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.
12 December 2025
Case information summary 2025 (as at 18 December 2025) – Cases where leave granted (PDF, 87 KB)
Case information summary 2025 (as at 18 December 2025) – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 121 KB)
All years
Case name
Edwin Christopher Brown v The Attorney-General
Case number
SC 17/2005
Summary
Bill of Rights - compensation for breach of rights under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 - whether decision of the Auckland District Legal Services Subcommittee refusing to grant legal aid approval for the purposes of instructing forensic experts in Australia was unlawful or unreasonable - if so, whether the appellant's trial was unfair as a result - whether compensation appropriate - quantum of compensation. CA 39/03 3 March 2005
Result
Leave to appeal is dismissed. Any question of costs is reserved.
29 August 2005
29 August 2005
Transcripts
- Hearing date 17 August 2005 (PDF, 77 KB)
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
BROWN V ATTORNEY-GENERAL SC 17/05 [29 August 2005] (PDF, 21 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Motorcorp Holdings Ltd and Others v CIR
Case number
SC 18/2005
Summary
Civil appeal - whether reimbursement payments by overseas car manufacturers to New Zealand distributors were payments under contracts of insurance for the purposes of the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 - whether there was a supply for GST purposes - whether the decision in Suzuki NZ Ltd v CIR (2001) 20 NZTC 17, 096 should be revisited. CA 17/04 7 March 2005
Result
Leave to appeal refused.
1 June 2005
1 June 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Judgment appealed from
re grant to appeal to the Privy Council - dismissed
Case name
Chamberlains v Sun Poi Lai and Hilda Lorraine Lai
Case number
SC 19/2005
Summary
Civil appeal - whether barristerial immunity from suit for negligence should be abolished - whether abolition should be prospective only effect of s 61 of the Law Practitioners Act 1982. CA 15/03 8 March 2005
Result
Leave to appeal granted.
13 June 2005
______________________
The appeal is dismissed.
The appellants must pay the respondents $30,000 in costs together with disbursements, to be fixed if necessary by the Registrar.
11 September 2006
13 June 2005
______________________
The appeal is dismissed.
The appellants must pay the respondents $30,000 in costs together with disbursements, to be fixed if necessary by the Registrar.
11 September 2006
Transcripts
- Hearing date 18_19 and 20 October 2005 (PDF, 778 KB)
Media Releases
- MR [2006] NZSC 70 (PDF, 78 KB)
Leave judgment - leave granted
CHAMBERLAINS V LAI SC 19/05 [13 June 2005] (PDF, 19 KB)
Substantive judgment
CHAMBERLAINS V LAI SC 19/2005 [11 September 2006] (PDF, 809 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Krishan Jaichandre Kanhai v The Queen
Case number
SC 20/2005
Summary
Leapfrog criminal appeal against conviction - alleged radical error of counsel in not adducing evidence of good character giving rise to a substantial miscarriage of justice - leave application made out of time - application for extension of time. CA 55/04 15 December 2004
Result
Leave to appeal dismissed.
11 May 2005
11 May 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
KANHAI V R SC 20/2005 [11 May 2005] (PDF, 19 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Peter Neil Campbell v The Superintendent, Wellington Prison
Case number
SC 21/2005
Summary
Habeas Corpus - whether an order made by the Parole Board under s107 Parole Act 2002 that the appellant not be released until 3 months prior to his sentence expiry date was rendered unlawful by a failure to comply with the statutory procedural requirement of s107 Parole Act to review this decision, and other procedural requirements - whether, and to what extent, the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act effects these issues - whether subsection (8) of s107 Parole Act is dominant to subsection (6). CA 3/05 14 February 2005
Result
Leave to appeal dismissed.
5 May 2005
5 May 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Graham Thomas Rowe v The Queen
Case number
SC 22/2005
Summary
Appeal against conviction for offensive behaviour under s 4(1)(a) of the Summary Offences Act 1981 - whether the appellant's behaviour was sufficiently observable to amount to offensive behaviour - whether the court's finding was possible only with recourse to inadmissible prior conduct evidence - whether the absence of a legitimate purpose may be taken into account in determining whether behaviour is offensive - whether a police officer is a competent complainant in a prosecution for offensive behaviour. CA 374/04 18 April 2005
Result
Leave to appeal dismissed. 23 June 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ROWE V R SC SC 22/2005 [23 June 2005] (PDF, 15 KB)
Case name
Robert Frank Terry v The Queen
Case number
SC 23/2005
Summary
Criminal appeal against conviction - forensic analysis report only disclosed to defence at time of trial - effect of late disclosure. CA 490/04 20 April 2005
Result
Leave to appeal dismissed.
23 June 2005
23 June 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
TERRY V R SC 23/2005 [23 June 2005] (PDF, 13 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Ramon Dirk Johannes de Mey v The Queen
Case number
SC 24/2005
Summary
Criminal appeal - appeal against decision of the Court of Appeal upholding conviction for common assault - whether there was a miscarriage of justice resulting from insufficient evidence to support the jury's verdict. CA 169/04 17 December 2004CA 44/05 28 April 2005
Result
Leave to appeal refused
20 May 2005
20 May 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
DE MEY V R SC 24/2005 [20 May 2005] (PDF, 15 KB)
Court of Appeal decision
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Peter Joseph Thompson v The Queen
Case number
SC 25/2005
Summary
Substitution of convictions by an appellate court - whether the elements of s246(1) Crimes Act (before amendment) go beyond those contained in s229A Crimes Act (now repealed). CA 404/04 27 April 2005
Result
Leave to appeal dismissed.
23 August 2005
23 August 2005
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
THOMPSON V R SC SC 25/05 [23 August 2005] (PDF, 19 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Transcript
Case name
Casata Limited v General Distributors Limited
Case number
SC 26/2005
Summary
Civil appeal - whether the Court of Appeal erred in its interpretation of the costs regime under the Arbitration Act 1996 - whether the Court of Appeal held correctly that the arbitral tribunal had erred in law in not considering party costs in the reward. CA 84/04 13 April 2005
Result
Leave to appeal granted.
6 July 2005
________________
The appeal is dismissed.
15 March 2006
6 July 2005
________________
The appeal is dismissed.
15 March 2006
Leave judgment - leave granted
Substantive judgment
Judgment appealed from
Substantive judgment
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