Is the fixed ball in our courts? The criminalisation of match-fixing under the Crimes (Match-Fixing) Amendment Act 2014

Abstract

In sport, match-fixing occurs when the result or a particular part of a match is manipulated, removing the uncertainty integral to sporting contests. Match-fixing was criminalised by the New Zealand legislature in the Crimes (Match-Fixing) Amendment Act 2014. This amendment introduces the Crimes Act 1961, s 240A, which expands the definition of ‘deception’ under s 240 to include match-fixing. The amendment legislation was enacted with a number of laudable aims, primarily focused on protecting the integrity of sport, which this paper believes justified the criminalisation of match-fixing. Such criminalisation can be seen as consistent with other behaviours criminalised in the sporting sphere. However, a number of lacunas discussed in the paper demonstrate that the legislation was not comprehensive in achieving the aims that justified the criminalisation of match-fixing. The paper therefore recommends expanding the legislation, influenced particularly by the specificity of equivalent Australian legislation, and drafts a more comprehensive match-fixing provision that aspires to both remedy the lacunas of the Crimes (Match-Fixing) Amendment Act 2014 and better reflect the legislature’s aims in criminalising match-fixing.