From 8 April 2021, it will now be a criminal offense under section 30 of the Commerce Act 1986 to enter into a contract, arrangement, or understanding that contains a cartel provision, or to give effect to a cartel provision. Previously, the Commerce Commission could only bring civil proceedings against a person or business who…
The Fair Trading Act 1986 (“FTA”) applies to any person or business who engages in trade, which covers most businesses, including overseas businesses supplying goods and services in New Zealand and online sales. The purpose of the FTA includes protection of consumers by requiring businesses to provide truthful and accurate information about their products and…
Defamation in New Zealand is governed by the Defamation Act 1992 and by a body of developed case law. Defamation is an area of law that is designed to protect a person’s reputation from unfair and unjustifiable attacks. Defamation requires a fine balance between the protection of reputation and the freedom of expression as contained…
Retailers should remain aware of their obligations under the Fair Trading Act 1986 when setting prices and promotions for their products and ensure they have in place a successful long term pricing strategy that is also compliant. Price comparisons can give consumers helpful information and can promote competition among retailers. However, when deciding on pricing,…
The rolling out of Covid-19 vaccine for the general population over the coming months in this country will no doubt result in some complex employment issues for employers. It will create unique workplace tensions if employees refuse to work alongside unvaccinated employees, or seek alternative working arrangements to avoid exposure to unvaccinated employees. The most…
Closure of the New Zealand Border has created new challenges for employers seeking to recruit and retain key staff. Offering a key staff member, or new employee, a stake in the business is therefore increasingly common particularly in industries such as hospitality. The common ways employers now incentivise staff to stay in their role, include:…
Parliament has recently passed a Bill which doubles employee’s minimum sick leave from 5 to 10 days per annum. The Holidays (Increasing Sick Leave) Amendment Bill was introduced on 1 December 2020 and has rapidly passed through all three readings to receive Royal Assent on 24 May 2021. The main purpose of the Bill was…
Most businesses appreciate that a customer’s purchasing decisions may hinge on the provision of credit. Consequently, most businesses offer some form of credit to their customers. Those that don’t, risk losing customers to competitors. On the other hand, credit costs a business in many ways such as the cost of borrowing that money, administrative…
New Zealand recognises the importance of welcoming sustainable, productive and inclusive overseas investment. The corresponding responsibility to supervise and control this has been recognised in legislation since the early 1970s. In 2005 the Overseas Investment Act required consent from the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) for any business sale resulting in greater than 25% ownership of…