These are the terms for using The Civilian’s website. By reading or using the site, you agree to them. They are written for New Zealand law and kept as short as we could make them.
The short version
- The site is free to read, and you do not need an account.
- Share links to our stories as much as you like.
- Ask us before you republish a whole story or use our images.
- Please do not attack, overload or break into the site.
- New Zealand law applies.
Whangārei Cloudy, 18°, wind N 20 km/h
Who we are
The website is run by The Civilian. You can contact us at nz.thecivilian@gmail.com.
Using the site
You may read, search and link to anything we publish. Please do not do anything that harms the site or other readers’ use of it. That includes trying to get into parts of the site that are closed to the public, interfering with how it works, or copying it automatically at a rate that slows it down. Search engines and link previews are welcome.
Our stories and images
Copyright in the stories, headlines, original images and design of this site belongs to The Civilian. Some images belong to other people and are used under their licences; the credit beneath each one says whose it is and on what terms, and those terms apply to them.
Auckland Partly cloudy, 18°, wind N 25 km/h
You are welcome to share a link to a story, with its headline and a short quotation. New Zealand’s Copyright Act 1994 also allows fair dealing, for example for criticism, review or reporting the news, with acknowledgement. For anything more, such as republishing a whole story, translating it, or using our images or masthead, please ask us first. Please do not present our work as your own, or frame our pages inside another site.
Links to other sites
Our stories and share buttons link to other websites. We do not control them and are not responsible for what they say or do, and their own terms and privacy policies apply once you arrive.
Napier Partly cloudy, 21°, wind NW 20 km/h
Wellington Cloudy, 16°, wind N 35 km/h
If something is wrong
If you think something we have published is wrong or unfair to you, or uses your work without permission, contact us at nz.thecivilian@gmail.com. Tell us which page and what the problem is, and we will look at it and reply.
Availability and responsibility
We work to keep the site running and correct, but we provide it as it is and cannot promise that it will always be available or free of errors. We may change, move or remove pages at any time.
Nelson Fog, 16°, wind NE 20 km/h
As far as the law allows, The Civilian is not liable for any loss that comes from using the site, or from being unable to use it. Nothing in these terms takes away any right you have under New Zealand law that cannot be excluded by agreement.
Privacy
Our privacy policy explains what the site collects when you read it and what you can ask us to do about it.
Christchurch Partly cloudy, 21°, wind NW 20 km/h
Changes to these terms
If these terms change, we will update this page and the date below. The terms in place when you use the site are the ones that apply.
The law
These terms are governed by the law of New Zealand, and the courts of New Zealand decide any dispute about them.
Dunedin Partly cloudy, 17°, wind S 15 km/h
Invercargill Partly cloudy, 13°, wind W 45 km/h
Last updated 23 October 2026.
Weather checked 8:15 pm. Data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0), summarised.