New Zealand Law Society - LawTalk issue 904

LawTalk issue 904

LawTalk issue 904

The March issue of LawTalk looks at the impact of taking parental leave on a legal career, along with some alternatives parental leave returnees have developed. Elsewhere, the magazine looks at law in Invercargill and Nelson’s Oceanlaw, while Auckland Law School Dean Andrew Stockley explains why student numbers are being boosted.

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Pathways in the Law: Oceanlaw New Zealand

Practising marine law is not for the faint-hearted or those that wish to spend their day stuck behind an office desk. In this area of law, that desk is more like a dinghy constantly moving, in sync with the ebb and flow of the sea. The small team of lawyers at Oceanlaw…

How to value what is on offer

Too few people know when to close the deal they are negotiating, particularly when trying to resolve a dispute. However, the same comments can be made for commercial negotiations. The issue is that negotiators often do not know how to correctly value what is on offer. So this article might better…

America provides insights to in-house work

My roles as in-house counsel for government departments in New Zealand and the UK have enabled me to work on many different legislative projects that are hard to find outside of in-house government roles, and develop a string to my bow that I find highly rewarding. Over the years I have…

Making mobile call data work for you

The OpportunityEvidence is key to any court case and having access to a large pool of data that can be used as evidence is always advantageous. In 2015, New Zealanders made 6.63 billion minutes of mobile calls and sent 12.1 billion text messages. That is, on average, around 1500 minutes of…

Reality check for the majority of sport stars

Think football, and you will imagine the likes of Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo being feted by fans and the media, with oodles of money in the bank to live lavish lives – for the rest of their days. Argentinean striker Tevez, for example, is said to be paid…

An appetite for strong IT security

IT security is just like nutritional advice: It’s confusing, conflicting and what you read in the media, or on social media, often lacks science or common sense. Is caffeine good or bad for you? Is quinoa really a ‘superfood’ and how do you say ‘quinoa’ anyway? How do you know that…

Anita Killeen: SPCA Auckland Pro Bono Panel of Prosecutors

Each month we will celebrate an initiative by New Zealand lawyers to use their legal expertise to benefit the community. To begin, we asked Anita Killeen, who is Chair and founder, about the SPCA Auckland Pro Bono Panel of Prosecutors.

Focus on law practice in Invercargill

Locals prefer to describe Invercargill as the gateway to some of the South Island’s best tourist attractions, rather than the more colourful, perhaps unfavourable, descriptions given to it over the years. The pace of life and comradery in the southern city of about 52,000 inhabitants is another attraction for locals. Rex…

I refused to let cancer win: One mature student’s brave battle to defy death and pursue her dream

At some point we all wake up in our 40s, reassess our lives and decide whether we want more of the same, or something completely different. Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger once said he wouldn’t be singing (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction at 40, but he did and continues to…

Update

NZ’s first Public Protection Order granted

NZ’s first Public Protection Order granted

New Zealand’s first Public Protection Order (PPO) was imposed on 21 December 2016 in the matter of The Chief Executive of the Department of Corrections v Glen Anthony Douglas [2016] NZHC 3184. A PPO is a court order that allows the detention of very high-risk individuals at a secure facility within…
The Equal Pay Act - Where is it at?

The Equal Pay Act - Where is it at?

Over the past three years, the Equal Pay Act 1972 (EPA) has gained unprecedented attention. In the 15 years prior to 2014, there were only a handful of unremarkable equal pay cases. None of which successfully progressed the concept or practical application of equal pay under the EPA, despite the…

Covert recordings by employees and their admissibility as evidence

With our phones to hand, most of us have the means to record a conversation or a scene playing out. With the agreement of those involved, the occurrence of the recording is likely to be uncontroversial. However, interesting legal issues arise when the recording is covert, and when the recording…

Strengthening the Arbitration Act 1996? A comment on the Arbitration Amendment Act 2016

Modern arbitration regimes strive to make the arbitral process as self-contained and self-sufficient as possible. That philosophy is reflected in the New Zealand Arbitration Act 1996, which is substantially based on the UNCITRAL Model Law. At the same time, effective arbitral procedures depend on structural support. This is important both at…

Unit titles, and the element of surprise

One of the best editorials I ever read was entitled “The Element of Surprise”, about how new experiences, travel, and surprises can broaden the mind. Lawyers, of course, hate surprises. We like to deal in certainties, predictions, and clear outcomes. Even where outcomes are uncertain, we like to know that…

Cartel laws applying to principal and agent? The High Court of Australia’s Flight Centre decision

The High Court of Australia has issued an important decision overturning traditional thinking on whether an agent can be considered to be “in competition with” their principal for the purpose of competition law. The decision is important to a dual distribution model where a business supplies direct to consumers and also…

Learning and Development

Auckland Law School increases second year numbers

Andrew StockleyUp to 1500 students enrol in the first year of a law degree at Auckland University’s Law School. For the past 10 years Auckland has admitted up to 330 students into second year law, but this year it has increased the number by 50, to 380 students. The Law…
Ensuring Pacific Island lawyers can take on the world

Ensuring Pacific Island lawyers can take on the world

“New Zealand lawyers have benefited for 30 years from attending trial skills enhancement programmes devised here. The learning by doing method under tuition of experienced lawyers and judges has been shown to markedly improve lawyers’ confidence in conducting aspects of trial work more effectively be it leading evidence, cross examination,…

Lawyers Complaints Service

Contested litigation - no negligence found

The High Court has upheld an appeal by Papali’i Toti Lagolago, lawyer, against the findings of the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal ([2016] NZHC 2867). In [2015] NZLCDT 25, the Tribunal found Ms Lagolago had been negligent or incompetent in her professional capacity of such a degree as to…

Auckland barrister suspended

Francisc Catalin Deliu was suspended for 15 months from 1 February 2017. In three decisions ([2016] NZLCDT 25, 26 and 27), the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal found Mr Deliu guilty of six charges of misconduct, one charge of unprofessional conduct, one charge of unsatisfactory conduct, and one charge…

Practice

Dressing for success

Dressing for success

How much difference could a sharp suit and shiny shoes make to your career? Maybe more than you think. Jo Calder, national human resources manager at Buddle Findlay, says how a lawyer presents him or herself can impact on how a client views them. “The profession is so steeped in history,…

Putting people before profit – how law firms can navigate the new world order

When I qualified as a solicitor in 1984, lawyers were mostly concerned with advising clients and ensuring they billed for their time. Profitability was a given. But not anymore. The world has changed. The global financial crisis, technology, commoditisation and competition have disrupted the status quo for good and created…

Legal Information

Workplace Bullying

Reviewed by Kathryn Beck A book on workplace bullying would not normally be at the top of my summer reading list but this summer, duty called. Was I bullied into doing this review when I would rather have been reading a worthy award winner or riveting thriller, you may ask? After reading…

Passing Wealth on Death: Will-Substitutes in Comparative Perspective

Reviewed by Greg Kelly It was with some reluctance that I added this book to my pile of summer reading; textbooks usually miss the cut over the break. I found, however, it to be informative, interesting and easy to read. As some practitioners will be aware there has been something of a…

Protecting rights to the distant seabed

Coastal nations worldwide are becoming more interested in their legal rights to mineral and other resources on the continental shelves extending beyond their shores. The Law Foundation has backed a unique international study undertaken by Joanna Mossop, of Victoria University’s Law Faculty. It explores the legal issues around seabed resources on…
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