Employment Court of New Zealand Te Kōti Take Mahi o Aotearoa

[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.

[2023] NZEmpC 39 Wilson-Grange Investments v Guerra (Judgment of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 14 March 2023) NON-DE NOVO CHALLENGE - PERSONAL GRIEVANCE - Authority did not make an error in finding reduction in wages to be personal grievance, even in circumstances of COVID-19 lockdown - Authority did not make an error in finding a personal grievance for an unfair disciplinary process or in awarding costs.

[2023] NZEmpC 37 Elliott v Coastal Cabins Ltd (Consent Judgment of Judge Kathryn Beck, 9 March 2023) CONSENT.

[2023] NZEmpC 35 New Zealand Nurses Organisation Inc v Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand (Interlocutory Judgment (No 3) of Judge B A Corkill, 8 March 2023) APPLICATION WITH REGARD TO INTERVENER STATUS – issues are important – intervener participation allowed on a restricted basis.

[2023] NZEmpC 33 Pyne v Invacare New Zealand Ltd (Interlocutory Judgment of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 7 March 2023) NON-DE NOVO CHALLENGE - NATURE AND EXTENT OF HEARING - non-de novo challenge is not a stricto sensu appeal - evidence presented in Court is not restricted to evidence that was presented in Authority.

[2023] NZEmpC 31 Pact Group v Robinson (Interlocutory Judgment (No 2) of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 1 March 2023) APPLICATION TO PARTICIPATE AT A HEARING BY ALTERNATIVE MEANS – application not opposed – witness lives in Australia and travel would present personal difficulties – application granted.

[2023] NZEmpC 29 Bowen v Bank of New Zealand (Interlocutory Judgment (No 3) of Judge J C Holden, 28 February 2023) APPLICAION TO DISMISS PROCEEDINGS – Authority can determine how it investigates an employment relationship, including what evidence to accept –Authority determination on evidence admissibility cannot be challenged under s 179(5) – proceedings dismissed – non-publication orders made.

[2023] NZEmpC 27 Pilgrim v Attorney-General (Interlocutory Judgment (No 30) of Chief Judge Christina Inglis, 27 February 2023) APPLICATION FOR DISCLOSURE OF DOCUMENTS – documents sought are relevant – disclosure would be time-consuming and expensive – application granted with conditions.