Canterbury Law Review

Publisher:
University of Canterbury School of Law
Publication date:
2023-01-27
ISBN:
0112-0581

Issue Number

Latest documents

  • An Evaluation of the No Asset Procedure as a Fresh Start for Insolvent Consumer Debtors in Aotearoa New Zealand
  • Exploring the After-MAF: The Past, Present and Future Of 'Male Assaults Female'
  • Pluralism in Action: The Role and Future of Pūkenga in Aotearoa New Zealand
  • Tikanga in Developing the Common Law of Contract
  • AI Revolution in New Zealand's Legal Profession: Exploring Junior Lawyers' Experiences and Cultural Implications
  • Bordered Justice: Legal Erasure and the Performance of Accountability in the Montara Commission of Inquiry
  • Land of the Long White Lab Coat: Aotearoa New Zealand and the Laws of Trusted Research

    As an island nation, New Zealand punches well above its weight internationally in terms of both technological innovation and higher education. Yet at the intersection of both domains, New Zealand has lagged in the protection of sensitive and critical university research – it takes little part in the academic discourse surrounding this concept (which the New Zealand government refers to as "trusted research") and has enacted no new laws in the space since the late 2000s. In doing so, New Zealand risks falling behind its Indo-Pacific neighbours and allies including Australia, the United States and Japan. This paper therefore responds to both shortfalls in research on the subject of trusted research in New Zealand, by providing a legal analysis of the frameworks which protect university research and promoting several law reforms which could uplift the nation's trusted research position. Noting the increasing importance of New Zealand's role in resisting the actions of foreign interference and espionage in the region, this paper argues for a most robust security posture across New Zealand's university landscape

  • Of Hobbits, Collective Bargaining, and False Economic Emergencies: Accelerated Legislation and Political Constitutionalism

    Many constitutional systems allow for an acceleration of the legislative process. Under New Zealand's mechanism, the so-called urgency motion, the government can introduce and pass a bill within a single parliamentary sitting. New Zealand's constitution is also strongly political, that is, parliamentary actions are mainly controlled by political means (such as general elections) rather than legal means (such as judicial review). This combination is highly concerning when viewed through the lens of securitisation theory. This theory posits that if the public perceives a political issue as an existential threat to a fundamental social value, the use of extraordinary measures is justified, such as accelerating the legislative process. Thus, if the government can influence the public narrative and make a political issue appear to be an existential threat, the use of urgency to pass it will be justified, irrespective of whether the issue really poses an existential threat. In such a case, the political constitutional safeguard of public censure of parliament fails, because the public has already been convinced that extraordinary measures are necessary and justified. The circumstances around passage of the "Hobbit Law" (the Employment Relations (the Film Industry Work) Amendment Act 2010) shows that political constitutions are vulnerable to the constitutional effects of securitisation of non-existentially threatening political issues

  • A Feminist Exploration of the Employee/Contractor Boundary: A Call to Action

    Everyone who works in Aotearoa New Zealand is entitled to respect, dignity, fair conditions, safety and reasonable reward. While some workers are protected by employment legislation, the reality for workers who fall outside the legal status of "employee" is very different. Generally known as "contractors", these workers face very mixed work experiences. The Courts have considered a steady stream of applications over the past two decades resulting in some contractors being reclassified as "employees", able to pursue remedies for harms suffered. Various governments have known about the growing issue and failed to act. Advocacy groups have had mixed results pursuing improved conditions for those they represent. This research reviews the law on the employee/contractor boundary, along with caselaw, MBIE's Consultation on Better Protection for Contractors and the recommendations of the Tripartite Working Group on Better Protection for Contractors, through a feminist lens. The research will show that there are many voices missing from the discussions that have been had to date and a general lack of understanding of the harms being experienced by some contractors. Active listening and a willingness to consider new ways forward to achieve a mana enhancing good working life for everyone is urgently needed

  • Critique of Hart's Concept of Law in Samoa

    Hart's "Concept of Law" has gained widespread recognition in legal philosophy by proposing that a legal system is best understood as a combination of primary rules that impose obligations and secondary rules that grant the authority to create, modify, and interpret those primary rules. One aspect in Hart's concept concerns the prelegal or primitive system, consisting of a society governed solely by primary rules of conduct without secondary rules. Thus, it proceeds to assert that such a system exists in a small, stable community bound by shared beliefs and kinship. This article illustrates that upon closer scrutiny within legally intricate and bijural contexts – such as the case of Samoa, where both primary and secondary rules co-exist – the argument proves to be fundamentally flawed. Moreover, this critique highlights the limitations in the standard application of Hart's Concept of Law in other post-colonial contexts, including Aotearoa New Zealand and South Africa. The article further argues that more critical and nuanced perspectives are needed to examine the legal reality of Hart's theory in modern postcolonial contexts

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