The Government of Papua New Guinea

“ In all cases, it is the duty of the National Judicial System, and especially of the Supreme Court and the National Court, to ensure that, with due regard to the need for consistency, the underlying law develops as a coherent system in a manner that is appropriate to the circumstances of the country from time to time, except insofar as it would not be proper to do so by judicial act. ”

“ Subject to any decision of law that is binding upon it, in over-ruling a decision of law or in making a decision of law that is contrary to previous practice, doctrine or accepted custom, a court may, for a special reason, apply its decision of law only to situations occurring after the new decision. ”

“ For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that where a pre-Independence law to which Subsection (2) applies has not been brought into operation, and does not itself express a date on which it is to come into operation, it may be brought into operation— (a) in the case of an Act—on a date to be fixed by the Head of State by notice published in the National Gazette ”