By law, overseas investors in sensitive land and significant
business assets in New Zealand must be of (and must maintain) 'good
character'. The Overseas Investment Office (OIO)
considers many factors when assessing an overseas investor's
character. The term 'good character' generally means acting
appropriately, including but not limited to not committing any
offences nor contravening any laws.
By Steven Lee and Genelle Seah - 12 Jun 2019
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A complaint of the court system is that justice comes too
slowly and at too great a cost. Is there a way to obtain a
relatively speedy judgment at a reduced cost? For some claims - the
answer is 'yes' and the way to achieve it is to issue summary
judgment proceedings.
By Andrew Steele - 10 Jun 2019
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We are delighted to announce that Jacque Lethbridge joined
the partnership effective 1 June 2019.
By Mike Worsnop - 1 Jun 2019
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Cashflow is the very life blood of most industries. None
more so than the construction industry. However, despite changes to
building laws, multiple failures in recent months have shown that
many subcontractors still struggle to get paid.
By Geoff Hardy - 30 May 2019
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This situation arises surprisingly often. Occasionally the
builder finds that he has over-committed himself, and doesn't have
the resources to do justice to all the projects he has on the go.
Sometimes that is because the building firm has lost one or more of
its experienced personnel through death or natural attrition. Or
the builder might discover that the property owner is very
difficult to deal with and it is clear that they are going to be at
loggerheads throughout the entire duration of the project. Of
course the property owner might reach the same conclusion about the
builder, and want to be rid of him. Or the property owner might
simply run out of money, or discover that the project is going to
turn out a lot more expensive than anticipated, perhaps because the
site requires a lot of excavation and removal of rock, or the
building contains asbestos which is going to take months to remove
safely.
By Geoff Hardy - 27 May 2019
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The Family Violence Act 2018 will shortly come into force
replacing the Domestic Violence Act. This new Act is designed to
give the courts better guidance about the nature and impact of
family violence.
By Surendra Bennett - 17 May 2019
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Many people aren't aware that, in certain circumstances,
you can be held legally responsible for other people's debts just
on a simple promise to pay - whether given verbally, in a text or
an email.
By Telise Kelly - 10 May 2019
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One of the benefits of being a
Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP) is the sole
right to undertake and supervise restricted building work in New
Zealand. However, with that right comes responsibility. If you fail
to maintain the standards required of you, anyone can make a
complaint against an LBP to the Building Practitioners Board.
By Pierce Bedogni - 3 May 2019
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When a debtor has multiple creditors, often it seems as if there
is no alternative but to throw in the towel and file for
bankruptcy. Bankruptcy does have some advantages in that an
individual is released from all his or her existing debts and that
in three years (as long as no objection is filed in the Court) is
discharged from bankruptcy. There are however downsides to
bankruptcy.
By Tony Johnson - 11 Apr 2019
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Accompanying the increase in blended families is a
corresponding increase in claims by children against the deceased
estate of a parent who entered a new relationship. Acrimonious
divorces and de facto separations sometimes leave children of the
relationship estranged from one parent. This in turn can sometimes
result in the children being disinherited in favour of the
estranged parent's new partner and family.
By Terri Gough - 5 Apr 2019
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