Law Society acknowledges privacy breach

The New Zealand Law Society would like to acknowledge and apologise for a privacy breach. The breach involved a Law Society staff member sending confidential information, in an email, to the wrong person by mistake. The email contained a complaint to the Law Society by a legal practitioner about his own…

Law Society marks first decade of Lawyers and Conveyancers Act

The legislation that radically changed the way lawyers and conveyancers do business and conduct themselves is now 10 years old. The Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006 replaced the longstanding Law Practitioners Act. It came into effect on 1 August 2008. The new Act introduced major changes to the regulation of lawyers. These…

Call by working group for ideas to improve regulatory framework by end of August

An independent Working Group is calling for ideas on how the complaints regulatory framework could be improved. The Group is busy undertaking its task and contributors are being asked to provide ideas before the end of August. Established by the New Zealand Law Society and chaired by Dame Silvia Cartwright, the aim…

Vigilance urged to combat email and IT fraud

The New Zealand Law Society is repeating earlier warnings to lawyers to be vigilant in ensuring their IT systems are secure against incursion and to be very careful in reacting to emails inviting them to open attachments. The Law Society says emails with attachments or an invitation to click on a…

Law Society provides guidance for pro bono work

The New Zealand Law Society has released a new title in its Practice Briefing series, Guidance for lawyers undertaking pro bono work. The guidance is for lawyers and law firms about the structuring of pro bono service arrangements. It is also relevant for lawyers wishing to undertake private work outside their…

Brian Ellis suspended from practice

Auckland lawyer Brian Ellis has been suspended from practice by the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal. Mr Ellis' suspension runs from 26 June 2018 for a period of 6 months and 12 days. The Tribunal has also censured him and ordered him to pay costs to the New Zealand…

Legal Executive Diploma graduates recognised

Graduation ceremonies have been held at New Zealand Law Society branches around the country for 122 students who graduated with the Legal Executive Diploma. Examinations were conducted by the New Zealand Law Society for the Diploma in late October 2017 at 20 venues in New Zealand and seven overseas. A total of…

Safe and Effective Justice Programme Advisory Group welcomed

New Zealand’s lawyers welcome the appointment of the Safe and Effective Justice Programme Advisory Group - Te Uepū Hāpai i te Ora and the opportunities it presents for a thorough examination of the criminal justice system, the New Zealand Law Society says. “Agreement on the principles underpinning the criminal justice system…

Law Society in close contact with DIA over AML/CFT issues

The New Zealand Law Society is ensuring the Department of Internal Affairs is kept informed of the concerns of lawyers over the compliance requirements for AML/CFT, acting Executive Director Mary Ollivier says. “We appreciate that some of the AML/CFT legislation is unclear and as noted in LawPoints last week, we suggest…

Law Society recommends file notes for AML decisions

The New Zealand Law Society says it has become aware of a number of issues and concerns among lawyers since the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Funding of Terrorism Act 2009 regime became live for lawyers on 1 July 2018. It says one example is some issues in relation to wire transfers…