Insights
Monthly Archives: March 2025
Environmental Court Ruling Clears Path for Critical Renewable Energy Project
31 March 2025: Andrew Beatson of Richmond Chambers successfully represented Meridian Energy in securing consent for the 90MW Mt Munro Wind Farm, despite significant visual amenity challenges. The Environment Court's decision provides crucial guidance on effects assessment methodology and establishes valuable precedent for renewable energy projects at a pivotal time in New Zealand's energy transition.
Houston, we have a problem: the paradox of the self-dealing Kiwi trustee
11 March 2025: Richmond Chambers' Josh McBride and Rachael Woods, who represented the respondents in the recent Legler Supreme Court case, examine how two significant trust law judgments reveal a growing tension between the Trusts Act 2019 and the practical reality of New Zealand family trusts. 'The gap between judicial restraint and statutory opportunity creates a precarious position for settlor-trustees,' McBride cautions.
