News and views

After a false start and delay in implementation, the modifications to Child Support are now just around the corner, heralding significant changes to the way these payments are calculated. If you’re paying or receiving Child Support, now’s the time to ensure you understand the new regime which comes into force on April 1 2015.

In the lead up to the silly season, most law firms exist in a state of (hopefully) well-managed urgency – a frenetic dash to the finish line that is Christmas, amid a flurry of late-breaking, pressing legal matters that really can’t wait until January.

I read some jaw-dropping stats on a news site recently. Surely, surely they can’t be that high, I mused. I headed straight to the website of the statistical source, Statistics New Zealand, and, sure enough, the rate of injury-based claims to ACC from our high-risk sectors – forestry, agriculture and fishing – was more than sobering.

This Labour weekend in Wanaka sees the annual Wanakafest Day on Saturday 25 October. It will be a fantastic day down on the waterfront (fine weather is forecast) and there will be lots of really fun activities, some of which will include...

Subcontractors owed money are to get better protection for payment for work done in changes to the Construction Contracts Act approved by Government, Building and Construction Minister Dr Nick Smith announced.

Spring, at last, has sprung and with it has come the lambs, the blooms, the longer days – and, of course, the seasonal warming up of the property market. As happens at this time of year, my desk has seen a marked increase in conveyancing files adorning it of late.

As many New Zealanders know, a family trust is a legal way to hold and protect your assets for you and your family for the future. The assets (properties/investments) will be owned by the trust rather than by a person, and they are managed by trustees. The trustees are usually family members but could be a professional person like a lawyer or accountant.

A recent High Court decision (Johnson & Ors v Auckland Council) develops the law around the extent of a buyer’s liability for failing to complete proper due diligence checks when buying a leaky home. The case shows that the compensation paid to a buyer will be reduced if the buyer does not take adequate care when deciding to buy, even if the Council has been negligent.