The Court of Appeal issued its decision on the Christchurch Adventure Park Port Hills fire case (Leisure Investments NZ Limited Partnership v Grace & Ors)1. This affirmed the High Court’s decision that the Adventure Park are liable to the neighbouring property owners in negligence, nuisance and under the Forest and Rural Fires Act 1977 (Act)…. Read more »
The Accident Compensation (Maternal Birth Injury and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2022 took effect on 1 October 2022. It is predicted that it will provide much needed support for thousands of birthing parents, in light of data estimating that 80% of birthing parents experience some sort of injury in childbirth. It follows many years of petition… Read more »
Insurance cover for weathertightness defects have been excluded by most insurance policies for many years in New Zealand – a consequence of the prolific leaky building claims of the 2000s. The Court of Appeal has recently considered whether a weathertightness exclusion can apply to exclude an entire claim, even if a significant portion of the… Read more »
This is the second of a two-part discussion of the health and safety case, WorkSafe New Zealand v Mount Somers Sand Ltd [2021] NZDC 16270. Part one can be found here. Defending proceedings brought by a regulatory body is expensive. The decision of WorkSafe New Zealand v Mount Somers Sand Ltd [2021] NZDC 16270 is significant as… Read more »
This is the first of two articles discussing the case of WorkSafe New Zealand v Mount Somers Sand Ltd [2021] NZDC 16270. The second, which discusses the award of costs, can be found here. The time-old debate between experience verses qualification has recently resurfaced in the health and safety space. The decision of WorkSafe New Zealand… Read more »
In the recent decision of Bennett v Professional Conduct Committee [2022] NZHC 876 the High Court confirmed the relevance of Victim Impact Statements in professional disciplinary proceedings. Under the Victims’ Rights Act 2002, victims of criminal offending are granted certain rights and standards of treatment, including the ability to provide Victim Impact Statements to the… Read more »
A recent fatal crowd surge at a concert in Texas has emphasised how failures by different parties engaged in the same enterprise can lead to tragic consequences. Criticism was levelled at several parties, including the respective companies who organised, promoted, and live-streamed the festival, when the surge during the performance of rapper Travis Scott (aka… Read more »
On 9 December 2021, Parliament unanimously passed the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Bill. This Bill allows those who do not identify with the sex assigned to them at birth to correct this themselves, without the involvement of the Family Court. In its original form, the Bill was primarily administrative and aimed to improve… Read more »
New Zealand has entered a new phase of its Covid-19 response. Vaccination has been focused on as the primary means of protection from the Delta variant. Mandating vaccinations in the workplace is complex– especially as the official guidance changes so rapidly. Vaccine mandated workers The Government has applied several measures to see vaccine rates rise…. Read more »
The End-of-Life Choice Act 2019 comes into effect on 7 November 2021. From this date, a patient who is experiencing unbearable suffering from a terminal illness is able to seek assistance to end their life. This is a sensitive issue, with strong views both for and against. Accordingly, the law has broad obligations which will… Read more »
