New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Confidential communications

Legal area

Court

5 May 2022

SOUTHERN RANGES LIMITED v COMMISSIONER OF CROWN LANDS [2022] NZHC 933

Citation

[2022] NZHC 933
Court

High Court

The court confirmed the challenged redactions because evidence established the redacted passages recorded or formed part of communications made in the course of and for the purpose of a solicitor giving legal advice (including summaries of the solicitor's tentative conclusions and contextual material prompting legal opinion), and therefore were protected by legal advice privilege.
23 May 2018

CRAIG v MACGREGOR [2018] NZHC 1172

Citation

[2018] NZHC 1172
Court

High Court

The application for non-party discovery is dismissed because the applicant failed to describe the content of the documents sought or demonstrate their relevance to the pleaded issues, making the request a fishing expedition and preventing the court from assessing whether the communications are confidential under s69 Evidence Act 2006.
12 Nov 2015

NZ ASSOCIATION OF COUNSELLORS INC v STOCKMAN [2015] NZCA 542

Citation

[2015] NZCA 542
Court

Court of Appeal

The appellant's appeal raised arguable legal issues about admissibility of confidential communications under the Evidence Act and was not so obviously without merit as to justify indemnity costs; alleged judicial exchanges did not constitute a binding direction or undertaking that precluded appeal; the additional evidence proffered was irrelevant to the statutory grounds for indemnity costs and not sufficiently cogent under r 45; accordingly indemnity costs and leave to adduce further evidence are declined and a standard costs award of $4,460.00 is appropriate.

New Zealand Case Law

SOUTHERN RANGES LIMITED v COMMISSIONER OF CROWN LANDS [2022] NZHC 933

CRAIG v MACGREGOR [2018] NZHC 1172

NZ ASSOCIATION OF COUNSELLORS INC v STOCKMAN [2015] NZCA 542