Court of Appeal allows opt-out class actions
In a landmark decision for class actions in New Zealand, the Court of Appeal has ruled that a representative action brought by two Christchurch homeowners can proceed on an “opt-out” basis.
Consultation announced on a proposed Medicinal Cannabis Scheme
The Ministry of Health (MOH) has announced it is consulting on a proposed Medicinal Cannabis Scheme.
Supreme Court rules that insurance reinstatement rights cannot be assigned
The Supreme Court in Xu v IAG New Zealand Ltd has ruled by a 3:2 majority that, under an IAG house insurance policy, homeowners cannot assign their right to reinstate to a subsequent purchaser of the house. Homeowners must undertake the reinstatement themselves, and if they do not, the right to claim the cost of …
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The Zero Carbon Bill – a closer look
The long-awaited "Zero Carbon Bill" was finally released on 9 May, but despite being greeted by considerable media interest there are a number of significant issues that have yet to come to the fore.
A link tax in New Zealand?
A controversial payment to publishers for content in Europe has implications for New Zealand – despite escaping mention in a recent paper that set out the key issues for review for our own copyright laws.
News media exemption under the Privacy Act: now a matter of “responsibility”?
The role of the news media as the "eyes and ears" of the public, and the corresponding right of such news media to be exempted from the Privacy Act 1993 (Privacy Act), is entrenched and well accepted. However, the extent to which the news media exemption applies to non-traditional forms of "news" published by "civilian …
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Who reads online terms, and does it matter? Lessons from the US
"Any internet user knows, website terms and conditions are burdensomely long. One rarely reads the fine print when they create a social media account, buy an e-book or movie, use a ridesharing service, or download a mobile app."
Derivatives Margin Bill a step closer to becoming law
In an article in Februarythis year, we reported on the introduction into Parliament of the Financial Markets (Derivatives Margin and Benchmarking) Reform Amendment Bill (the Bill).
Climate-related risk highlighted in Reserve Bank Act review
The role of the Reserve Bank in assessing and responding to the risks climate change poses to financial stability features in the current consultation on New Zealand's financial policy framework. Inclusion of climate change as part of the wide-ranging review of the Reserve Bank Act is further evidence of the growing trend towards climate-related risk …
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Taxation of the Digital Economy: update
In early June the Government released a discussion document on New Zealand's options for taxing the digital economy.