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Oct 21, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Rob Macredie |Chris Browne |Simon Vannini |Michaël Sage |Nina Blomfield |Sally Mckechnie
On 11 October 2024, the Government released a new Policy Statement (GPS) for the electricity industry, outlining priorities and providing clear signals to the Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko (EA) and wider sector about the expected regulatory settings during the Government’s term in office. The EA must have regard to the GPS when carrying out its role as the energy sector regulator.
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Jul 24, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Nina Blomfield |James Caird |Jania Baigent |Alice Poole |Nick Chapman |Emma Strong
In a decision that will be welcomed by litigation funders and class action plaintiffs, the Court of Appeal has ruled that New Zealand courts can make common fund orders at the start of a class action. Read the full decision of the Court of Appeal [here] and our earlier comments on the High Court decision [here]. What is a common fund order?
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Jul 8, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Alice Poole |Nina Blomfield |Jania Baigent |Anita Birkinshaw |Nick Chapman |Mary Holden
On 27 June, the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment in partnership with the Sabin Centre for Climate Change Law published its sixth annual ‘Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation: 2024 Snapshot’ Report. The Report examines the key trends emerging from the 230 climate litigation cases brought globally in the 2023 calendar year.
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Jun 20, 2024 | 
lexology.com | James Craig |Nina Blomfield |Achi Simhony |Henry King
The Commerce Commission (NZCC) has filed proceedings in the Wellington High Court against Foodstuffs North Island (Foodstuffs NI), alleging that it lodged restrictive land covenants with the intention of preventing competitors (namely Woolworths New Zealand) from opening new supermarkets and/or expanding existing ones at several locations in the North Island.
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May 29, 2024 | 
lexology.com | James Craig |Nina Blomfield |Sam Comber |Sarah Lee |Henry King |Claudia Paterson | +1 more
The New Zealand Commerce Commission (NZCC) recently succeeded in legal proceedings against pyramid scheme promotor Shelly Cullen and global company Viagogo AG (Viagogo) for breaches of the Fair Trading Act 1986 (FTA). In this article we discuss the main findings of the two cases and why they are important reminders both to consumers to be wary when investing; and to businesses about their obligations under the FTA.
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May 20, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Michaël Sage |Nina Blomfield |Simon Vannini |Alice Poole |Andrew Tetzlaff |Rosie Dossor
In contracts where achieving a specific outcome is crucial but the exact steps to reach it are uncertain, parties often include a clause requiring one or both sides to take “reasonable steps” or to use “reasonable endeavours” to reach the desired result. This approach ensures a commitment to the goal while allowing flexibility in how it is pursued. The recent High Court decision in Remediation NZ Ltd v Enviro NZ Ltd confirms what taking “all reasonable steps” requires.
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May 10, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Nina Blomfield |Sally Mckechnie |James Craig |Nick Chapman |Sam Comber |Amarind Eng
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Qantas have recently reached an agreement over Qantas' marketing for thousands of ‘ghost tickets’ for flights it had already decided to cancel. They will now ask the Federal Court to impose a penalty of A$100 million on Qantas for breaching the Australian Consumer Law. The case is an important reminder about the possible risks associated with misleading advertising.
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Apr 10, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Nina Blomfield |Jania Baigent |James Craig |Sally Mckechnie |Helen Smith |Tom Hammond | +3 more
On 22 March 2024, Te Aka Matua o Te Ture| the Law Commission published its third and final statutory review of the Evidence Act 2006. This article discusses the Commission’s key recommendations to clarify the rules of legal privilege and reform evidence procedure in civil proceedings.
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Feb 8, 2024 | 
lexology.com | Anita Birkinshaw |Nina Blomfield |Jania Baigent |Sally Mckechnie |Nick Chapman
After almost 18 months of deliberation, the Supreme Court has issued its landmark decision in Smith v Fonterra and has allowed all claims against a number of major corporates to proceed to trial. In finding that the Court of Appeal was wrong to strike out claims in tort against companies responsible for greenhouse gas emissions, the judgment will shape the future of climate change litigation in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Dec 12, 2023 | 
lexology.com | Nina Blomfield |James Craig |Achi Simhony
Given that no single party had a majority of the votes in New Zealand’s recent election, it has been necessary for the National Party to enter into coalition arrangements with the ACT Party and the NZ First Party in order to govern. The coalition agreements have some interesting implications for competition law in New Zealand. In this article, we look at the key points from the coalition agreements between each of National / Act and National / NZ First.
