It is now almost four years since the Trusts Act 2019 came into force, and it continues to generate a steady stream of interesting decisions from all levels of the court system.
While the Supreme Court's much-anticipated determinations on Legler v Formannoij [2022] NZCA 607 and Cooper v Pinney [2023] NZCA 62 have not yet been released, the appeal against D v A [2022] NZCA 430 was handed down in late November.
We expect 2025 to be another year full of important developments in the private client space. In this 2024 year in review we discuss:
- the Supreme Court's recent decision in A, B and C v D and E Limited [2024] NZSC 161;
- the review procedure under ss 126 and 127 of the Trusts Act 2019, including in Queenin v Queenin [2024] NZHC 1035;
- the Court of Appeal's application of s 182 of the Family Proceedings Act 1980 in Zhou v Lassnig [2024] NZCA 177;
- recent judgments under s 145 of the Trusts Act 2019;
- the trustee costs decision in Martin v Martin [2024] NZHC 658;
- anticipated reform to immigration law; and
- the increased trustee tax rate.
