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Supreme Court case information

Listed below are the substantive Supreme Court cases for the year along with appeals still to be determined or cases awaiting hearing. 

Information giving an overview of the case is included along with media releases and links to judgments being appealed when available.

All 2024 - 2014 Supreme Court cases dismissed or deemed to be dismissed where a notice of abandonment was received can be found here.

Transcripts for cases heard before the Supreme Court are included provided they are not suppressed. Transcripts from pre-trial hearings are not published until the final disposition of trial. These are unedited transcripts and they are not a formal record of the Court’s proceedings. The Ministry of Justice does not accept responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any material and recommends that users exercise their own skill and care with respect to its use.

24 June 2024

Case information summary 2024 (as at 21 June 2024) –  Cases where leave granted (121 KB)
Case information summary 2024 (as at 21 June 2024)  – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 125 KB)

All years

Case name
David Stanley Heenan v The Attorney-General
Case number
SC 26/2011
Summary
Civil Appeal – Judicature Act 1908 – Vexatious litigant – Order made by the High Court under s 88B(1) of the Act that no civil proceeding be instituted or continued by Mr Heenan, either in his own name or in a representative or fiduciary capacity, in any court without the leave of the High Court – Order upheld by the Court of Appeal – Applicant’s submissions to this Court repeat allegations of forgery, fraud and perjury against judicial officers and other individuals – whether the High Court erred in exercising its discretion to make orders under s 88B(1)[2011] NZCA 9  CA 630/2009
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
HEENAN v THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL SC 26/2011 [20 April 2011] (PDF, 38 KB)
Dates

Application for leave to appeal  is dismissed.

20 April 2011.
Case name
Technix Group Limited v Fitzroy Engineering Group Limited
Case number
SC 27/2011
Summary
Civil Appeal – Contract – Lease contained clauses conferring an option to purchase and a right of pre-emption option to purchase process has been triggered but not completed – Whether the Court of Appeal’ s decision to impose its own interpretation of the lease that was in line with business common sense instead of following the plain and ordinary meaning of the lease was a correct application of Vector Gas Ltd v Bay of Plenty Energy Ltd [2010] NZSC 5, [2010] 2 NZLR 444.[2011] NZCA 17  CA 337/2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
TECHNIX GROUP LIMITED V FITZROY ENGINEERING GROUP LIMITED SC 27/2011 [20 May 2011] (PDF, 46 KB)
Dates

Application for leave to appeal  is dismissed.

Costs to the respondent $2,5000 plus disbursements.

20 May 2011.
Case name
Lynette Kaye Stewart v The Queen
Case number
SC 28/2011
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Sexual Offences – Party Liability – Applicant convicted as party to sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection – Court of Appeal allowed new medical evidence in principal offender’ s appeal and quashed principal offender’s conviction ordering re-trial – Whether quashing of principal offender’s conviction renders applicant’ s conviction unsafe.CA 515/2005
Result
Appeal allowed. Conviction quashed.  No order for new trial. 2 June 2011.
Leave judgment - leave granted
STEWART v R SC 28/2011 [12 May 2011] (PDF, 7 KB)
Substantive judgment
STEWART v R SC 28/2011 [2 June 2011 (PDF, 56 KB)
Hearing

2 June 2011

Elias CJ, Blanchard, Tipping, McGrath, William Young JJ.
Dates

A  The application for leave to appeal is granted.

B  The approved ground is whether the conviction can stand in light of the quashing of the conviction of the person with whom the appellant was jointly charged and her discharge under s 347 of the Crimes Act 1961.

12 May 2011
Case name
Kay Halton Skelton v The Queen
Case number
SC 29/2011
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Sentence – Whether Court of Appeal erred in dismissing sentence appeal – Whether rights of children of mothers in custody; effects of imprisonment on a pregnant woman/mother of a young child; and totality principle properly considered – New Zealand’ s obligations under United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child.[2011] NZCA 35  CA 663/2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
SKELTON v R SC 29/2011 [27 June 2011] (PDF, 11 KB)
Dates

Application for leave to appeal dismissed.

27 June 2011.
Case name
Kathy Apostolakis v Damir De Polo
Case number
SC 30/2011
Summary
Civil Appeal – Family Law – Whether the appellant’s decision to represent herself caused her undue disadvantage – Whether relevant facts were not taken into account by the Family Court.Civ 2009 485 2550  22 July 2010
Dates

Notice of abandonment being filed, the application for leave to appeal is deemed to be dismissed.

22 June 2011.
Case name
Jordan James Ataria v The Queen
Case number
SC 31/2011
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Sentencing – Whether the Judge was entitled to determine particular matters of fact at the sentencing stage, and whether there was sufficient evidence to support those findings of fact – Whether the appellant’s sentence should be reduced on account of an alleged disparity with the sentence imposed on certain other offenders in this case[2010] NZCA 559 CA 120/2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ATARIA v R SC 31/2011 [17 June 2011] (PDF, 29 KB)
Dates
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
17 June  2011.
Case name
Steven John Cleave v The Queen
Case number
SC 32/2011
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm – Whether appellant was denied right to elect to give evidence of self-defence by defence counsel – Whether defence counsel failed to follow instructions by not proceeding with forensic testing. [2011]  NZCA 40  CA 127/2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
CLEAVE v R SC 32/2011 [5 July 2011] (PDF, 43 KB)
Dates
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
5 July 2011.
Case name
Open Country Cheese Company Limited v New Zealand Dairy Workers Union Incorporated
Case number
SC 33/2011
Summary
Civil Appeal – Employment Relations Act 2000 – Applicant’ s parent company sent own employees to operate applicant’s cheese and milk powder plant during lawful strike by members of respondent union employed at plant – Whether parent company employees “employed or engaged” by applicant in breach of s 97(2) of Employment Relations Act.[2011] NZCA 56  CA 687/2009
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
sc 33 2011 open country cheese co ltd v nz dairy workers union incorp leave judgment (PDF, 45 KB)
Dates

Application for leave to appeal dismissed with costs of $2,500 to the respondent.

2 June 2011.
Case name
AVM v The Queen
Case number
SC 34/2011
Summary
Criminal – Evidence Act 2006, ss 37 and 85 – Whether Crown ought to have disclosed material in its possession regarding expert witness to defence, in order to prevent ‘trial by ambush’ – Whether cross-examination of expert was in substance a challenge to witness’ veracity and s 37 was properly complied with (ie leave should have been sought) – Whether leave should have been sought based on s 85, ss 7 and 8 or common law – Whether in all the circumstances, the applicant had a fair trial. [2011] NZCA 84  CA 438/2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
M(SC34/2011) v R SC 34/2011 [20 June 2011] (PDF, 51 KB)
Dates

Application for leave to appeal dismissed.

20 June 2011.
Case name
Urs Peter Signer v The Queen
Case number
SC 36/2011
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Trial by Judge alone - whether the Court of Appeal erred in upholding the order made in the High Court under s 361D of the Crimes Act 1961 that the trial of the applicant proceed before a Judge alone[2011] NZCA 114  CA 872/2010
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is granted. B The approved ground is whether the High Court and Court of Appeal correctly interpreted and applied s 361D of the Crimes Act 1961 in directing that the applicants be tried for the offences charged under indictment (Number CRI 2007-085-7842) before a Judge without a jury.
6 May 2011
__________________
Appeal allowed by consent. Orders for trial by judge alone set aside.
14 September 2011
Leave judgment - leave granted
SIGNER and Others v R SC 36/2011 [6 May 2011] (PDF, 9 KB)
Substantive judgment
SIGNER and OTHERS v R SC 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 43/2011 [16 September 2011] (PDF, 67 KB)
Transcript
Hearing date : 14 September 2011
Elias CJ, Blanchard, Tipping, McGrath, William Young JJ.
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