the contract, you might have been forced to sue in New Zealand even if the seller lived in Sydney. Now, NSW courts *can* hear the case — though they might still send you overseas if that's fairer."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on available metadata and title, the Act appears to remain focused on its original purpose: addressing jurisdictional limitations of NSW courts in relation to foreign land disputes. There is no indication of scope creep or amendment since its commencement in December 1989 — the legislation has remained unchanged since that date."},"complexity_factors":["Involves private international law (the rules about which country's courts handle cross-border disputes) — a specialised and technical area of law","Modifies or overrides common law rules that have existed for over a century (the Mocambique rule), requiring understanding of that background","The interaction between NSW jurisdiction and foreign legal systems raises complex questions about enforcement and recognition of judgments abroad","Full operative text of the Act was not available for analysis, preventing assessment of specific provisions, exceptions, or definitional complexity","Relevant to a narrow but significant class of disputes — practitioners and affected parties must understand both Australian and foreign property law frameworks"],"plain_english_summary":"## Jurisdiction of Courts (Foreign Land) Act 1989 (NSW)\n\n**What this law does:**\nThis is a NSW Act that deals with the ability of NSW courts to hear and decide legal cases that involve land located in a foreign country (i.e., outside Australia).\n\nHistorically, courts in common law countries (countries following the English legal tradition, like Australia) would refuse to hear disputes about who owns or has rights over land in another country. This rule — sometimes called the \"Mocambique rule\" after a famous 19th century English case — meant that if you had a dispute about land in, say, France or Indonesia, an Australian court would say \"that's not our problem\" and turn you away, even if all the parties involved were Australian.\n\nThis Act appears to modify or clarify when NSW courts *can* exercise jurisdiction (legal authority to hear a case) over matters involving foreign land — likely allowing courts to step in under certain circumstances where the parties are present in NSW or where it would be unjust to leave someone without a remedy.\n\n**Who does this affect?**\n- People or businesses involved in disputes about property or land located overseas\n- NSW residents who may have rights, debts, or contractual obligations connected to foreign land\n- Lawyers and courts handling cross-border property disputes\n\n**Why does it matter?**\nIn an increasingly globalised world, Australians regularly invest in, inherit, or dispute ownership of property abroad. Without this kind of law, a NSW resident wronged in connection with overseas land could be left with no accessible court to hear their case. This Act helps close that gap.\n\n⚠️ **Important limitation:** The full text of the Act's operative provisions (the actual rules it contains) is not included in the material provided — only metadata and website navigation elements are visible. The above summary is based on the Act's title, jurisdiction, and legal context. For the precise rules, the full text should be consulted."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989","history":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989/history","analysis":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/jurisdiction-of-courts-foreign-land-act-1989/documents"}}