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.
5 June 2026
Case information summary (as at 5 June 2026) – Cases where leave granted (PDF, 89 KB)
Case information summary (as at 5 June 2026) – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 124 KB)
All years
Case name
Anthony Keith Peters v The Queen
Case number
SC 23/2006
Summary
Criminal law - appeal against order by Court of Appeal that there be a joint trial of applicant and another - whether trials of two accused on one count of murder should be severed - right to a fair trial - whether discretion of trial judge should have been interfered with - duty of Court of Appeal to give reasons - whether this Court has jurisdiction to hear an appeal against a pre-trial determination by the Court of Appeal. CA 430/05 22 March 2005CA
Result
Leave to Appeal dismissed.
7 June 2006
7 June 2006
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Peters V R SC 23/2006 [7 June 2006] (PDF, 16 KB)
Case name
B v M
Case number
SC 26/2006
Summary
Civil appeal – Property (Relationships) Act 1976 – appeal against two judgments of the Court of Appeal dated 22 March 2006 and 29 March 2006 respectively – in relation to first judgment, whether the Court of Appeal erred in assessment of relationship property CA 13/05 22 March 2006
Result
Notice of Abandonment being lodged, the appeal is deemed to be dismissed. 18 June 2006
Case name
B v M
Case number
SC 27/2006
Summary
Civil appeal – Property (Relationships) Act 1976 – appeal against two judgments of the Court of Appeal dated 22 March 2006 and 29 March 2006 respectively – in relation to first judgment, whether the Court of Appeal erred in assessment of relationship property CA 13/05 29 March 2006
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
13 October 2006
13 October 2006
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
B v M SC 27/2006 [13 October 2006] (PDF, 18 KB)
Case name
Michael David Kidd v Alexander Pieter Van Heeren
Case number
SC 32/2006
Summary
Civil – partial stay of proceedings – principles to be applied in lifting a discretionary stay – whether Court of Appeal erred in stating the test – issue estoppel, forum conveniens, and conflict of laws issues. CA 191/05 23 March 2006
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. Costs $2000 plus disbursements to the respondent.
26 June 2006
26 June 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
KIDD V VAN HEEREN SC 32/2006 [26 June 2006] (PDF, 94 KB)
Case name
David Charles Adams v The Queen
Case number
SC 37/2006
Summary
Criminal – appeal against conviction for fraudulently using a document (a GST return) for the purposes of obtaining a pecuniary advantage – applicant incorporated a company for the purposes of reducing ACC levies of clients – applicant secured set-off against company’s GST liability and avoided accounting for GST collected by company – whether Court of Appeal erred in refusing to accept defence (not raised at trial) that company not liable for GST as not carrying on a taxable activity as defined in s 6 Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 – constitutional consequences of acceptance of applicant’s argument adverted to by Court of Appeal. CA 313/05 12 April 2006
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
21 July 2006
21 July 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ADAMS v R SC 37/2006 [21 July 2006] (PDF, 74 KB)
Case name
Glen Dallas Goldberg v The Queen
Case number
SC 40/2006
Summary
Criminal – appeal against conviction and sentence for wilfully attempting to pervert the course of justice – appellant wrote letters purporting to be from rape complainants, suggesting that their complaints were false – whether appellant gave counsel instructions to pass the letters on to police – whether Court of Appeal erred in failing to accept breach of solicitor/client privilege – whether Court of Appeal erred in failing to exclude evidence of psychologists in sentencing – whether the Court of Appeal erred in finding sentence not manifestly excessive – conduct of Crown counsel. CA 10/05 4 May 2006
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
9 August 2006
9 August 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
GOLDBERG V R SC 40/2006 [9 August 2006] (PDF, 67 KB)
Case name
Alan Ivo Greer v The Attorney - General
Case number
SC 42/2006
Summary
Criminal – appeal against Court of Appeal judgment dismissing application for habeas corpus – whether Court of Appeal erred in finding that habeas corpus not the appropriate remedy where applicant alleges denial of appeal rights – whether a denial of appeal rights caused by lack of information and availability of appropriate appeal forms to prisoners – whether a denial of appeal rights where Court of Appeal refuses to accept for filing appeals on obsolete or incorrect forms – delay in appeal rights. CA 5/06 22 May 2006
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Moshen Aghabiggi v The Queen
Case number
SC 45/2006
Summary
Criminal – appeal against conviction for sexual violation, attempted rape, and fraud – whether applicant should have been granted an adjournment to call a witness overseas and to allow exploration of potential defence – whether delay in police disclosure of complaint form, and the fact that complainant had not made complaint until later than originally thought, resulted in a miscarriage of justice – whether trial judge erred in directions to jury on defence to third count – whether overall a miscarriage of justice occurred.CA 408/05 31 May 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
AGHABIGGI v R SC 45/2006 [5 October 2006] (PDF, 16 KB)
Additional document
AGHABIGGI V R SC 45/2006 [17 April 2007] (PDF, 15 KB)
Case name
Khyentse Rinpoche Lama v Ross Hope and others
Case number
SC 48/2006
Summary
Civil – religious purpose trust – lay trustees to be supervised by Karmapa (head of Karma Kagyu School of Buddhism) – appellant, not a trustee, appointed by Karmapa as spiritual director – longstanding, international dispute within School over identity of Karmapa’s new incarnation – Court of Appeal recognised non-justiciability of religious and spiritual issues – correct approach to interpreting and enforcing purpose trusts – whether Court of Appeal erred in interpreting trust deed – whether trust deed gave appellant power to remove trustees – whether alternative application by appellant to remove trustees limited to Trustee Act 1956, s 51 or invoked the Court’s inherent jurisdiction to remove – the scope of that inherent jurisdiction – whether Court of Appeal wrong to conclude that appellant had not alleged improper conduct or breaches of trust deed by trustees – whether reinstatement of trustees by Court of Appeal gave rise to an ‘impossible situation’ inimical to attainment of the trust’s objects. CA 51/05 CA 119/05 7 June 2006
Result
Applications for leave to appeal by both the appellant and respondent are dismissed, with cost to the respondent $1,000.
19 September 2006
19 September 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Case name
Ronald Gerald Clark v The Queen
Case number
SC 50/2006
Summary
Criminal appeal – appeal against conviction for driving with excess blood alcohol – after failed breath screening test applicant handcuffed for duration of trip to police station – at station handcuffs immediately removed - applicant failed evidential breath test – whether handcuffing amounting to an arrest and, if so, whether the arrest was in breach of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 – whether for the purposes of exclusion of evidence there was the necessary causal link between breach and the failed evidential breath test. CA 479/05 12 June 2006
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
26 September 2006
26 September 2006
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
CLARK V R SC 50/2006 [26 September 2006] (PDF, 16 KB)
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