Employment Court of New Zealand Te Kōti Take Mahi o Aotearoa

[2023] NZEmpC 65 Alkazaz v Cognizant New Zealand Ltd (Costs Judgment of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 27 April 2023) COSTS – GUIDELINE SCALE – privileged communication cannot be considered – costs awarded.

[2023] NZEmpC 63 Hilford v Board of Trustees of Whangarei Boys’ High School (Judgment of Judge B A Corkill, 24 April 2023) APPLICATION TO EXTEND TIME TO FILE A CHALLENGE – access to justice – leave granted.

[2023] NZEmpC 61 FGH v RST (Judgment of Judge B A Corkill, 20 April 2023) APPLICATION FOR STAY OF COSTS ISSUES – application made for leave to appeal – costs stayed until Court of Appeal leave application decision is issued.

[2023] NZEmpC 59 Hamilton Civil Plant Ltd v Carr (Judgment of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 18 April 2023) APPLICATION TO EXTEND TIME TO FILE A CHALLENGE – company was not legally represented and made a slip-up – application granted in interests of justice.

[2023] NZEmpC 57 New Zealand Steel Ltd v Haddad (Judgment of Judge Kathryn Beck, 5 April 2023) PERSONAL GRIEVANCE – UNJUSTIFIABLE DISMISSAL – employer did not follow a fair and reasonable process in redundancy – redundancy was pre-determined – employer failed to provide all relevant information – employer failed to properly consider redeployment – reinstatement ordered – lost wages awarded for entire duration of unemployment – compensation awarded.

[2023] NZEmpC 55 THL (2005) v NEN (Consent Judgment of Judge J C Holden, 5 April 2023) FREEZING ORDERS – extension by consent.

[2023] NZEmpC 53 Halse v Employment Relations Authority (Interlocutory Judgment (No 2) of Judge Kathryn Beck, 4 April 2023) APPLICATION FOR STAY OF PROCEEDINGS – no step has been taken to justify a stay – application declined.

[2023] NZEmpC 51 Halse v Employment Relations Authority (Judgment of Judge Kathryn Beck, 4 April 2023) APPLICATION FOR STAY – no appeal proceedings have yet been filed – no stay can be granted – application declined –COSTS – GUIDELINE SCALE – costs awarded.

[2023] NZEmpC 49 Pilgrim v Attorney-General (Interlocutory Judgment (No 31) of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 4 April 2023) APPLICATION TO ACCESS COURT DOCUMENT – parties consent – application granted.

[2023] NZEmpC 47 Farrand Orchards Ltd v Tane (Judgment of Judge B A Corkill, 29 March 2023) APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO APPLY FOR REHEARING – APPLICATION FOR REHEARING – new evidence could have been found at original hearing with reasonable diligence – proposed new evidence is unlikely to assist the court – no ground for rehearing.

[2023] NZEmpC 45 Wiles v The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Auckland (Interlocutory Judgment (No 2) of Judge J C Holden, 20 March 2023) APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO FILE AMENDED PLEADINGS – application partially granted - APPLICATIONS FOR NON-PUBLICATION ORDERS – personal information of other staff members should be kept confidential – interim non-publication orders made regarding safety report and implementation plan – no basis for non-publication orders in regard to other matters - APPLICATION TO EXCLUDE EVIDENCE – expert evidence should not be legal submissions – lack of independence goes to weight given to the evidence – application partially granted.

[2023] NZEmpC 43 Butt v Attorney-General (Interlocutory Judgment of Judge Kathryn Beck, 17 March 2023) APPLICATION FOR STAY – pending matter in the Court of Appeal has common questions of fact and law that are likely to be determinative – application granted.

[2023] NZEmpC 40 Straayer v Employment Relations Authority (Judgment of Judge B A Corkill, 15 March 2023) APPLICATION FOR STAY – appeal has not been filed – no basis for a stay – application declined.