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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.

8 November 2024

Case information summary 2024 (as at 8 November 2024) –  Cases where leave granted (126 KB)
Case information summary 2024 (as at 8 November 2024)  – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 116 KB)

All years

Case name
Solicitor-General's Reference (No 1 of 2016) from CRI 2015-485-52, High Court at Christchurch
Case number
SC 118/2016
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Land Transport Act 1998 – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in determining that the requirements of s 90 of the Land Transport Act 1998 had not been met – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in holding the correct remedy was the quashing of the defendant’s conviction. [2016] NZCA 417   CA663/2015
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is granted (Solicitor-General’s Reference (No 1 of 2016) [2016] NZCA 417).
B The approved question is whether the Court of Appeal was right to answer the two questions before it in the way that it did.         
19 December 2016
______________
A The appeal is allowed.  The answers given by the Court of Appeal to the questions on the Solicitor-General’ s reference are set aside.
B In substitution, the questions of law are answered as follows:
(a) Question One:  Was the High Court correct to conclude that the requirements of s 90 of the Land Transport Act 1998 had not been met in this case?
Answer:  No.
(b) Question Two:  If the requirements of s 90 were not met, was the correct remedy the quashing of the defendant’ s conviction?
Answer:  Does not arise for determination.
3 May 2017
Transcripts
Media Releases
Court of Appeal decision
SOLICITOR-GENERAL’S REFERENCE (NO 1 OF 2016), FROM CRI-2015-485-52, HIGH COURT AT CHRISTCHURCH [2016] NZCA 417 [5 September 2016]
Leave judgment - leave granted
SOLICITOR - GENERALʼS REFERENCE (NO 1 OF 2016) FROM CRI - 2015 - 485 - 52, HIGH COURT AT CHRISTCHURCH [2016] NZSC 168 [19 December 2016] (PDF, 105 KB)
Substantive judgment
SOLICITOR-GENERALʼS REFERENCE (NO 1 OF 2016) FROM CRI-2015-485-52, HIGH COURT AT CHRISTCHURCH [2017] NZSC 58 [3 May 2017] (PDF, 247 KB)
Case name
S v The Queen
Case number
SC 119/2016
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Appeal against conviction – Customs and Excise Act 1996, s 151 – Evidence Act 2006, s 30 – Whether Court of Appeal erred in finding s 151 Customs and Excise Act authorised warrantless search – Whether Court of Appeal erred in not excluding evidence under s 30 Evidence Act.    [2016] NZCA 448   CA712/2015
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.                              
22 December 2016
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
S (SC 119/2016) v R [2016] NZSC 172    22 December 2016 (PDF, 73 KB)
Judgment appealed from

S (CA712/2015) v R [2016] NZCA 448  20 September 2016
Case name
Rae Beverly Adlam v John Tionga Savage, Lawrence Te Aokahari Niao, Patrick Mayne Savage, Samuel Kelvin Barnes and Tamati Drawbridge as Trustees of the Matata Parish 39A 2A Ahu Whenua Trust; and Helen Maria Savage and Raelyn Arihia Peita as Trustees of
Case number
SC 120/2016
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in reinstating the order of the Māori Land Court requiring the applicant to account to the Bath Trust in the amount of $11,200,000.            [2016] NZCA 454   CA223/2015
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B Costs of $2,500 are awarded to the first respondents.
C The order for stay of the determination of the Court of Appeal made on 23 November 2016 is discharged.
17 February 2017
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
RAE BEVERLY ADLAM v JOHN TIONGA SAVAGE, LAWRENCE TE AOKAHARI NIAO, PATRICKMAYNE SAVAGE, SAMUEL KELVIN BARNES AND TAMATI DRAWBRIDGE AS TRUSTEES OF THEMATATA PARISH 39A 2A AHU WHENUA TRUST [2017] NZSC 11  17 February 2017 (PDF, 186 KB)
Judgment appealed from

RAE BEVERLY ADLAM v JOHN TIONGA SAVAGE & ORS [2016] NZCA 454  22 September 2016
Case name
B v The Queen
Case number
SC 121/2016
Summary
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of trial.  Publication in law report or law digest permitted. [2016] NZCA 461   CA326/2016
Result

Judgment released.
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of trial.  Publication in law report or law digest permitted.       

5 December 2016
SC judgment
not publicly available
Judgment appealed from
not publicly available
Case name
Dominique Anita Reti v The Queen
Case number
SC 122/2016
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Evidence Act 2006, s 45 – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in holding that visual identification evidence identifying the applicant was properly admitted at trial.                                      [2016] NZCA 447   CA312/2016
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.                               21 December 2016
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
DOMINIQUE ANITA RETI v R [2016] NZSC 169  21 December 2016 (PDF, 92 KB)
Judgment appealed from 

RETI v R [2016] NZCA 447      19 September 2016
Case name
W v The Queen
Case number
SC 123/2016
Summary
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of trial.  Publication in law report or law digest permitted.[2016] NZCA 461   CA310/2016
Result

Judgment released.
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of trial.Publication in law report or law digest permitted. 

5 December 2016
SC judgment
not publicly available
Judgment appealed from
not publicly available
Case name
C v The Queen
Case number
SC 124/2016
Summary
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of trial.  Publication in law report or law digest permitted.
Result
Judgment released.
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of retrial. Publication in law report or law digest permitted.                                                                                               
21 December 2016
--
Judgment released.
Order prohibiting publication of the judgment and any part of the proceedings (including the result) in news media or on the internet or other publicly available database until final disposition of retrial. Publication in law report or law digest permitted.                                                                                               
26 September 2017
Substantive judgment
CYRUS CHRISTIAN (AKA WILLIAM JOHN TASSELL) v R [2017] NZSC 145 [26 September 2017] (PDF, 314 KB)
Transcript

Hearing date : 29 March 2017                                                                      
Chief Justice, William Young, Glazebrook, O'Regan and Ellen France JJ.
Case name
Ashor Gorgus v The Queen
Case number
SC 125/2016
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Appeal against sentence – Whether sentence was manifestly excessive.   [2016] NZCA 508   CA706/2015
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
7 December 2016
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ASHOR GORGUS v R [2016] NZSC 161    7 December 2016 (PDF, 68 KB)
Judgment appealed from 
Case name
Ian Edward Hitchcock v The Queen
Case number
SC 126/2016
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in finding that the trial judge’s summing up on consent in relation to a charge of sexual violation was sufficient – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in finding that no miscarriage of justice arose as a result of the trial Judge’ s failure to direct the jury that they should consider whether the applicant knew that he was supplying cannabis. [2016] NZCA 465   CA265/2015
Result
A The application for an extension of time is granted.
B The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
8 March 2017
___________
The application for recall is dismissed.
17 May 2017
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
IAN EDWARD HITCHCOCK v R [2017] NZSC 29    8 March 2017 (PDF, 82 KB)
Recall judgment
IAN EDWARD HITCHCOCK v R [2017] NZSC 71    17 May 2017 (PDF, 67 KB)
Judgment appealed from

HITCHCOCK V R [2016] NZCA 465    28 September 2016

Case name
X v YFT
Case number
SC 127/2016
Summary
Civil appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in declining to lift a grant of interim name suppression given to an entity defending historic sexual abuse allegations.  [2016] NZCA 475   CA741/2015
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B We make no award of costs.
7 March 2017
High Court decision
Not publicly available
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
X v YFT [2017] NZSC 25     7 March 2017 (PDF, 72 KB)
Judgment appealed from

X v Attorney-General [2016] NZCA 475 not published online
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