News and views

It has been estimated that there are between 300,000-500,000 trusts in this country. Trusts have been established for many different reasons, including estate planning, creditor protection, to ensure access to rest home subsidies, tax benefits or for protection from relationship property claims.

Invercargill City Council’s decision earlier this year to abruptly close the Southland Museum and Art Gallery shone the spotlight back on earthquake strengthening, and serves as a reminder to all owners and occupiers of commercial buildings of the new laws now at play.

If you have a family trust set up a number of years ago, it’s good practice to review it to ensure it is still ‘fit for purpose’. Leading on from that is the question that is often asked of us, “Should I bring my trust to an end?”

While we would love to completely eradicate inappropriate behaviour at staff Christmas parties, unfortunately there is no fool-proof course of action that employers and managers can take to guarantee everything stays above board.

The Family Court has just appointed our Family Law specialist, and Senior Associate, Gillian Stuart, as a Lawyer for the Child.

We’ve received several requests lately to provide a heads up on what happens when one property owner damages another party’s land. Where do responsibilities and obligations begin and end, we’ve been asked. And, not surprisingly, the big question: who pays?

Following on from last week’s blog exploring some of the key considerations when buying property, this time we’re looking at some of the important factors vendors have to stay across.

The property market’s never far away from the headlines these days – but whatever the state of the market, properties will still be traded, and the same old legal considerations are just as important to ensuring your interests are covered.