Bridging Legal Borders: Foreign Property, French Succession, and Multinational Legal Support

2 Dec 2025

For clients with a mix of French and NZ interests, the legal work is frequently fascinating and necessitates a wide range of skills to resolve problems.

Lee Harris TEP in our private client team has recently written a range of blogs, showing how all departments in our 80+ strong team have worked together to find solutions.

Foreign legal proceedings and NZ assets

It’s common for foreigners to think they can invest in NZ and choose exclusively NZ law to apply to their investments; nothing could be further from the truth. In addition to foreign tax that usually continues to apply (and has a way of coming to light upon death), NZ assets are frequently able to be accessed during foreign legal proceedings.

Rights of a couple and solutions to purchase NZ real estate

New Zealand law accords significantly more rights to partners in a relationship than French law does, even if the couple is not married. Further, duties owed to children differ significantly. Best practice is to clarify what those rights and duties are in a relationship property agreement so there is consistent estate planning across jurisdictions. Such an agreement is one of the options detailed in this blog, as when one partner has either NZ, Australian or Singaporean nationality, there is the potential for a relationship property agreement to provide the pathway for the couple to purchase NZ residential real estate.

French succession law differences

Estates involving either French assets or French domiciled people are dealt with very differently to the NZ procedures; when clients weren’t expecting this, the procedure can drag on. In one case, we were able to evidence to the French notaire how our solution in a contentious matter met French civil law requirements. A collaborative approach resulted in both personal and financial benefits for all parties. Issues at stake involved lack of recognition in France of a NZ testamentary trust, NZ law prevailing for the worldwide estate and demonstrating how legal custody and the legal guardian’s management of funds provided a better solution for minors.

Assisting with French legal documents

The role of notaire does not exist in NZ; the role of a Notary Public may sound similar, but the reality is that the roles have nothing in common. The lack of notaires in NZ makes the requirements for execution of French documents complex, but to date we have always been able to find solutions. In particularly difficult situations, we have brought in our trusted foreign colleagues to “encourage” a reasonable approach.

In addition to providing services similar to those provided by a French notaire, Martelli McKegg also has a litigation team and provides services similar to avocats. Our breadth of skills means we can frequently deal with contentious matters before needing to bring in a specialist barrister. This knowledge influences how we set up structures and plan for our foreign clients.

It’s always preferable to get your planning in place while everyone is happy. Don’t hesitate to contact Lee Harris TEP to ensure your French connection is dealt with as efficiently as possible.