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.
17 July 2026
Case information summary (as at 17 July 2026) – Cases where leave granted (PDF, 87 KB)
Case information summary (as at 17 July 2026) – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 128 KB)
All years
Case name
Dean McArthur Keown v The Queen
Case number
SC 115/2010
Summary
Criminal – Sentencing appeal – Whether the discount in sentence for Mr Keown’s time spent on electronically monitored bail was appropriately given by the Court of Appeal in accordance with sentencing principles.[2010] NZCA 492 CA 401/2010 29 October 2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
KEOWN v R SC 115/2010 [16 February 2011] (PDF, 39 KB)
Dates
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
16 February 2011
Case name
Michael Gregory v Thomas Patrick Joseph Gollan and others
Case number
SC 4/2009
Summary
Civil appeal - application for proceeding to trial by judge and jury – alleged wrongful arrest – whether proceedings involve mainly questions of law – whether discretion to allow trial by judge has been properly exercised - whether trial by judge denies the appellant of constitutional rights – whether c.29 Magna Carta applies to civil proceedings concerning wrongful arrest.[2008] NZCA 568 CA 699/2007 19 December 2008
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. Costs $2,500 to respondent.
30 March 2009
30 March 2009
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
GREGORY v GOLLAN AND ORS SC 4/2009 [30 March 2009] (PDF, 15 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Stephen Michael Shone v The Queen
Case number
SC 49/2009
Summary
Criminal appeal – sentencing – whether the decision of the Court of Appeal is consistent with decisions made in comparable cases – whether the Court of Appeal failed to take into account the alleged facilitation of offending by a victim’s mother – whether the sentences imposed were manifestly excessive[2009] NZCA 183 CA 720/2008 14 May 2008
Result
Application to leave to appeal dismissed. 29 July 2009
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
SHONE V R SC 49/2009 29 July 2009 (PDF, 12 KB)
Case name
Lewtyn Michael Scott v Rosemary Ann Scott and others
Case number
SC 65/2009
Summary
Civil – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in its exercise of discretion declining the application for grant of an extension under r 43 of the Court of Appeal (Civil) Rules 2005 – Whether the Court of Appeal was entitled to make that decision in the absence of the applicant or his counsel.[2009] NZCA 255 CA 634/2008 19 June 2009.
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. Costs of $7,500 and disbursements to the respondents. 29 October 2009
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Transcript
Case name
Vincent Ross Siemer v Michael Peter Stiassney and Korda Mentha
Case number
SC 69/2009
Summary
Civil Appeal – natural justice – orders were made in the High Court against the applicant, the publisher of several websites, in respect of a defamation claim – whether the High Court judge was correct to allow an amended statement of claim to be filed and proceed to an ex parte hearing on 8 October 2008 – whether the High Court judge erred in awarding the respondent $940,000 in damages plus costs and issuing a permanent injunction against the applicant prohibiting several defamatory publications – whether the High Court judge misrepresented evidence in finding against the applicant.Civ 2005 404 001808 23 December 2009
Result
Notice of abandonment being lodged, the application is deemed to be dismissed
Case name
Lewtyn Michael Scott v Rosemary Ann Scott and Ors
Case number
SC 84/2009
Summary
Stay of proceedings.[2009] NZCA 417 CA 634/2008 18 September 2009
Result
Application dismissed. 29 October 2009
Court of Appeal decision
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Case name
Michael Wauchop Porter v The Queen
Case number
SC 85/2009
Summary
Criminal – s 361D Crimes Act 1961 – Whether the Court of Appeal erred in its interpretation of s 361D of the Act – Whether the Court of Appeal had sufficient regard to ss 24(e) or 5 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 when interpreting s 361D.[2009] NZCA 380 CA 255/09 28 August 2009
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 20 October 2009
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Phillip Michael McMaster v The Queen
Case number
SC 91/2009
Summary
Criminal appeal – appeal against convictions for aggravated robbery and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle – whether the Court of Appeal erred in concluding that the evidence of two co-accused was insufficiently cogent to give rise to a miscarriage of justice when the Crown case identifying the applicant as a participant in the offending was reliant on a third co-accused who was motivated to give false evidence to minimise his role in the offending.[2009] NZCA 393 CA 608/2008 9 September 2009
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 10 February 2010
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MCMASTER V R SC 91/2009 11 February 2010 (PDF, 9 KB)
Transcript
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Ester Slee v Michael Ian Slee
Case number
SC 25/2008
Summary
Civil appeal – family law – Child Support Act 1991 – departure order providing for child support – whether the judgement of the Family Court on 29 September 2005 materially changed the position as determined by its judgment of 18 August 2004 – accordingly, whether the appellant’ s challenge to the retrospective effect of a departure order made by the Family Court on 18 August 2004 was out of time – whether there is an ability to extend time for appeal - if the appeal is not out of time, whether the Family Court’s assessment of the child support for the year ended 31 March 2003 was correct under the Child Support Act 1991.[2008] NZCA 85 CA 205/07 18 April 2008
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
SLEE V SLEE SC 25/2008 [14 August 2008] (PDF, 15 KB)
Dates
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. Costs $2,500 to the respondent.
14 August 2008
Case name
Michael Spackman v The Queenstown Lakes District Council and others
Case number
SC 48/2008
Summary
Civil resource management applicant sought judicial review of Councils decision to grant resource consent for neighbouring subdivision into four lots error conceded at trial relief granted in the form of revoked approval for one lot and restriction on consent notice for another applicant appealed form of relief Whether the Court of Appeal erred in making allegedly contradictory findings and relying on those findings when deciding whether to grant relief in favour of the applicant whether the Court of Appeal erred when deciding that various discretionary factors overcame the applicant's right to be heard again in respect of the whole subdivision application for leave to appeal out of time[2008] NZCA 234 CA 193/07 11 July 2008
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Dates
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
Costs of $2000 to both the first and second respondents.
24 October 2008
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