Before a hearing is held

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Directions conference

A directions conference chaired by a judge is usually arranged after a statement of defence is filed. The Registrar will inform you and the other party of the date and time of the conference and will send you a copy of the Directions Conference Guidelines. Each part will be asked to file a memorandum outlining the matters likely to be covered at the conference. This memorandum should be filed two working days before the conference.

A conference will usually be by telephone conference call but may sometimes be in person at a courthouse or by video conference. At the conference the judge will discuss with you and the other party any outstanding matters and a date for the hearing. You will not need to discuss the substantive details of your case, the conference is to discuss the logistics of progressing your matter to a hearing and/ or other procedural matters.

Note: If you are represented by a lawyer or advocate the Registrar will call your representative only. You may attend together with your representative, but they will need to tell the Registrar you are there.

The judge will usually issue a minute (a formal note) after the conference with a timetable of what is to happen next. You must comply with all directions issued by a judge (called the timetable directions) to ensure a smooth process up to the hearing.

Find out more about Directions Conference guidelines. [PDF, 128 KB]

Mediation

Parties can agree to go to mediation at any time during the court process. An alternative to mediation may be an agreed judicial settlement conference (see below).

At the first directions conference the judge will discuss with you and the other party whether mediation could fix your dispute. If mediation is directed, you must contact Mediation Services(external link) and attend mediation or a further mediation, in good faith, before your case is heard.¹

Information given during mediation is confidential and cannot be given or told to outside parties or other employment institutions, unless agreed by the parties.

If you reach settlement at mediation the plaintiff or applicant may be asked to file a notice of discontinuance.

Find a notice of discontinuance form on our forms and fees page.

Judicial settlement conference

A judicial settlement conference room

A judicial settlement conference, chaired by a judge, is arranged only if both parties agree to attend such a conference.

You will likely attend the judicial settlement conference in person, and you can bring your representative or a support person with you.

Judicial settlement conferences are less formal than court hearings; however, all participants are expected to behave in a respectful manner; business casual is the acceptable dress code for representatives.

During the conference it may be necessary to take a break. In such circumstances a request should be made to the judge who is convening the conference.

The judge will provide their input on the case including the strengths and weaknesses of each party's claim. Information given during a settlement conference is confidential and cannot be given or told to outside parties or other employment institutions, unless agreed by the parties.

If you do not reach a settlement, a different judge will conduct the main hearing and no information from the conference will be disclosed to that judge.

The Registrar will send you a notice about the settlement conference. The notice will tell you the date and time of the conference and ask you to file the following documents before the settlement conference:

A memorandum for a judicial settlement conference
“Will say” statements of your potential witnesses. A "will say" statement is a summary version of a brief of evidence that outlines what a witness may say in evidence. In some cases, a judge may agree that the briefs from the Employment Relations Authority are filed instead of 'will say' statements.

If you reach settlement at the conference, you will be asked how you wish the settlement to be recorded. The plaintiff or applicant may be asked to file a notice of discontinuance.

Find out more about settlement conferences [PDF, 187 KB] and witness briefs. [PDF, 107 KB]

Find a notice of discontinuance form on our forms and fees page.

Withdrawal of proceedings

If you reach settlement at any time in the proceedings (including at mediation, a judicial settlement conference or of the parties' own accord) the plaintiff might be asked to file a notice of discontinuance, or a consent judgment might be issued on an application of the parties.

A defendant can claim costs of and incidental to the proceedings unless costs are agreed, or it is agreed that there is no issues as to costs.

At any stage prior to judgment, the plaintiff or applicant can withdraw any matter before the Court by filing a notice of discontinuance.²

Find a notice of discontinuance form on our forms and fees page.

Briefs of evidence

A brief of evidence is a statement of what a witness will say when giving their evidence. Generally, you will be directed to file briefs of evidence and serve them on the party before the hearing, according to a timetable made by a judge. They will form the basis of evidence spoken at the hearing.

Find out more about witness briefs. [PDF, 107 KB]

What happens when you are summonsed to be a witness

Find out more about what happens when you are summonsed to be a witness [PDF, 74 KB].

Appearing by audio-visual link (AVL)

The Courts (Remote Participation) Act 2010 allows for people to appear by audio-visual link (AVL). It may be used to link any participant in the proceedings, meaning a person who is a party, a witness, counsel, a Judge, Registrar, or any other person directly involved who is allowed to appear in this way. Any party wanting for someone to appear by AVL should raise this at a directions conference. If the parties cannot agree to allow a person to appear by AVL, a formal application will need to be filed.

Find out more about appearing by video link: Guideline for Appearing by audio-visual link [PDF, 138 KB]

The Summary of Guideline for a witness giving evidence by audio-visual link can be found on the page What happens during a hearing/Giving evidence as a witness

Common bundle of documents

The common bundle of documents contains documents that will be referred to by witnesses in their evidence or referred to in submissions. Please note you should not include documents "just in case".

You and the other party must work together to create a common bundle of documents. A judge may also ask you and the other party to agree on and file a chronology (a list of everything that happened in date order from the earliest to the most recent).

At a directions conference a judge will direct either you or the other party to prepare and file copies of the bundle.

Documents in the bundle should be indexed (the list at the front of the bundle that lists what is in the bundle and where you can find each document) and the pages of the bundle as a whole, numbered in order.

If you are responsible for preparing the bundle, you must file copies of the bundle with the registry and serve one copy on the other party. You must also prepare a further copy and hand to the registrar in courtroom for the witnesses to use. Sometimes a judge may direct you to file an electronic bundle of documents.

See an example common bundle of documents [PDF, 125 KB]

At a directions conference, the Judge may, after hearing from the parties, decide whether an electronic casebook is to be prepared and if so, whether Format A or Format B is to be used and who is to prepare and distribute it. Refer to the Court’s Electronic Casebook Protocol [PDF, 7.9 MB]. We recommend that you download this protocol to your PC or device to ensure you can open not only the protocol but also its attachments.

You may also be helped by a video which describes the preparation and use of electronic bundles here: Electronic Bundles(external link)

How to file documents

You can file documents by email to the case manager who is handling your case in the Court or to EmploymentCourt@justice.govt.nz
You can also file documents by accessing File and Pay(external link)

After entering your contact details, select:

Court type: Employment Court
Location: either Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch
Case type: Other documents
Filing type: Select the appropriate document from the list provided
Enter the case title (names of the parties) and case numbers (file number if known)

If you are filing documents using File and Pay or by email, the registry will advise you whether and how many hard copies of the documents you will need to give.

Footnotes

This page was last updated: 13th March 2026