Insight Building consent reforms: move towards proportional liability In a significant move for the construction and legal sectors, the Government has announced its intention to implement the most substantial overhaul of building consent processes since the Building Act came into effect in 2004. Two key announcements were made earlier this week: Read more
Insight Time limits for building claims: 10 years or 10 + 2 years? The Supreme Court has released its long-awaited decision of Beca v Wellington City Council regarding whether the Building Act’s 10-year longstop applied to third-party contribution claims. In a 3/2 split, the Supreme Court held that it did not. Read more
Insight When you know you’re out of time The Court of Appeal in Rea v Auckland Council [2024] NZCA 313 dismissed an appeal regarding the strike out of claims under the Limitation Act 2010, clarifying the application of "late knowledge" in determining when a claimant is deemed to have sufficient knowledge to bring a claim. The case emphasized that claimants cannot ignore obvious facts that would prompt a reasonable person to investigate their legal rights. Read more
Insight Decision highlights need for effective limitation of liability clauses Engineers and their insurers can breathe a sigh of relief following the High Court’s recent decision. The Court determined as a preliminary issue that the defendant engineers could rely on their contractual limitations of liability to limit any liability they have to Tauranga City Council (TCC) as the owner of non-residential building. Read more
