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 May 2026

Case information summary (as at 8 May 2026) –  Cases where leave granted (PDF, 89 KB)
Case information summary (as at 8 May 2026)  – Cases where leave to appeal decision not yet made (PDF, 127 KB) 

All years

Case name
Christopher Oliver Brice v The King
Case number
SC 122/2024
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring an appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
11 April 2025
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
Not publicly available
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
BRICE v R [2025] NZSC 37 [11 April 2025] (PDF, 171 KB)
Case name
David Grant Sinclair v The King
Case number
SC 124/2024
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring an appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
8 April 2025
High Court decision
R v SINCLAIR [2021] NZHC 569 [19 March 2021]
Court of Appeal decision
SINCLAIR v R [2024] NZCA 534 [21 October 2024
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
SINCLAIR v R [2025] NZSC 33 [8 April 2025] (PDF, 145 KB)
Case name
Mathew Raymond Charles Watson v The King
Case number
SC 125/2024
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.                                                          
28 March 2025
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
[2024] NZCA 576
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
WATSON v R [2025] NZSC 24 [28 March 2025] (PDF, 162 KB)
Case name
Jianzhong Cheng v The King
Case number
SC 126/2024
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
03 April 2025
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
[2024] NZCA 598
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
CHENG v R [2025] NZSC 26 [3 April 2025] (PDF, 162 KB)
Case name
NZME Publishing Limited v Brenton Harrison Tarrant, The King and Lawyers A and B
Case number
SC 128/2024
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring appeal
Result
A The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
B Order prohibiting search of the files for this application without leave of a Judge of this Court.
11 April 2025
High Court decision
R v TARRANT [2020] NZHC 2192 [27 August 2020]
Court of Appeal decision
TARRANT v R [2024] NZCA 579 [13 November 2024]
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
NZME PUBLISHING LIMITED v TARRANT [2025] NZSC 36 [11 April 2025] (PDF, 160 KB)
Case name
G (SC 130/2024) v The King
Case number
SC 130/2024
Summary

Criminal Appeal
Result

A Leave to appeal is granted ([2024] NZCA 626).
B The approved question is whether the Court of Appeal was correct to dismiss the appeal against sentence.
04 April 2025
________________________________________________________
A The appeal is allowed.
B The proceeding is remitted to the District Court for resentencing.
C The applications to adduce further evidence and for name suppression are dismissed.
D Bail is granted on the terms currently applicable, as amended by this Court’s minute of 10 March 2026. Any application for variation to bail shall be addressed by the District Court.
Date of hearing
22 July 2025
Judges
Winkelmann CJ, Glazebrook, Williams, Kós and Miller JJ
Case Synopses
Media Releases
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
[2024] NZCA 626
Supreme Court - order made
Suppression application - G (SC 130/2024) v R [2025] NZSC 80 [11 July 2025] (PDF, 117 KB)
Substantive judgment
G (SC 130/2024) v R [2026] NZSC 19 [24 March 2026] (PDF, 510 KB)
Case name
J (SC 135/2024) v The King
Case number
SC 135/2024
Summary

Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring appeal
Result

The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.                                                            
20 May 2025
High Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
Not publicly available
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
J (SC 135/2024) v R [2025] NZSC 55 [20 May 2025] (PDF, 167 KB)
Case name
Matthew Nigel John Wilcox v The King
Case number
SC 138/2024
Summary

Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring an appeal
Result

A notice of abandonment having been filed, the application for leave to appeal is abandoned                     
23 June 2025
District Court decision
Not publicly available
Court of Appeal decision
[2024] NZCA 555
Case name
Garath Richard Collings v The King
Case number
SC 4/2023
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring an appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
14 June 2023
High Court decision
R v COLLINGS [2022] NZHC 1275 [1 June 2022]
Court of Appeal decision
COLLINGS v R [2022] NZCA 605 [5 December 2022]
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
GARATH RICHARD COLLINGS v R [2023] NZSC 67 [14 June 2023] (PDF, 170 KB)
Case name
Madhur Sharma v The King
Case number
SC 6/2023
Summary
Criminal Appeal - Application for leave to bring an appeal
Result
The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
14 April 2023
Court of Appeal decision
Not publicly available
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MADHUR SHARMA v R [2023] NZSC 34 [14 April 2023] (PDF, 182 KB)
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