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Increased compensation limits for financial disputes

Financial limits for complaints are being raised across the four approved financial dispute resolution schemes, from 18 July 2024, meaning more consumers can have their disputes resolved without going to court.Under law, every financial services company has to be a member of one of the four schemes; the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme, Financial Services Complaints, and the Financial Dispute Resolution Service.From 18 July 2024, the maximum finan...

El Cheapo Cars Ltd t/a Ezybid Finance heads to District Court for disclosure breaches

The Commerce Commission has filed criminal charges against El Cheapo Cars t/a Ezybid Finance for breaches of lending rules - in its third action in the car finance sector this year – alleging borrowers were not provided with key information about their loans.The Commission said El Cheapo has entered guilty pleas and was co-operating with the proceedings."Our investigation into El Cheapo found that borrowers were not provided key information when changes were made to existing loans," its a...

Landmark judgement about pokie machines.

In a decision released on 19 February, the High Court declared that the Department of Internal Affairs may no longer allow pokie venues to relocate under a previous High Court decision, known as the Waikiwi decision.An anti-pokie lobby group says 26 venue relocations over the past decade were illegal and had asked the court to make sure no more happen from now on.  Read more here...

90-Day trial periods reinstated

In December last year the Government passed legislation bringing back 90-day trials for all employers.The bill passed with the support of all three governing parties, and was opposed by all three opposition parties.Prior to Saturday 23 December 2023 this has only applied to employers with 19 or fewer employees. 90-day trial provisions allows employers to dismiss employees within their first 90 days of employment, and removes an employee’s right to raise a personal grievance for that dismi...

How much extra is it costing you to pay with your card?

Some kiwis are paying much more to the retailer, than the retailer is paying to the bank to accept card payments. "Businesses shouldn't charge their customers more than what it costs them to accept a card payment. Unfortunately, as shoppers, we have no way of telling what businesses are getting charged so it's difficult to tell if we're being ripped off," Consumer NZ campaigns manager Jessica Walker said.Read the full story here: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/502580/consumer-nz-f...

Communities now have more of a say on liquor licences issued in their area

New alcohol legislation is being dubbed a move in the right direction. The immediate phase aims to make local alcohol licensing processes more accessible and fairer; and improve communities’ abilities to influence alcohol regulation in their area.Until recently community views have been virtually non-existent from alcohol licensing processes under the current law, and only 19 of the 5,197 of the applications that were made in 2022 (less than 0.4%) were declined. “CLCA’s research ...

The Fair Trading Act at work

The Commerce Commission has handed One NZ a fine for almost $3.7 million for misleading consumers in the marketing of its FibreX broadband service. Commission chair John Small said the penalty was the highest ever handed down by a court under the Fair Trading Act. The fine was for the company’s conduct between 2016 and 2018 when it mislead consumers into believing its FibreX service was fibre-to-the-home broadband. It was also found guilty of falsely suggesting that FibreX was the on...

Extended timeframe to place PG for sexual harassment

Coming forward to report sexual harassment can be difficult, and it is common for victims of sexual harassment to wait a long time before coming forward, if at all. The purpose of the Act is to allow victims of sexual harassment more time to consider what has happened before deciding whether they wish and feel safe to raise a personal grievance.Employees are still able to alternatively raise a claim for harassment under the Human Rights Act 1993, instead of raising a personal grievance claim.Rea...

New self-identification process

A law change allowing New Zealand citizens to change their registered sex on their birth certificate has kicked in on 15 June 2023. Under the new process, applications are received directly by Births, Deaths, and Marriages.Previously applications needed to go through the Family Court or by providing proof of medical treatment; now individuals can apply to the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages directly by filling out and submitting a statutory declaration.Read more here:&nbs...

Alcohol the most harmful drug in New Zealand.

The call for alcohol law reform comes on the heels of disturbing research released last week, with research released by the University of Otago finding that alcohol is now the most harmful drug in New Zealand. Data released by Waka Kotahi showed deaths involving drink-driving in Aotearoa have doubled since 2013 - reaching a 10-year peak last year."Addressing alcohol-related harm is indeed a 'bread and butter' issue," said Jason Alexander, CEO of Hāpai te Hauora. "Alcohol misuse is directly rela...

Independent Electoral Review release interim report

The interim report sets out draft recommendations for each area of the electoral system and provides an explanation of how the panel reached this view.Six key themes have been identified in the report. making our electoral law fit for the futureimproving MMPa referendum on the parliamentary termsupporting more New Zealanders to votefairer rules for political financing and campaigningupholding te Tiriti o Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi.There are over 100 recommendations in total. You...

Auckland Council Needs CABs For Community Resilience

Citizens’ advice bureaux (CABs) are a bedrock part of community resilience and must be retained by the Auckland Council according to Community Law Centres o Aotearoa (CLCA).“It is alarming to see the Council move to close the CABs down at the very time when Aucklanders need support to navigate their way through increasingly complex situations,” says CLCA CEO Sue Moroney. “Having CABs to help people find the information and support they need is a vital part of community resilience.”&nbs...

Community Voice Absent From Alcohol Licensing

Community Law Centres o Aotearoa (CLCA) spoke at the Justice Committee today in support of their submission on the Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Community Participation) Bill, making the data it collected from the Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority (ARLA) and 66 territorial authorities public for the first time. Follow the link below to read more. ...

Afghan Nationals Win Court Action - Media Release - Community Law Centres o Aotearoa

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10 Important Facts to know about COVID-19 and the workplace

1. Employment Law has not changed due to COVID-192. There are specific conditions if an employer wants to change the terms and conditions of an employee’s work arrangements3. Different alert levels dictate when employees can go to the workplace4. Employees’ rights to have a safe workplace have not changed5. Work can only be required to be done by a COVID-19 vaccinated worker under specific conditions6. Employers cannot require annual leave to be taken by employees unless conditions are met7....

All Waikato Courts to adopt Alert Level 3 protocols, beginning today

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FAQs Afghanistan Humanitarian Crisis

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Employment New Zealand - Latest COVID 19 information - Your rights

Important up-to-date information available from Employment New Zealand, during Alert Level 4 Employment New Zealand Key points to note are:Employment law still applies to all employment relationships, regardless of the circumstances that we find ourselves in.Early Resolution is a free service that helps resolve workplace issues early, quickly and informally.There are various COVID-19 financial support schemes available to businesses, depending on your situation. Employment New Zealand has u...

Extra Employment Protections for Security Officers - 1 July 2021

Changes to the Employment Relations Act, which provide security officers with additional employment protections, came into effect in on 1 July 2021. The changes give security guards the same employment protections already held by cleaning, catering and some laundry and caretaking workers under the Act when an employer’s business is restructured. This affect business that provide security services or have in-house security officers, if they decide to make changes in the way they contract or emp...

Paid Parental Leave Increases 1 July 2021

The rates for paid parental leave have increased from 1 July 2021. The maximum paid parental leave rate has increased by 2.5 per cent, from $606.46 to $621.76 per week. The minimum amount of payment for a self-employed person per week is $200 per week. For more information visit Parental leave...

Matariki Public Holiday for next 30 years

New Zealand will celebrate Matariki as a public holiday from Friday 24 June 2022. The calendar date for the Matariki public holiday will shift each year to align with the maramataka (Māori lunar calendar). Shop trading hours will not be impacted. Dates for the next 30 years have been announced. Businesses should start talking to their accountants or payroll providers to prepare for next year. Please visit: Matariki public holiday – a time for remembering, celebrating and looking forward...

Migrant Exploitation

New measures to better protect migrant workers from exploitation came into force on 1 July 2021. The changes are part of a wider Government initiative to combat all forms of exploitation. These include: 1. A new visa to support migrants to leave mistreatment and exploitative work situations quickly and remain lawfully in New Zealand. This visa will be valid for up to 6 months.  2. A new dedicated 0800 number (Reporting migrant exploitation – phone number) and web form (Reporting form – ...

Does the legal profession have any interest in the legal rights of accident victims?

07 July 2020 - By Don RennieLAWTALK 941 Since 1974 when the common law right of accident victims to sue to recover damages for personal injury was abolished, the legal profession has shown very little interest in ensuring that the statutory ACC scheme adequately replaces common law and former statutory rights of accident victims.Lack of professional interest probably arises from the fact that lawyers find it difficult to make a viable income from handling ACC cases. Not only is the legislation c...

Te Ara Ture - Pro-Bono Legal Help

A new service to match lawyers wanting to do pro bono work with people needing legal services was officially launched at Parliament earlier this week. Te Ara Ture, who will operate the new online tool, has been developed by Community Law Centres o Aotearoa. Officially launching the service, Minister of Justice Kris Faafoi said this was an important step to creating a justice system that was more effective and more equitable. When fully live, Te Ara Ture will allow lawyers to register t...

CLC's Funding Affected by COVID-19

The amount of money that helps fund Community Law Centres (CLCs) has dropped by $4 million in one year due to falling interest rates associated with the Covid-19 pandemic. Justice Minister Andrew Little has announced that an additional $3.5 million will be provided to the 24 Community Law Centres over three years. “Ensuring access to legal help for those who can’t afford it helps with early resolution of legal problems, meaning issues do not escalate unnecessarily and put further burden on t...