News & Articles

Court of Appeal decision: what happens when builders go bankrupt and leave homes unfinished?

In a recent case, the New Zealand Court of Appeal in Francis v Gross made an important decision about what happens when buyers of unfinished homes – called “pods” or…

Gloriavale employment court decision raises the question, who is an employee?

This week the Employment Court handed down a landmark decision relating to three former members of the Gloriavale Christian community. While this case might seem extreme or unusual it is…

Weaponizing personal grievances – is it time to rethink employment claims in New Zealand?

For a long time, employers in New Zealand have complained of ‘shake-down’ type claims, where a disgruntled former employee raises a personal grievance which has very little prospect of success,…

Free legal advice not always the best advice

Perhaps you have a lawyer for a friend. Or, maybe your gym buddy’s friend’s cousin’s boyfriend’s aunt is a lawyer. It may be tempting to ask for free legal advice.…

Hamish Murray - Property Lawyer - Sharp Tudhope

Ghosting – the weird dating phenomenon hits the business world

As a 45 year old male, happily married with two children, I was unfamiliar with the concept of ghosting until recently. My middle-aged mind had logically assumed it was some…

Income insurance scheme proposed to protect workers and benefit business

The government is consulting on the proposed New Zealand Income Insurance Scheme. The scheme would see workers who are made redundant or who have to stop working because of a…

Employee isolation – Employer obligations updated

With New Zealand now in the Covid-19 traffic light system, employers want certainty in relation to leave entitlements and payments for employees that must isolate. To understand what entitlements employees…

Employee isolation – Employer obligations explained

Directors personally liable for breach of the Employment Relations Act 2000

A recent Court of Appeal decision found that the Directors of Southern Taxis Ltd were personally liable for the unpaid minimum entitlements of Southern Taxi’s employees. The judgment confirmed that…

Christmas cheer from the Chair

After another year in the midst of a pandemic it can sometimes be a struggle to remain cheerful, but if we look around, we have many things to be cheerful…