Legal Articles & Publications

By: Stephanie Woods

A recent UK case has provided an opening for awards of exemplary damages for serious insurance fraud.

By: Bethany Entwistle, Jarom Murphy

IAG has successfully appealed the High Court’s decision in Robin v IAG [2018] NZHC 204. IAG applied to join four other parties as defendants to the proceeding on the basis that each party was involved in the repair work and owed a duty of care to Ms Robin.

By: Imogen Edwards, Kate Woods

The Government has announced its plan to tackle water quality issues in New Zealand, with a focus on stopping further degradation and loss, reversing past damage, and addressing water allocation issues.

By: Shane Campbell, Jordan Halligan

A company is teetering on the verge of insolvency. Its creditors are numerous. The company arranges for a third party to settle some of its debts on its behalf, but nonetheless tips over into liquidation. Can the liquidators recover the monies paid to the company’s creditors?

By: Shane Campbell, Jack Stringer

Boundary trees block your views, access to light, or even Wi-Fi signals. What can you do? This was the issue that came before the High Court on appeal from the District Court in Vickery v Thoroughgood [2018] NZHC 2303.

By: Anthony Drake

We live in an age of constant change where disruption, innovation and evolution are norms. In the business sector, it is good practice for employers to regularly review employment agreements, job descriptions, key-performance-indicators, wages and salaries, and the existence of the job itself.

By: Alyssa Langford

The Ministry for the Environment is currently consulting on a suite of proposed amendments to the Emissions Trading Scheme; New Zealand’s principal policy response to climate change.

By: Shane Campbell, Josh Taylor

The recent enforced receivership of national construction firm Ebert Construction has thrust receiverships back into the spotlight. With some 95 staff laid off and creditors owed around $40 million, the consequences of a high-profile company being forced into a receivership are apparent. Nonetheless, many people involved in the construction industry, and the general public, may have little knowledge of what a receivership entails.

By: Hazel Bowering-Scott

The Court of Appeal has rejected QBE’s appeal in QBE Insurance (International) Limited v Allianz Australia Insurance Limited [2018] NZCA 239.

By: Anthony Drake

The Domestic Violence – Victim Protections Bill was passed into law this week and amends the Employment Relations Act 2000, the Holidays Act 2003 and the Human Rights Act 1993. The changes come into effect on 1 April 2019 and enable victims of domestic violence to request a short-term variation to their employment arrangements for the purposes of dealing with the effects of being subject to domestic violence.

By: Bethany Entwistle

Unless you’re willing to pay a fine of up to 4% of your company's annual global turnover or €20 million for failing to comply with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), it's time to review your company's privacy policy and practices.

By: Anthony Drake

Should surrogates and parents through surrogacy receive the same legal rights to leave and pay when their child is born? In New Zealand, surrogacy is an altruistic arrangement on the part of the surrogate mother and it’s illegal to pay her more than her reasonable expenses. So who gets entitlements under New Zealand’s statutory Parental Leave legislation?