New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Public policy

Legal area

Court

31 Oct 2023

WHITES96 LIMITED v THE WHEEL MAGICIAN LIMITED [2023] NZHC 3046

Citation

[2023] NZHC 3046
Court

High Court

The High Court upheld the District Court's finding that there is a serious question to be tried because the franchisor has a protectable proprietary interest (goodwill and confidential system) and the restraint was likely reasonable at contracting time; the balance of convenience and overall justice favor maintaining an interim injunction limited in scope, but the formal order required amendment to clarify territorial limits and a defined temporal limit (1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 or earlier).
6 Dec 2022

WADE v WADE [2022] NZHC 3254

Citation

[2022] NZHC 3254
Court

High Court

COCA establishes a comprehensive mandatory statutory regime for binding determinations in care of children matters and replaces the pre-existing law; as a result such disputes are not capable of being submitted to binding arbitration enforceable by the courts under the Arbitration Act 1996 s 10(1), and a Family Court had no power to make a final parenting order providing for binding arbitration; the Family Court correctly excluded the arbitration provision as invalid, and the appeal is dismissed.
2 Nov 2022

COMMISSIONER OF INLAND REVENUE v PROPELLOR PROPERTY SERVICES LTD [2022] NZHC 2856

Citation

[2022] NZHC 2856
Court

High Court

The statutory requirements for liquidation under s 241(4)(a) were satisfied and the companies are unable to pay their debts; their proposals were uncertain and insufficient to secure payment within a reasonable timeframe; public policy and creditor protection require prompt liquidation, so adjournment was denied and liquidation orders granted.
25 May 2022

ALMARZOOQI v SALIH [2022] NZHC 1170

Citation

[2022] NZHC 1170
Court

High Court

Court concluded the proper law of the Nikah was UAE; under UAE Personal Status Law the deferred Mahr of 500,000 AED became payable on divorce effective 1 November 2016; defendant breached the contractual obligation by not paying; plaintiff entitled to judgment for the deferred Mahr converted to NZD at the 1 November 2016 exchange rate and interest under the Interest on Money Claims Act 2016; public policy argument to reduce the quantum failed.
21 Dec 2021

CHONGQING JINZHIRAN JIABOCHENG BUILDING MATERIALS CO. LTD v HUANG [2021] NZHC 3582

Citation

[2021] NZHC 3582
Court

High Court

The court reserved costs. The plaintiff had not proceeded erroneously or with certain knowledge of issues requiring trial; its summary judgment application was properly brought and it was reasonable to continue until the defendant filed substantially more material in September disclosing factual disputes that made a full hearing appropriate, therefore the Philpott presumption to reserve costs applies.
8 Oct 2021

HEBEI HUANENG INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT CO LTD v SHI [2021] NZHC 2687

Citation

[2021] NZHC 2687
Court

High Court

Summary judgment was dismissed because the defendant raised arguable defences that preclude a finding that there is no real question to be tried: (1) credible expert and factual material supports an arguable contention that PRC courts (and/or judicial committees) may lack the independence and impartiality required for recognition at common law or that natural justice may have been compromised, and (2) disputed issues of PRC substantive law and fact (the 'property first' principle, waiver, preservation of collateral and priority of enforcement against Detai) mean the Hebei judgment may not be…
23 Jul 2021

ALMARZOOQI v SALIH [2021] NZCA 330

Citation

[2021] NZCA 330
Court

Court of Appeal

The Court dismissed the appeal because the Dubai court did not have the requisite in personam jurisdiction, for the purposes of New Zealand private international law, to make enforceable monetary orders against the respondent for the Mahr; the dissolution of marriage was a status/in rem matter but the ancillary money order was to be characterised as personam and not automatically enforceable on the basis of reciprocity or analogy to domestic service-out rules, and statutory/reciprocity exceptions did not apply to render the Dubai monetary order enforceable in New Zealand.
29 Jun 2021

JESSE SHANE KEMPSON v R [2021] NZSC 74

Citation

[2021] NZSC 74
Court

Supreme Court

Consent to the infliction of bodily injury known to be likely to cause death is not a defence where the defendant acted with murderous intent under s 167(b); the Supreme Court refused leave because the legal position and the facts did not raise sufficient doubt to warrant appeal. The application for extension of time to seek leave was granted but leave to appeal was dismissed.
30 Sept 2020

LANGE v LANGE [2020] NZHC 2560

Citation

(2020) 25 PRNZ 583
Court

High Court

The Court dismissed the respondents' applications for a stay and to set aside registration: enforcement of the Western Australian judgment is not contrary to New Zealand public policy; s 61(2)(c) does not apply because the Kaitaia property itself was not the subject matter of the Australian proceeding in the sense required by the TTPA (the Western Australian Court treated the matter as a monetary obligation and set aside the deed of forgiveness rather than transferring immovable title); the respondents were out of time to apply to set aside registration and provided no adequate explanation fo…
12 Nov 2019

NOE v RATZAPPER AUSTRALASIA LTD [2019] NZHC 2962

Citation

[2019] NZHC 2962
Court

High Court

Stay refused because applicant failed to establish that enforcement would likely cause a substantial miscarriage of justice: he had ample time but made little progress on the subdivision, alleged defamation was unproven and unconnected to enforcement, respondent entitled to enforce its judgment, and delay and absence of alternate means to satisfy the debt weighed against a stay.