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
Attorney-General v X and Refugee Status Appeal Authority
Case number
SC 69/2007
Summary
Civil – whether the Court of Appeal erred in holding that where the particulars of a claim for refugee status disclose information relating to the possible commission of a crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity (in terms of the international Convention relating to the Status of Refugees), the confidentiality requirements in s 129T of the Immigration Act 1987 prevent the disclosure of those particulars by refugee status officers, the Refugee Status Appeal Authority, and other relevant persons, to those who are concerned with the investigation, prosecution or extradition of any such crime – whether New Zealand’s international legal obligations require the opposite conclusion.[2007] NZCA 388 CA 166/06 5 September 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal granted.
14 December 2007
14 December 2007
Leave judgment - leave granted
Transcription
Judgment appealed from
Substantive judgment / Media releaes
Case name
Ian Kenneth McMillan v The Queen
Case number
SC 70/2007
Summary
Criminal – appeal against sentence – applicant sentenced to preventive detention in 1995 – unsuccessful appeal to Court of Appeal in 1995 – sought rehearing of appeal in 2005 – Court of Appeal dismissed appeal on rehearing – whether Court of Appeal erred in not considering whether New Zealand regime of preventive detention is in breach of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 and/or the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights – whether Court of Appeal erred in not granting a declaration (R v Hansen (2007) 23 CRNZ 104) – jurisdiction in criminal case to grant declaration of inconsistency with NZBORA and/or ICCPR – whether preventive detention breaches ss 9, 22, 23 and 25 of NZBORA and/or arts 7, 9, 10, 14 and 15 of ICCPR – whether treatment of applicant by New Zealand Courts has breached his rights under ss 25(a), 24(a), 19, and/or 22 of NZBORA – whether applicant was lawfully committed to the High Court for sentence – whether Court of Appeal erred in not substituting a finite sentence.[2007] NZCA 394 CA 110/05 7 September 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 11 December 2007
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Not publicly available
Judgment appealed from
Case name
E v The Queen
Case number
SC 71/2007
Summary
Criminal – appeal against sentence
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
11 December 2007
11 December 2007
Case name
Regal Castings Limited v G M and G N Lightbody and others
Case number
SC 72/2007
Summary
Civil appeal – whether transfer of property from first respondents to second respondent trustees should have been set aside under section 60 Property Law Act 1952 – whether the transfer amounted to fraud - whether Freeman v Pope (1870) 5 LR Ch App 538 represents the correct law where an insolvent debtor transfers property – whether there is a conclusive presumption of fraud in such situations– whether the High Court should have inferred an intention to defraud even if Freeman v Pope does not represent the law – whether the Court of Appeal erred by requiring the appellant to show that prejudice to the creditor was the purpose of the transaction – whether the Court of Appeal erred in law by overlooking relevant objective factors – whether the Court of Appeal erred by putting weight on subjective factors.[2007] NZCA 396 CA 234/05 7 September 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal granted.
13 December 2007
_______________________________
Appeal allowed. Cost to the appellant.
23 October 2008
13 December 2007
_______________________________
Appeal allowed. Cost to the appellant.
23 October 2008
Transcripts
- Hearing date 10 April 2008 SC 72/2007 (PDF, 355 KB)
Media Releases
- MR [2008] NZSC 87 (PDF, 89 KB)
Leave judgment - leave granted
Substantive judgment
Judgment appealed from
Case name
James Arthur Rose v Karen Diane Rose
Case number
SC 73/2007
Summary
Civil – Property (Relationships) Act 1976 – whether a partnership interest is an asset for the purposes of the Act – whether improvements to land that is relationship property form part of that land by operation of Land Transfer Act 1952 definition of “land” – whether increases in value to property caused by inflation are within the scope of claims under s 9A(1) or 9A(2) – whether s 9A(2) claim required evidence of an action by the respondent that had the effect of increasing the value of the property – whether s 2G requires assets and liabilities to be valued at the same date. [2007] NZCA 406 CA 212/06 11 September 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal granted.
6 December 2007
___________________________
Appeal and cross appeal dismissed. No order as to costs.
19 May 2009
6 December 2007
___________________________
Appeal and cross appeal dismissed. No order as to costs.
19 May 2009
Leave judgment - leave granted
ROSE V ROSE SC 73/2007 [6 December 2007] (PDF, 14 KB)
Substantive judgment / Media release
Transcript
Case name
W v The Queen
Case number
SC 74/2007
Summary
Criminal – appeal against convictions for historical sexual offending – whether the admission of evidence in rebuttal to a recent complaint allegation, which evidence the Court of Appeal held to be inadmissible, created a miscarriage of justice. [2007] NZCA 408 CA 164/07 11 September 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed .
5 December 2007
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Judgment appealed from
Case name
DE; LW and CW v Chief Executive of the Ministry of Social Development
Case number
SC 75/2007
Summary
Civil – appeal against decision refusing a writ of habeas corpus in relation to the first appellant’s child – Family Court issued, on an ex parte basis, an interim custody order under s 78 of the Children, Young Persons and Their Families Act 1989 – whether the s 78 interim custody order was used in an unlawful manner. [2007] NZCA 451 CA 358/07 18 October 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
28 November 2007
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Wayne Darren McGregor v The Queen
Case number
SC 76/2007
Summary
Criminal appeal – Sentencing Act 2002 – sentencing bands for grievous bodily harm – whether sentence imposed is manifestly excessive and wrong in principle – whether R v Taueki [2005] 3 NZLR 372 is correctly decided – in particular, whether it is correct to focus on the presence of identified aggravating features – whether Taueki has improperly led to a rise in sentencing levels over the bottom half of the range of sentences imposed for grievous bodily harm.[2007] NZCA 435 CA 320/07 10 October 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 28 February 2008
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
MCGREGOR v R SC 76/2007 [28 February 2008] (PDF, 15 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
Carey Dean Turner v The Queen
Case number
SC 77/2007
Summary
Criminal Appeal – sexual violation – whether evidence given by the complainant was incorrectly admitted – whether the evidence was recent complaint evidence – whether the trial Judge should have given a direction to the jury about recent complaint evidence – whether the trial judge erred by giving incorrect directions to the jury about the status of a video statement made out of Court by the accused - whether this direction by the trial judge undermined the tripartite direction given about the way the jury ought to consider evidence given by the accused at trial – whether the Court of Appeal erred by dismissing the appellants appeal to that Court.[2007] NZCA 437 CA 181/07 1 October 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 5 March 2008
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
TURNER v R SC 77/2007 [5 March 2008] (PDF, 22 KB)
Judgment appealed from
Case name
W v The Queen
Case number
SC 78/2007
Summary
Criminal – appeal against conviction – sexual offending against daughter – alleged errors in interventions, directions and summing-up by trial Judge, circumstances of recall of expert witness by Crown after closing addresses, and conduct of defence counsel – whether various alleged trial errors, individually or collectively, may have given rise to a substantial miscarriage of justice.[2007] NZCA 34 CA 222/06 1 March 2007
Result
Application for leave to appeal dismissed. 15 April 2008
Leave judgment - leave dismissed
W V R SC 78/2007 [15 April 2008] (PDF, 18 KB)
Judgment appealed from
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