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New Zealand Law Society - LawTalk issue 929

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LawTalk issue 929

LawTalk issue 929

LawTalk issue 929

07 June 2019

The June issue of the Law Society’s magazine LawTalk takes a look at the New Zealand legal employment scene and some of the issues the legal services industry is facing. As well as continuing our focus on access to justice and health and wellbeing, this issue also includes a wide range of information on New Zealand law and the legal profession.

Download LawTalk issue 929 (PDF file, 17.77 MB) View as a flip-book ISSUU.COM

Reforms take family justice backwards, Law Foundation research finds

Most family justice professionals believe the system has been made worse by the 2014 reforms, a major Law Foundation-funded study has found. The Otago University research found that around three-quarters of professionals, many of them lawyers, felt the system had become worse or much worse since 2014. More than 80% had…

Rocka, before he was euthanised. Please note that the following article contains explicit details of a violent attack on an animal and the suffering caused. In a recent animal welfare prosecution, (Auckland Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals v Serrin Rawiri Rickard MacPherson [2019] NZDC 4102) the…

Talking about mental health: How does that make you feel?

How does that make you feel? is a short graphic novel by Sarah Laing. It is part of a series co-ordinated by Sarah Taylor which focuses on mental health issues in the legal profession.

Principles of Criminal Law, 5th editionBy Andrew P Simester and Warren Brookbanks As the title states, this is a comprehensive analysis of the principles which underlie New Zealand’s criminal law. A logical arrangement starts with a chapter on the definition and application of criminal law and a final, 21st chapter ending…

Four cases about footpaths

Once solely the domain of people on foot, footpaths are increasingly contested space in a world of e-and non-e scooters, growing cycle traffic, skateboards, and, of course cars crossing them (rule 4.4 of the Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 requires a driver entering or exiting a driveway to give…

Street Legal was an Auckland-based legal series centred round a lawyer, David Silesi, and his many trials (literally and metaphorically) and tribulations. Based, as Gary Gotlieb told me in his April 2019 LawPoints profile on his own career, it ran over four seasons and racked up a remarkable 52 episodes, as…

Letters to the Editor

I have read the article titled “Finding a match – how well does pro bono work in New Zealand?” by Craig Stephen (LawTalk 928, May 2019). Respectfully, I wish to request a correction/expansion to the statement at paragraph 9 that: “[S]ection 9 of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006 imposes restrictions on…

I note in [Craig Stephen’s] article regarding pro bono work, mention was made of the restrictions of practitioners “carrying unpaid work out with CLCs and CABs…. Lawyers could be found guilty of misconduct if they do so.” [page 62]. Now before our sterling volunteers who contribute many hours of unpaid…

I refer to [Ministry of Justice Chief Operating Officer Carl] Crafer’s [response to a letter about court security and the searching of lawyers] published in issue 928 of LawTalk May 2019. Unfortunately, he does not explain why he decided to distinguish between lawyers employed by the Ministry of Justice and…

People in the Law

Sir Ian Barker QC retires after more than 60 years in the law

Auckland-based former High Court Judge Sir Ian Barker QC has had a remarkable career that stretches back to the late 1950s. It’s a story that reads and feels as if two men were doing his law work as his immense contribution leaves you pondering whether it was possible for one man…

Fizzy drinks, baked beans and eggs fuelled mature student

Viv d'Or Viv d’Or, lawyer at Viv d’Or Law, Petone and Tauranga.The oldest of five children, Hutt-based lawyer Viv d’Or had a diverse life before law, working in a number of different roles, including being an orchardist and a television producer. She didn’t start to study law until she was 53. Viv’s…

The Innovators: Nick Whitehouse, Co-founder and CEO, McCarthyFinch

LawFest organiser Andrew King continues a series of interviews with key legal professionals with their innovation and technology stories.

Herman Visagie

Kia ora koutou It is my pleasure as the newly elected Vice-President Central North Island to be writing the introductory comments for this month’s LawTalk to introduce myself and comment on a few areas of interest to me.

In New Zealand a person can be sentenced for one or more of the following purposes under the Sentencing Act 2002: accountability of the offender, responsibility for and acknowledgement of harm by the offender, to provide for the interests of the victim, reparation, denunciation, deterrence, protection of the community and…

A recent Law Foundation-backed report could be the catalyst for a revamp of the law governing social enterprises – organisations that trade to deliver a social or environmental impact. The report, Structuring for Impact: Evolving Legal Structures for Businesses in New Zealand, finds that current law is preventing social enterprises from…

Mike Mika doesn’t come from a family of lawyers but he was inspired in his two quests in life by a legend of rugby who went on to become a top lawyer. The loosehead prop starred for Otago, Southland and the Highlanders in the 1990s, played for a top English club…

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Family Law Arbitration: What's happening out there in the market?

No-one doubts that agreement is the best way of resolving a dispute. Mediation is the best formal mechanism for achieving agreement. Public and private resources are rightly allocated to mediation as the first port of call when parties cannot agree. However, not all disputes can be resolved by mediation. Intractable…

Cognitive biases: challenging the way we think

Cognitive biases play a vital part in our daily decision-making processes. Due to the complexity of our brains, there is much contention surrounding how many cognitive biases there actually are. The number sits between 50 and 150 – all contributing to our everyday thinking. The five focused on in this…

Employment

Talent starved: The state of the legal employment market

Legal jobs coming out of our ears! That appears to be the (slightly overstated for effect) view of some of New Zealand’s legal recruiters. Lawyers with 3-6 years’ post-qualifying experience (PQE) tend to go overseas or elsewhere, leaving a big gap in that experience level. And if you’re experienced in…

Finding that first legal job is a non-linear process: no two pathways appear to be the same. Each role within the profession is a destination with a unique story from the person who ended up filling it. What opportunities and facilities are currently available for first roles in law? The Law…

The delicate balance: Part time/flexible work

There is no one size fits all to working part-time or flexibly, but more and more legal professionals are wanting to take more control of their lives and achieve that elusive work/life balance. While a major reason why people want to work less hours or re-jig their working hours is to…

LawTalk’s regular Focus On series has shone a light on the issues and the successes of legal fraternities in smaller centres around the country. And one issue that this particular writer has regularly come across while writing those articles is the difficulty in attracting lawyers – especially new and new-ish…

Many young New Zealanders travel abroad each year and traditionally the first work stop has been London. For young admitted lawyers it’s considered to be a great place to hone their legal skills. Rosamund More is a senior consultant at recruitment agency Robert Walters in London. She grew up in Invercargill…

It’s not surprising that a much higher proportion of lawyers can be found in our seven major urban areas than the whole country’s population. They are the headquarters of businesses and government agencies, the powerhouses for major projects, and also the catchment of the largest groups of consumers with their…

Access to Justice

Litigation funding and class actions are increasingly becoming strong access to justice routes. But are there specific laws regulating these services? Is litigation funding an abuse of power? Do the laws that allow litigation funding and class actions need reform? What does the Government think? And could the courts withstand…

Legal information for the people

Imagine a new symbol of justice for our future legal system. How shall we make over Lady Justice? First, imagine not a presiding figure but someone using the system – a claimant. A single mum perhaps. In one hand, not a sword but a reusable shopping bag full of files.…

Fishy business with civil legal aid

At her swearing-in in March, the Chief Justice indicated that: “there are few lawyers practising civil legal aid and fewer still in areas of need and the reasons for that problem are complex”. In “Some criminal justice outcomes in 2018” in LawTalk 928, May 2019 at page 75 there was indicated…

Walking into a prison hidden behind stark concrete walls, the first thing you notice is the apparent calm, a calmness which you cannot feel. There is no sense of foreboding as you follow the broken line from the gatehouse to visits. There is no discernible crackle in the air. The…

Lawyers Complaints Service

Mohammed Idris Hanif has been struck off the roll of barristers and solicitors by the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal. In 2018 Mr Hanif was found guilty of knowingly providing false and misleading information to Immigration New Zealand and was sentenced to 10 months home detention. Mr Hanif had acted…

A lawyer who did not provide competent advice has been censured and fined $4,000. The lawyer, Meagles, acted for Mrs Pawkins and her adult son when they bought a residential property. At the time, Mrs Pawkins and her husband had separated and were living apart.

When a lawyer has a client and an interpreter is required, relying on an intermediary to the extent that all communication is through them seems to be “fraught with danger”, a lawyers standards committee has said. The committee was considering a complaint from a client who instructed the lawyer, Flite, and…

A lawyer has been fined $1,000 after his conduct in an employment related meeting was found to be “deliberately aggressive, overbearing and overly personalised”. The lawyer, Carton, represented an employee at a meeting with her employer. The employer was represented at the meeting by the employee’s manager and an HR representative.

Practice

Globally the data volumes experienced in the discovery process are increasing rapidly and this is no different in New Zealand. A common myth in New Zealand has been that our discovery data volumes are only small. This is not the case. Sure, the volumes experienced here will be smaller than more litigious countries,…

More than 330 delegates gathered in Dunedin on 9 and 10 May for the 32nd annual ILANZ conference. The Edinburgh of the south showed its best side with balmy temperatures to greet delegates and a palpable sense of a vibrant city with plenty to offer visitors. In the words of…

Gold is gone but there's plenty of diamonds in an area of contrastsIt is an area that developed with gold mining and, despite the lack of blue collar industries these days, tourism, housing and health keep the near two dozen lawyers based in Thames-Coromandel busy. One of those lawyers, Michael Ussher,…

Legal Technology

New Zealand’s market for legal practice management software is a very competitive one. Locally-based companies compete for market share with international offerings. One based in Christchurch has come into the market in the last decade, and is capturing significant market share. OneLaw focuses on delivering robust, innovative accounting and information…

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

The day I wrote this I also bought my Tournament Pass to watch the 2019 Rugby World Cup on Spark Sport. Now there’s something I never thought I’d say. On a cold spring morning back in 2015, while a few mates and I were waiting for the last RWC final to…