law

Categories under law

Then why don’t you release the advice John?

Written By: - Date published: 6:49 am, May 21st, 2013 - 151 comments

A legal expert has raised the alarm over the Nats’ latest outbreak of constitutional arrogance. So too has the Attorney General, and the media. Key says it’s all OK (of course), but why should anyone believe him when his government won’t release the advice that it has received?

Dim-Post on two comparisons

Written By: - Date published: 10:14 am, May 13th, 2013 - 4 comments

Danyl at Dim-Post on the strangely muted media response to the GCSB spying legislation, the witch-hunt against NZ Power, and more. Plus – check out Danyl’s (first) book – looks like a treat in store…

Banks to stand again

Written By: - Date published: 9:49 am, May 13th, 2013 - 28 comments

John Banks has announced that he will stand in Epsom again at the next election. That is, of course, always assuming that he doesn’t get chucked out of Parliament first.

NRT: The spy bill

Written By: - Date published: 1:57 pm, May 7th, 2013 - 7 comments

The new GCSB spy bill is out. For the short version, as @lyndonhood commented: “Admittedly it will be easier for the GCSB to act within their legal boundaries if they don’t have any”. For the long version see the excellent I/S at No Right Turn…

Epsom by election?

Written By: - Date published: 8:28 am, May 3rd, 2013 - 73 comments

John Banks is in court to answer allegations over his Dotcom donations and electoral returns. If convicted he loses his seat. How would an Epsom by election play out?

NRT: “The worst of the worst”

Written By: - Date published: 10:43 am, April 30th, 2013 - 176 comments

I/S at No Right Turn on the difference between what was promised of the “3 strikes” law and the way it is being used in practice.

On the new spy laws

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, April 23rd, 2013 - 27 comments

An Otago University academic and expert on computer security speaks out about the proposed new spy laws: “Surveilling the innocent – is that what we do to protect anyone or is that what we do in totalitarian society?”…

Seeking a wormald to the truth

Written By: - Date published: 1:47 pm, April 15th, 2013 - 33 comments

Dotcom has promised some significant revelations from this week’s court proceedings.  This morning his lawyer focused on Grant Wormald, the role of the police Special Tactics Group, and the truth.  Is the GCSB is off the hook? Meanwhile, Key has been claiming he is “honest and upfront”. [Update – Key’s announced changes to the GCSB outrageous & undemocratic]

Key’s Nixon moment

Written By: - Date published: 6:15 am, April 11th, 2013 - 55 comments

Nixon famously said: “When the president does it, that means that it is not illegal”. John Key would have you believe the same thing, that when his agency, the GCSB, has been breaking the law, the problem lies with the law. No – the problem lies with the GCSB and its oversight. Watergate here we come…

Falling crime

Written By: - Date published: 11:35 am, April 3rd, 2013 - 24 comments

Falling crime is good news – but the reasons are probably not the ones that occupy most of the politicians and the commentary.

NRT: Was Devoy’s appointment unlawful?

Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, March 22nd, 2013 - 47 comments

No Right Turn asked an interesting question yesterday about how the appointment of Susan Devoy was made.

..it is highly doubtful that Devoy meets that statutory criteria for the office she has been appointed to. The advice on her appointment should make very interesting reading…

Boot camps

Written By: - Date published: 10:16 am, February 19th, 2013 - 27 comments

We knew from overseas that military-style boot camps are expensive, don’t reduce recidivism, and breed sadistic violence towards inmates. It’s not just overseas experience; these were all reasons we got rid of borstals. National knew this when they introduced boot camps but they did it anyway for the populism. Now, boot camps have failed again, can we stop this stupidity?

Economic crime

Written By: - Date published: 12:08 pm, February 13th, 2013 - 35 comments

White collar crime – fraud and tax evasion – is in the news again with a new report on the impact. The costs are estimated as several Billion per year. Meanwhile the Nats put all their energy into demonising and chasing $22 Million in welfare fraud.

Save the Family Court

Written By: - Date published: 10:20 am, February 11th, 2013 - 8 comments

The Government’s Family Court Proceedings Reform Bill is receiving submissions until this Wednesday, 13 February.  This Bill needs drastic alteration, as it puts the Family Court out of financial reach of many of those who most need it, reduces needed rights to legal representation, and forces those who’ve been experiencing violence into inappropriate mediation as it’s cheaper.  Best we all submit against it…

Bain files against Collins

Written By: - Date published: 4:27 pm, January 30th, 2013 - 63 comments

David Bain has filed a claim against Judith Collins. Here’s The Herald’s / APNZ quick announcement.

Campbell on Collins

Written By: - Date published: 11:45 am, December 13th, 2012 - 63 comments

Gordon Campbell on Judith Collins and the Binnie report (go read the full article on Scoop). “This is banana republic stuff from Collins”…

Banks private prosecution begins

Written By: - Date published: 8:23 am, December 11th, 2012 - 36 comments

The hearing into the private prosecution of John Banks over his ‘anonymous’ mayoral donations begins today. That the private prosecution has got this far shows the judge believes there is a prima facie case – which puts the Police to shame for failing to take Banks to court. Banks is trying to avoid taking the stand, but I don’t see how he ultimately can.

Collins folds

Written By: - Date published: 5:41 pm, November 14th, 2012 - 18 comments

And so Collins’ “defamation” case against Mallard and Little ends, not with a bang, but a whimper.

Oops – doubled up posting with Eddie – read both posts!

Who guards the guardians?

Written By: - Date published: 11:19 am, October 30th, 2012 - 8 comments

It is poor timing for an extension of surveillance powers. Cases where the police have flouted the law have been coming thick and fast recently. Without Ministerial oversight it has been up to the courts to provide balance, but that’s a method of last resort, and very much an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.

Tax fraud, benefit fraud, proportional response

Written By: - Date published: 8:50 am, October 22nd, 2012 - 38 comments

A Victoria University study shows that tax evasion is costing the country at least 25 times what welfare fraud is costing, while welfare fraud is punished more harshly in court.

Will Key read the GCSB report?

Written By: - Date published: 7:06 am, September 26th, 2012 - 75 comments

Key has said we all have to wait and see what is in the Neazor Report on the GCSB spies’ illegal spying on Kim Dotcom.* He won’t even answer basic questions like: ‘what section of the law did the GCSB breach?’ Funny that Key’s so keen for us to wait to read this report. But will he read it? Or will it be like the Banks Police Report, which he won’t read?  And when will anyone get to read Banks’ statement?

Sunday Reading

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, September 16th, 2012 - 8 comments

My regular Sunday piece of interesting, longer, deeper stories I found during the week. It’s also a chance for you to share what you found this week too. This week: torture, charter schools, economics and development.

Greenpeace – working for others.

Written By: - Date published: 3:02 pm, September 4th, 2012 - 13 comments

Greenpeace has a case in front of the Court of Appeal today.  It is going to be important for any number of small charities who do some advocacy work that may be considered to be ‘political’.

But Greenpeace deserves a resounding cheer for taking this case when it is far more important to other advocates from poverty groups to  churches to climate deniers than it is to themselves.

Collins’ Bennett problem

Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, August 16th, 2012 - 22 comments

I look forward to Trevor Mallard and Andrew Little calling Paula Bennett as a witness in their defamation suit with Judith Collins. Bennett openly admits doing what Collins has sued Mallard and Little for accusing her of doing: using ministerial powers to leak the private details of a political opponent. Bennett even says she’ll do it again. She obviously doesn’t see doing it as hurting her reputation.

NRT: An admission

Written By: - Date published: 11:33 am, August 14th, 2012 - 3 comments

Idiot/Savant at NRT on the need to reform the Terrorism Suppression Act.

ImperatorFish: Community Law Centres Under Threat

Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, August 5th, 2012 - 8 comments

The Government has decided to change the way it funds Community Law Centres. It will save money – at the expense of justice for those who can’t afford lawyers.

Equal before the law?

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 pm, July 26th, 2012 - 53 comments

Police will not lay charges over the so-called banks.com saga. Assistant Police Commissioner Malcolm Burgess held a press conference this afternoon at Police National Headquarters in Wellington. Minister John Banks would be issued with a warning over the matter, Burgess said. While he only received a warning, Banks’ actions were illegal and future occurrences were likely to be prosecuted.

Above the law

Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, July 24th, 2012 - 38 comments

Ha ha ha! Wasn’t it funny when Judith Collins brandished a TASER at the National Party conference and said she wanted to use it on Trevor Mallard. I guess it’s alright for me to whip out an airgun or a knife next time I’m at the pub. You know,  as a joke. Oh? It’s only OK when Ministers are using to further their phony tough guy brand? Must have missed that section of the Arms Act.

Denialists set to make monkeys of themselves

Written By: - Date published: 8:50 am, July 17th, 2012 - 103 comments

Could we be about to have our very own Scopes trial? In that famous Tennessee Court Case, the State prosecuted a teacher for teaching evolution. He walked free and it was a decisive moment in mainstreaming evolution and making the creationists the crackpots. Now, the climate change deniers are suing NIWA and their loss will be a dagger through the heart of denialism.

Key’s comments a blank cheque for investors

Written By: - Date published: 9:32 am, July 13th, 2012 - 48 comments

Now, I’m no big city lawyer, but it seems to me that John Key may be walking on some mighty thin ice by telling prospective investors in Mighty River not to worry about the Maori Council’s water claim. If it goes wrong, isn’t he exposing himself (actually, us taxpayers) to some major law suits and very expensive damages payouts?

Justice denied for Dotcom

Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, July 11th, 2012 - 10 comments

Shades of the Urewera shambles as Dotcom’s extradition drags out. It’ll be a year between the raid and his day in court. Meanwhile, they’re using extra-judicial punishment: bankrupting him by freezing his assets while his legal bills stack up. Going to end in Dotcom not being extradited because the evidence against him was gathered illegally. Then, he’s going to sue the Crown for millions.