What to do when a Trustee loses capacity: A guide for Family Trusts
A Trustee of my Family Trust has lost capacity – what do I do? Trustees are the people who own the trust assets and manage those assets for the benefit…
Parental leave payments to increase from 1 July
From today, eligible employees will receive an increase in the maximum weekly payment from $621.76 to $661.12 per week gross. The 6.33% increase is in line with the rise in…
Retirement village framework policy review proposed
A recent CFFC (Commission for Financial Capability) White Paper has proposed a complete policy review of the retirement villages framework which has not taken place since the Retirement Villages Act…
New rules for whistleblowers from 1 July
Significant changes are being made in New Zealand workplaces to better protect whistleblowers. The Protected Disclosures (Protection of Whistleblowers) Act 2022 is set to replace the Protected Disclosures Act 2000…
Inheritance law is under review
In 2019 the Government instructed the Law Commission to review inheritance law in New Zealand which is currently governed by a combination of acts including the Family Protection Act of…
New rules for residential development in Tauranga are coming
The Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 is now in effect and requires Tauranga City Council to adopt new rules from 20 August 2022 to…
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.…
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…