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.

19 June 2026

Case information summary (as at 19 June 2026) –  Cases where leave granted (PDF, 89 KB)
Case information summary (as at 19 June 2026)  – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 126 KB) 

All years

Case name
Malcolm Edward Rabson v Judicial Conduct Commissioner
Case number
SC 19/2017
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B The applicant must pay the respondent costs of $2,500.
5 April 2017
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2017] NZSC 45     5 April 2017 (PDF, 78 KB)
Judgment appealed from

MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2016] NZHC 2539   25 October 2016
Case name
Malcolm Edward Rabson v Judicial Conduct Commissioner and Justices Elias, Young, Glazebrook, Arnold and O'Regan
Case number
SC 21/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in declining to grant an extension of time for consideration of an application to dispense with security for costs.
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
16 May 2017
_______________________________
The application for recall is dismissed.
23 June 2017
____________________
A The judgment delivered on 29 June 2017 is recalled and re-issued.
B The application for review is dismissed.
C The Registrar is directed not to accept for filing any further applications in relation to this matter.                                    
7 July 2017
Court of Appeal decision
Rabson v Judicial Conduct Commissioner [2017] NZCA 44 (6 March 2017)
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2017] NZSC 74 16 May 2017 (PDF, 59 KB)
Recall judgment
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2017] NZSC 96 [23 June 2017] (PDF, 68 KB)
Additional document
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2017] NZSC 100 [29 June 2017 (PDF, 77 KB)
Case name
Alister James Reid  v The Queen
Case number
SC 29/2017
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Whether the hearsay statement by the complainant was correctly admitted as evidence at the applicant’s trial.
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed. 
7 July 2017
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ALISTER JAMES REID v R [2017] NZSC 108  7 July 2017 (PDF, 69 KB)
Judgment appealed from

DC (not available publicly) :
Case name
Midgen Enterprises Limited and David James Midgen v Water Guard NZ Limited
Case number
SC 32/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in overturning the costs award of the High Court.
Result
A  The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B The applicants are to pay costs of $2,500 to the respondent.
9 May 2017
High Court decision
WATER GUARD NZ LTD v MIDGEN ENTERPRISES LTD [2016] NZHC 1546 8 July 2016
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MIDGEN ENTERPRISES LIMITED v UV WATER SYSTEMS LIMITED [2017] NZSC 68     9 May 2017 (PDF, 85 KB)
Judgment appealed from

WATER GUARD NZ LIMITED V MIDGEN ENTERPRISES LIMITED [2017] NZCA 36 2 March 2017
Case name
Bruce James Spittle v The Queen
Case number
SC 47/2017
Summary
Criminal Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in its determination that the verdict of the jury in the applicant’s trial was not unreasonable having regard to the evidence.
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.                                           6 July 2017
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
BRUCE JAMES SPITTLE v R [2017] NZSC 105   6 July 2017 (PDF, 80 KB)
Judgment appealed from

SPITTLE v R [2017] NZCA 116   7 April 2017
Case name
Earl Raymond Hagaman v Andrew James Little
Case number
SC 53/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the High Court erred in holding that the respondent was entitled to claim the defence of qualified privilege in relation to allegedly defamatory statements made by him about the applicant – Whether exceptional circumstances exist warranting a direct appeal to the Supreme Court.  
Result

A notice of abandonment having been lodged, the appeal is deemed to be dismissed.                                                                                                                 

12 June 2017
Judgment appealed from -HC judgment
HAGAMAN AND HAGAMAN v LITTLE [2017] NZHC 813  28 April 2017
Case name
ESR Group (NZ) Limited v Ian James Burden, Plantation Grown Timbers (International) Limited and Plantation Grown Timbers (Vietnam) Limited
Case number
SC 83/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Copyright Act 1994, ss 35, 120 and 232 – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in holding that the second and third respondents were entitled to enforce copyright in New Zealand – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in holding that the applicant infringed copyright by importation.
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B The applicant is to pay costs of $4,500 and reasonable disbursements to the respondents.                                                                                            20 November 2017
High Court decision
BURDEN & ORS v ESR GROUP & ORS [2016] NZHC 1542  7 July 2016
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
ESR GROUP (NZ) LIMITED v IAN JAMES BURDEN [2017] NZSC 173 [20 November 2017] (PDF, 199 KB)
Judgment appealed from

ESR GROUP (NZ) LIMITED v BURDEN [2017] NZCA 217  26 May 2017
Transcript civil leave application hearing
Hearing date : 10 November 2017
Case name
Malcolm Edward Rabson v Attorney-General
Case number
SC 92/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in declining the application for an extension of time to apply for an allocation of hearing date and filing the case on appeal.
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B Costs of $2,500 are awarded to the respondent.                                         
5 October 2017
  ____________________
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
6 November 2017
High Court decision
RABSON v ATTORNEY-GENERAL [2016] NZHC 2876 [30 November 2016]
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v ATTORNEY-GENERAL [2017] NZSC 149 [5 October 2017] (PDF, 39 KB)
Recall judgment
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v ATTORNEY-GENERAL [2017] NZSC 166 [6 November 2017] (PDF, 55 KB)
Judgment appealed from

MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON V ATTORNEY-GENERAL [2017] NZCA 350 [16 August 2017]
Case name
Malcolm Edward Rabson v Justices William Young, Arnold, Glazebrook, O'Regan and Ellen France
Case number
SC 93/2017
Summary
Civil Appeal – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in upholding the Registrar’s decision not to dispense with security for costs.
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed as an abuse of process.
28 September 2017
 ______________________
The application for recall is dismissed. 
1 November 2017
Court of Appeal decision
RABSON v JUDICIAL CONDUCT COMMISSIONER [2017] NZCA 349 [16 August 2017]
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MALCOLM EDWARD RABSON v JUSTICES WILLIAM YOUNG, ARNOLD, GLAZEBROOK, OʼREGAN AND ELLEN FRANCE [2017] NZSC 146 [28 September 2017] (PDF, 40 KB)
Recall judgment
RABSON v JUSTICES WILLIAM YOUNG, ARNOLD, GLAZEBROOK, O ʼ REGAN AND ELLEN FRANCE [2017] NZSC 163 [1 November 2017] (PDF, 57 KB)
Case name
Studorp Limited & James Hardie New Zealand v Tracey Jane Cridge, Mark Anthony Unwin, Katrina McKellar Fowler, Scott Woodhead & Body Corp 316651
Case number
SC 104/2017
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B The applicants must pay costs of $2,500 to the respondents.
27 November 2017
High Court decision
CRIDGE v STUDORP LIMITED [2016] NZHC 2451 [14 October 2016]
High Court decision
T J CRIDGE AND M A UNWIN v STUDORP LIMITED [2015] NZHC 3065 [4 December 2015]
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
STUDORP LIMITED v CRIDGE AND ORS [2017] NZSC 178 [27 November 2017] (PDF, 206 KB)
Judgment appealed from

Tracey Jane Cridge, Mark Anthony Unwin, Katrina McKellor Fowler and Scott Woodhead v  Studrop Limited [2017] NZCA 376  30 August 2017
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