29 Nov 2023
The debtor's unequivocal decision to apply for bankruptcy on the eve of the hearing, having asserted insolvency was not the case, amounted to vexatious/frivolous or improper conduct under r14.6(4)(a); indemnity costs were therefore justified and awarded in the sum claimed.
4 Oct 2023
The Family Court had jurisdiction to make the s 46R schooling order because the 11 August 2021 parenting decision did not determine which school the children should attend and therefore s 139A did not bar the application; the schooling decision was not a variation of the parenting order; the procedural and evidentiary complaints did not disclose a seriously arguable error affecting welfare; applying the statutory test and precedent the High Court refused leave to appeal and left the Family Court order in place.
6 Sept 2023
The Deputy Registrar and Court correctly concluded that although the appellant is impecunious, the appeal is not reasonably arguable nor raises a public interest sufficient to justify dispensing with security for costs; the Judge correctly applied Denize and s 387 on service, properly exercised discretion to cure an advertising breach where no prejudice resulted, prior judgments precluded re-litigation of set-off issues, and unpaid judgment debts establish prima facie insolvency, so security for costs must be required and the review is declined.
7 Jul 2023
Given defendant's fundamental breach and impracticability of personal communication, the plaintiff validly cancelled the loan; the Court under s 43 granted relief by ordering the defendant to repay the loan in full and permitted the plaintiff to set off that judgment debt against the repurchase purchase price, and ordered specific performance of the repurchase agreement with the Registrar appointed to complete settlement if necessary.
5 Jul 2023
The proceeding was struck out because the applicant failed to comply with mandatory High Court Rules for interlocutory summary judgment applications (no statement of claim or notice of proceeding, no supporting affidavit, application improperly made without notice, and no valid New Zealand address for service), rendering the proceeding plainly an abuse of process under r 5.35B.
22 Jun 2023
The statutory demand was validly served and was not set aside; the statutory presumption of insolvency under s287 was unrebutted because no affidavit evidence was filed to show a genuine dispute or exceptional circumstance; the cashflow test for inability to pay debts under s241(4)(a) is satisfied; trust indemnity issues and trust assets do not preclude liquidation of an insolvent trustee company and are matters for the liquidator; accordingly the company is ordered into liquidation and costs are awarded to the plaintiff.
6 Jun 2023
The Court held that unregistered foreign judgments are enforced at common law by an action in debt/contract and under the Limitation Act 1950 the relevant limitation was s4(1)(a) (six years); the Korean judgments delivered in May 2010 were therefore time-barred when the proceeding was commenced in 2018, so enforcement was dismissed; on the merits the judgments were otherwise final, for fixed sums and the defendant had submitted to Korean jurisdiction and there was no proven fraud or breach of natural justice, and the affidavit of the defendant's Korean expert was excluded because the expert d…
31 May 2023
Permission to commence by originating application was refused because it was not in the interests of justice: the applicants had no legal or equitable right at imminent risk that required interlocutory protection (their substantive claim sought damages which would not be prejudiced by enforcement of PLA rights), the High Court does not have a mechanism to set aside a non-statutory letter of demand and the originating application route was inappropriate for challenging a s119 PLA notice; on the merits the applicants did not accept the loan extension, Tawa had no obligation to extend, the PLA n…
30 May 2023
The Court granted the plaintiff's application to dispense with service under r 6.8(1)(c) on specific conditions: send the pleadings and this judgment to the defendant's Gmail address (ensuring email size will not be rejected) and serve the documents on his mother Mrs Lloyd by email/post or personally if she will not accept email/post; leave to proceed as if served is granted three working days after those conditions are fulfilled; summary judgment hearing was adjourned to allow that process and limited time for opposition.
12 May 2023
The Judge was satisfied on the evidence that reasonable attempts had been made to effect personal service and that the proposed combination of emailing the notice to a provided address for a related person and leaving or affixing a sealed envelope at the judgment debtor's residential address was likely to bring the notice to the debtor's attention; accordingly substituted service was ordered and personal service dispensed with, with service deemed effected two working days after completion of the steps ordered.