25 Jul 2014
HAMPTON v THE DISTRICT COURT AT CHRISTCHURCH [2014] NZHC 1750
- Citation
- [2014] NZAR 953
- Court
- High Court
A witness does not have a general right to be heard about prospective criticisms in a judgment; review on natural justice grounds is available only in limited cases where the judge omitted to question the witness and that omission was plainly wrong or egregious such that there was no evidence (circumstantial or otherwise) supporting the adverse observation; any review must not collaterally challenge the substantive outcome of the litigation and will ordinarily be limited to a declaration that the judicial criticism had no proper evidential basis.