New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Case management

Legal area

Court

22 Nov 2023

GAUTAM JINDAL v KEVIN JOHN DAVIES as liquidator of ORANGE CAPITAL LIMITED (IN LIQUIDATION) [2023] NZHC 3292

Citation

[2023] NZHC 3292
Court

High Court

The respondent, as the successful party, was entitled to costs; the Court found items 11 and 12 reasonably incurred, allowed costs for the supplementary affidavit (item 36) as necessary to address new issues, disallowed costs on costs for the memorandum as to costs, and allowed three-quarters of a day for hearing time, resulting in a net award to the respondent of $11,512.50.
29 Sept 2023

KAUR v THE TAXATION REVIEW AUTHORITY [2023] NZHC 2748

Citation

[2023] NZHC 2748
Court

High Court

A TRA strike out order made pursuant to unless orders that finally disposes of a challenge is a determination of the challenge and is appealable under s 26A TRAA; on the facts the applicant's non-compliance was caused by counsel error, the prejudice and delay were limited, and the interests of justice required excusing the default and setting aside the strike out order, remitting the matter for case management.
7 Sept 2023

BALLANTYNE TRUSTEES LTD v HFK Ltd [2023] NZHC 2512

Citation

[2023] NZHC 2512
Court

High Court

The adjournment was granted because persuasive contemporaneous medical evidence showed the second plaintiff was fully unfit to prepare for or attend trial and to instruct new counsel for an estimated 6–12 months, and that inability would prevent fair preparation of the plaintiffs' case; this outweighed the defendants' prejudice which was mitigated by the court having reviewed the medical material and by ordering close case management.
2 Aug 2023

YUE v ZHOU [2023] NZHC 2028

Citation

[2023] NZHC 2028
Court

High Court

Respondents entitled to costs for opposing the stay and for the appeal proceedings subject to a 25% discount where interests were closely aligned, certain interlocutory costs declined or ordered to lie where they fall, and second counsel was allowed given the volume and language issues; specific awards made: $16,849.50 to Xin Zhou and $17,566.50 to Wen Zhou.
25 Jul 2023

SENIO HOLDNGS LTD v EVERGREEN HOMES & CONSTRUCTION LTD (COSTS) [2023] NZHC 1944

Citation

[2023] NZHC 1944
Court

High Court

The Court disallowed discrete allowances for the one‑page case management memorandum, for a separate bundle of authorities under step 41, and for a second allowance for short reply submissions and chronology because those items were trivial or covered by other steps; the Court refused a 50% uplift because respondent's arguments, while unsuccessful or unwise, were not abusive or so unmeritorious as to warrant increased costs. Senio was awarded costs on a 2B scale totalling NZD 10,994 and disbursements NZD 1,242.
3 Jul 2023

DUNSTAN v DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS [2023] NZHC 1670

Citation

[2023] NZHC 1670
Court

High Court

The Associate Judge dismissed the recusal application and refused leave to appeal because adverse rulings do not demonstrate bias, the applicant failed to identify any arguable error of law or fact and an Associate Judge has jurisdiction to determine interlocutory applications; the request to waive security for costs was premature because no security order existed.
11 May 2023

ROBERTS v CARROLL [2023] NZHC 1121

Citation

[2023] NZHC 1121
Court

High Court

Leave to appeal out of time against the Family Court decision of 14 October 2020 refusing a temporary protection order was refused due to excessive delay, changed circumstances eliminating any practical basis for the order, and risk of oppressive extension of settled matters; leave to appeal was granted in respect of the final protection order dated 15 November 2022 because the appellant had complied with this Court's directions and it would be unjust to deny the appeal; stay of the Family Court property orders was dismissed because the orders had already been executed; security for costs for…
4 Apr 2023

YOUNG v ROSS (NO. 3) (COSTS) [2023] NZHC 747

Citation

[2023] NZHC 747
Court

High Court

Award full costs on a 2B scale including a second memorandum and apply a 30% uplift to all steps because the appellants' claims lacked merit, were pursued despite prior adverse decisions and included vexatious and scandalous allegations; prior unrelated costs agreement was irrelevant.
31 Mar 2023

MATHIAS v THE EARTHQUAKE COMMISSION [2023] NZHC 705

Citation

[2023] NZHC 705
Court

High Court

Leave to appeal was refused because the applicant failed to identify any arguable error of law or fact in the November 2022 interlocutory judgment; the proposed substantive variation of the agreed class was not within the scope of the reserved leave, would risk prejudice to the defendant's limitation defences and create conflicts between class members, and the contested notice, personal service and opt-in period decisions were legitimate case-management choices not plainly wrong; accordingly it was not in the interests of justice to grant leave.
24 Mar 2023

CSR POKENO LTD v YES INVESTMENT NZ LTD [2023] NZHC 598

Citation

[2023] NZHC 598
Court

High Court

Leave to appeal was dismissed because the contended errors related to the balance of convenience were not shown to be of sufficient significance or consequence to justify an interlocutory appeal; appellate consideration would likely not affect the trial and would cause unnecessary delay and diversion of resources.