News

Rod Petricevic says it was "vindictive" of Serious Fraud Office boss Adam Feeley to crack open a bottle of Bridgecorp's bubbles to celebrate criminal charges against him. "I'm surprised and I'm really quite appalled to be quite honest. I wouldn't have thought this situation is...

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Used car importers are taking legal action in a bid to prevent the Government from tightening vehicle emission standards, which they claim will push up prices. Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association chief executive David Vinsen said his organisation had lodged an application with the High...

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The Government has failed to gain enough support for its "fix-it" bill for police use of hidden cameras and has watered down its retrospective nature to win the votes of Labour and Act. The concession means that evidence gathered by hidden cameras in 47 pending trials - involving 229...

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A synthetic cannabis product is back on the market - and others are on the way - less than three months after the so-called "legal highs" were banned. Auckland-based Enjoi Products released a repackaged and modified version of its Amsterdam Cafe synthetic cannabis product to...

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All Auckland residents may need a licence next year to have more than one dog on a property after a regional revamp of bylaws aiming to penalise irresponsible owners. The draft dog bylaw for the Super City is also leaning heavily towards public safety after more than 320 dog attacks during the...

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The Government's bill to legalise covert state video surveillance is more than just the balancing act between civil liberties and police powers to investigate crime. It is also about police reputation, good constitutional practice and the law-making powers of Parliament and the Supreme Court....

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Secret papers reveal that in the 1990s the oil giant routinely worked with the army to suppress resistance to its activities   Shell has never denied that its oil operations have polluted large areas of the Niger Delta – land and air. But it had resisted charges of complicity in...

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Bayes' theorem is a mathematical equation used in court cases to analyse statistical evidence. But a judge has ruled it can no longer be used. Will it result in more miscarriages of justice? It's not often that the quiet world of mathematics is rocked by a murder case. But last summer saw a...

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Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson today welcomed the Justice and Electoral Select Committee’s report to Parliament recommending the Video Camera Surveillance (Temporary Measures) Bill be passed as a priority. Passing the Bill will mean Police are able to resume operations involving...

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Representatives of New Zealand’s largest iwi, Ngapuhi, have agreed that the tribe must have unity, following a meeting with Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Christopher Finlayson on Friday. Representatives of Tuhoronuku, which has been seeking a mandate to represent the iwi in...

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Revenue Minister Peter Dunne today called for public submissions on certain remedial matters focused on simplifying aspects of tax administration and compliance. Key areas include: • Whether the determination of the value of a “benefit” in the Income Tax Act 2007 is a...

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Leftist politicians in Mexico have proposed that the country issue a new kind of marriage licence - one that is only valid for two years. "The proposal is, when the two-year period is up, if the relationship is not stable or harmonious, the contract simply ends," Leonel Luna, the...

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An audio-visual link between Manukau District Court and Mt Eden Corrections Facility went live today, Justice Minister Simon Power and Corrections Minister Judith Collins announced today. AVL technology allows prisoners to appear in court by video link rather than in person. It is used mainly...

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The United Nations war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has rejected a request by the leader of the Serb Radical Party to discontinue proceedings against him, finding he had failed to prove that his right to trial within a reasonable period had been violated. Vojislav...

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The opening of McLean House at the Tauranga District Court signals the Government's commitment to ensuring court buildings keep pace with 21st century needs and ensuring access to justice, Courts Minister Georgina te Heuheu said today. "Tauranga is one of the busiest courts in the...

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The Government today released a discussion document proposing to exclude specific types of international Kyoto units generated from the destruction of industrial gases from the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme. “The ETS Review Panel recommended the Government should urgently consider...

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From 1 October, 2011 securities trustees and statutory supervisors will be regulated under new rules overseen by the Financial Markets Authority. "Trustees and supervisors play an important role in looking after investors' interests, and it is important that they uphold the highest...

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The laws governing space exploration and accidents are throwing up all sorts of interesting challenges   After the anti-climax of Nasa's upper atmosphere research satellite (UARS) falling into the Pacific ocean, rather than on anyone's head, it will be only a few weeks until we need to...

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The Crown today signed a Deed of Settlement for all historical Treaty claims with the Tūranga iwi Rongowhakaata, Treaty Negotiations Minister Christopher Finlayson announced. The Deed was initialled in Te Hau ki Tūranga, an elaborately carved Rongowhakaata whare whakairo currently held in...

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The United Nations war crimes tribunal for Rwanda today upheld 25-year jail terms imposed on a former top military officer and a landowner for genocide in the massacres that killed some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus, often by machete or club, during a 100-day period in 1994. The appeals...

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A brain-damaged woman's family didn't get the judgment it wanted, but in the past it was more painful for such cases even to be brought Yesterday, in the first case of its kind, the court of protection refused an application by the family of a severely brain-damaged woman in a minimally...

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Belo Monte hydroelectric dam project halted after ruling that it risked damaging fish stocks on Xingu river Brazilian judge has ordered construction to be suspended on a controversial hydroelectric dam in the Amazon. In his ruling, Judge Carlos Castro Martins said that all working on the...

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Top lawyers put fossil fuel bosses on trial in the UK's supreme court in a mock case to explore the crime of ecocide - environmental destruction - which is being considered by the UN It's a grim list: genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression (such as unprovoked invasions) and...

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A new venture offers less favourable terms than the top firms, but also a route into the profession for jobless law graduates For the lucky ones who get jobs with the top firms, the life of a rookie lawyer is a charmed one. Not only do the likes of Allen & Overy – where Prince...

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Major aquaculture legislation reform that creates the platform for aquaculture to become a $1 billion industry by 2025 takes effect on 1 October 2011 says Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Phil Heatley. "Aquaculture requires only a small fraction of our coastal space, but it has the...

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The Crown Entities Reform Bill has been introduced to the House. This omnibus Bill provides for structural changes to the way the government is organised across the health and charitable sectors, including: establishing a new Health Promotion Agency that will take over the...

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The Minister of Trade Hon Tim Groser announced today that New Zealand will join other countries in signing the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) at an official ceremony arranged by Japan in Tokyo on 1 October. ACTA, which aims to curb the growing trade in counterfeit goods and pirated...

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Environment Minister Nick Smith and representatives of Ngati Maniapoto today signed an Environment Accord at Parliament that supports the commitment both parties have made to enter a new era of co-management of the Waipa River catchment. “The Government is pleased today to acknowledge...

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A 2011 report released today on the performance of councils in administering the Resource Management Act shows consents are being processed more efficiently since the Government reformed the Act, Environment Minister Nick Smith says. “It is good news for jobs and investment that there...

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The Government's "fix-it" bill for police use of covert video surveillance gives police and all state agencies too much power, has insufficient checks and balances, and breaches constitutional principles, Parliament has been told. Representatives from the Law Society, the Law...

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A wrongfully hanged Maori chief has finally received a pardon - 145 years after his death. In a ceremony at Opotiki yesterday afternoon, Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples co-signed an agreement for legislation to give statutory recognition to a pardon for Te Whakatohea chief Mokomoko. In...

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The future of university and polytech student associations - the focus of student life for decades - was looking uncertain last night after the Act Party's bill making membership of them voluntary passed into law. Heather Roy's Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill passed with the...

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Auckland Chamber of Commerce head Michael Barnett is concerned that big projects on a transport wish-list have not been ranked according to their likely economic benefits to the region. He acknowledged yesterday that the Auckland Council had produced an "encouraging" list of projects...

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The UN special rapporteur on Cambodia has called on the government to change its draft law on NGOs, which is a source of much anxiety among civil society groups. On Wednesday, Surya Subedi urged the Cambodian authorities to carefully review the current draft, expressing concern that "it...

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The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering taking civil action against Standard & Poor's for its rating of a 2007 mortgage debt offering. Such action could be just the first shot in a legal assault against the major credit rating agencies. The three major agencies, S&P,...

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The New Zealand Law Society (NZLS) opposes enactment of the bill which would retrospectively amend the law relating to video camera surveillance. However, the Law Society has also proposed an alternative solution, by amending section 30 of the Evidence Act 2006 to preserve the discretion of...

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Registrar of Companies Neville Harris has succeeded in more than halving the near $1 million of costs awarded to five former Feltex Carpets directors, after his criminal case against them was thrown out by a District Court judge. Although deciding not to appeal the dismissal of his case by...

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The Government is introducing a national environmental standard (NES) for contaminants in soil. On 16 May 2011 Cabinet agreed for the Minister to instruct Parliamentary Counsel to draft a national environmental standard under the Resource Management Act 1991 for assessing and managing...

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A company that sold high-priced “sleep systems” at invitational seminars has been fined $69,935 for misleading consumers about the right to cancel their contracts. Wenatex New Zealand Limited pleaded guilty to 34 charges of breaching the Fair Trading Act (FT Act) and the Credit...

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A Board of Inquiry has released its final decision on the Minister of Corrections’ application for a proposed men’s prison at Wiri, the Chair of the Environmental Protection Authority, Kerry Prendergast, announced today. The Board of Inquiry has approved the application, subject to...

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New Zealand's main centres have the worst air in Australasia and Auckland is the most polluted with twice the concentration of damaging airborne particles as Sydney, the World Health Organisation says. But Environment Minister Nick Smith yesterday challenged the accuracy of the WHO figures,...

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An independent review of four regional councils’ freshwater management supports steps being taken by the Government to improve water quality in New Zealand, Environment Minister Nick Smith says. “The Government concurs with the Auditor-General's conclusion that while overall water...

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A Bill to legislate the Sleepover wages settlement will be introduced to the House later today by Health Minister Tony Ryall. The Sleepover Wages (Settlement) Bill will confirm the agreement between IDEA Services Ltd and its employees, and provide the framework to resolve other employers' and...

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A Bill to preserve the legal position of covert video surveillance will be introduced to the House tomorrow by Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson. The Video Camera Surveillance (Temporary Measures) Bill will express Parliament’s intent that any lawful search in which covert video...

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Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Phil Heatley has today announced changes to fishing catch limits and other management controls in a range of fishstocks managed under the Quota Management System (QMS). Mr Heatley says he considers the best available scientific and management information as...

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The New Zealand Law Society and national legal recruitment specialists Momentum are carrying out a survey of legal salaries in New Zealand. The New Zealand Law Society/Momentum Legal Salary Survey 2011 aims to gather indicative information on the legal employment market. There is relatively...

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Tegel Foods Limited has been fined $41,250 today following an accident at its Christchurch factory, where one of their 1,700 employees was injured using an unguarded machine. The Christchurch District Court also ordered the company to pay $5,000 in reparation following the accident on 6...

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Police hidden cameras investigating serious crimes will remain switched off for another 10 days at least while the Government's "fix-it" bill is scrutinised in a shortened select committee process. But support for the Video Camera Surveillance (Temporary Measures) Bill beyond the...

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Matadors drove the killing sword into bulls for the last time in Spain's powerful northeastern region of Catalonia in an emotive farewell fight before a polemical regional ban on the country's emblematic tradition takes effect. Three of Spain's top bullfighters, including No. 1 Jose Tomas,...

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The United Nations agency entrusted with defending intellectual property such as trademarks, patents and copyrights opened its annual meeting today reporting progress on issues ranging from audiovisual performances to protecting the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples. “The...

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