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Trusts Act 2019

The new Trusts Act 2019 is coming into effect on 30 January 2021. The Act modernises the Trustee Act 1956 and incorporates the case law which has developed over the last 64-odd years. The new Act is also a bit easier to read. If you follow this link you will see what we mean:  Trusts Act 2019 - www.legislation.govt.nz.
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Enduring Powers of Attorney

It is important to have someone to rely on in difficult and challenging times. More importantly, the person you rely on should be someone you have chosen. Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPOAs) enable you to nominate trusted attorneys to make decisions on your behalf in relation to your property (not including Trust property), and your care and welfare.  To be clear, you can appoint any person you choose to be your attorney – in this case “attorney” does not mean “lawyer”.
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Changes to Filing Applications in the Family Court

New legislation came into force on 1 July 2020 which changes when a party is allowed to have a lawyer acting for them in the Family Court. These changes undo some of the reforms that took place in 2014.  Because of those reforms, there were only limited times when lawyers could act in the first steps in a parenting or guardianship proceeding, including filing applications.  In particular, lawyers could not act in respect of applications that were filed “on notice”. 
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Employment Law in the time of COVID-19

With the restrictions that were put in place due to Covid-19, and the introduction of the Wage Subsidy scheme, all aspects of employment law were tested and touched upon, as employers and employees alike attempted to navigate a new, and potentially uncertain market. Now, even though the restrictions have been lifted, a lot of uncertainty remains, and this article touches on a few key areas that both employers and employees alike need to be considering in the current climate.