Legal Articles & Publications

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?

By: Annie Cao

Do not let the unlucky submission closing date of Friday 13 July 2018 put you off having a say in the Government's review of insurance contract law.

By: Lucy de Latour, Imogen Edwards

The Court of Appeal recently issued its judgment in Northland Regional Council v Kaipara District Council [2018] NZCA 63, being the latest development in a longstanding argument regarding the validity of rates set by the Northland Regional Council.

By: Kirstie Wyss, Lucy de Latour

The Ministry for the Environment has released the first set of Draft National Planning Standards for public consultation. It is expected that further standards will be developed over time. The stated intention is that national planning standards will make plans easier to use and prepare under the Resource Management Act 1991.

By: Anthony Drake

George Orwell wrote literary criticism and one of his best known books is the dystopian novel ‘1984’. The novel was written in 1947 and identified such terms as “Big Brother”, ‘doublethink’ and ‘newspeak’ which have become part of everyday language. Who would have thought 70 years later we would still be grappling with the same fairy-tale relationship between morality and privacy.

By: James Anson-Holland

The situation is seen all too often. In contemplation of spousal separation, or in preparation for death, individuals and members of their immediate family will often enter into inter vivos deeds of separation or deeds of family arrangement. The purpose for entering into these deeds often involves managing sensitive interfamilial relationships.

By: Shane Campbell

In a judgment released on 1 May 2018 Downs J, in a 344 paragraph judgment, has found H Construction North Island Limited (formerly Hawkins Construction North Island Limited) liable for serious building defects at the Botany Downs Secondary College.

By: Bethany Entwistle

Deciding who is responsible for defective earthquake repairs is a common predicament for many homeowners. The difficulty stems from the involvement of several parties in the earthquake repairs. These may include the Earthquake Commission, a private insurer, brokers, a loss adjuster, engineers, contractors and subcontractors.

By: Michelle Mehlhopt

As we count down to the National Environment Standards for Plantation Forestry coming into force on 1 May 2018, amendments have been gazetted this week that will have implications for how local authorities recognise the NES in their plans.