MinterEllisonRuddWatts

Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Partner and Co-head of Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Richard is a highly experienced civil and commercial litigator. He has a broad background in the resolution of commercial disputes, with specialist expertise in banking and securities law and insolvency and natural resources-related litigation

An experienced in-Court advocate, Richard has appeared as counsel in numerous defended hearings at all levels of the New Zealand Court system up to the Supreme Court. He also regularly acts as counsel for parties engaged in arbitrations and mediations.

Richard is a trusted adviser to New Zealand’s main trading banks, including ANZ, BNZ, Kiwibank, Rabobank, and The Co-operative Bank. He is also regularly instructed by top-tier insolvency practitioners PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, Grant Thornton, and BDO. His clients include major New Zealand corporates and businesses.

Ranked as a leading insolvency and restructuring lawyer in legal directories Chambers Asia-Pacific and The Legal 500 Asia Pacific, Richard has acted on some of New Zealand’s most significant corporate insolvency cases. He represented the Crown in various disputes arising out of the collapse of South Canterbury Finance and the wider Crown Deposit Guarantee Scheme (including pursuit of recovery of transferred assets from the Hubbard family). He also acted for the receivers appointed to Capital + Merchant Finance.

Banks and finance companies regularly seek Richard’s advice on the practical implications of key legislation such as the Property Law Act, the Personal Property Securities Act, and the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act. He is also a leading authority on voidable transaction claims in insolvencies and was successful counsel in three of the most important precedent-setting cases in the area: Timberworld v Levin, Ebert Construction v Sanson, and Shephard v Wakefield Plant.

Beyond insolvency, Richard acts on commercial litigation matters encompassing breach of contract, professional negligence, Fair Trading Act and Companies Act actions, and general property and insurance disputes. Often at the forefront of legal developments, he was successful counsel in the Supreme Court recent defining contract law case, Bathurst Resources v L&M Coal Holdings. He also acted as counsel opposing the first ever private ‘climate change’ proceedings brought in New Zealand.

Being a litigator is about more than arguing the legal issues and Richard prides himself on his excellent communication and ability to build meaningful business relationships with his clients.

With a reputation for providing pragmatic and results-focused advice, Richard strives to get to the right result efficiently, avoiding protracted litigation where possible.

From 2018 to 2022, Richard sat on the Board of the Restructuring, Insolvency and Turnaround Association of New Zealand Inc (RITANZ). He authors the LexisNexis Practical Guidance publications Corporate Insolvency and Personal Insolvency. He also authors the ‘Voidable Transactions’ chapter in the Morison’s Company Law text.

English

Member, Restructuring, Insolvency and Turnaround Association New Zealand Inc (RITANZ)

LLM (Hons), University of Auckland (2000)

LLB, University of Waikato (1995)