title: The family trust in New Zealand and the claims of ‘Unwelcome Beneficiaries’

authors: Tappenden, Sue

subjects: Hayton

abstract: In June 2009, at the Transcontinental Trusts conference in Geneva, His Honour Justice David Hayton said that the New Zealand Court of Appeal had got aspects of the law of trusts wrong in its decision in Official Assignee v Wilson [2008] 3 NZLR 45. The Court held that the test for proving a trust was a sham was whether the trustees and settlor had a common intention that the trust was not to be a genuine entitiy. Hayton prefers a more objective approach and looks to the objective effect of a shammer’s conduct and not look for secret dishonest intentions which will hardly ever be revealed. Hayton’s approach would ensure that trust property would be made available to creditors so that they were paid what they were due by declaring the trusts to be shams. Family trusts have become big business in New Zealand and are commonly used to protect a businessman’s assets from creditors. While there is nothing illegal in setting up a family trust, it is my contention that the law pertaining to family trusts in New Zealand has become so far removed from the accepted principles of equity as to demand investigation.
 
This paper explores the origins of equity and compares the modern family trust against the equitable principles which have been developed over hundreds of years, even as far back as Plato’s Greece. The paper links the equity of Ancient Greece to Cicero in Rome, through the early Roman Church to the Chancellors serving English Kings. The law of England leads to the law of modern New Zealand. The paper goes on to examine the way the family trust has been used to defeat the legitimate claims of creditors. I aim to show that the approach taken by the New Zealand Court of Appeal is too narrow and favours the ‘shamming’ settlor at the expense of creditors who have given good consideration in comparison with volunteer beneficiaries. Moreover the family trust has become a mechanism that bears little relationship to recognised equitable principles and should lose the protection accorded to properly constituted trusts.

text: The family trust in New Zealand and the claims of ‘Unwelcome Beneficiaries’ In June 2009, at the Transcontinental Trusts conference in Geneva, His Honour Justice David Hayton said that the New Zealand Court of Appeal had got aspects of the law of trusts wrong in its decision in Official Assignee v Wilson [2008] 3 NZLR 45. The Court held that the test for proving a trust was a sham was whether the trustees and settlor had a common intention that the trust was not to be a genuine entitiy. Hayton prefers a more objective approach and looks to the objective effect of a shammer’s conduct and not look for secret dishonest intentions which will hardly ever be revealed. Hayton’s approach would ensure that trust property would be made available to creditors so that they were paid what they were due by declaring the trusts to be shams. Family trusts have become big business in New Zealand and are commonly used to protect a businessman’s assets from creditors. While there is nothing illegal in setting up a family trust, it is my contention that the law pertaining to family trusts in New Zealand has become so far removed from the accepted principles of equity as to demand investigation.
 
This paper explores the origins of equity and compares the modern family trust against the equitable principles which have been developed over hundreds of years, even as far back as Plato’s Greece. The paper links the equity of Ancient Greece to Cicero in Rome, through the early Roman Church to the Chancellors serving English Kings. The law of England leads to the law of modern New Zealand. The paper goes on to examine the way the family trust has been used to defeat the legitimate claims of creditors. I aim to show that the approach taken by the New Zealand Court of Appeal is too narrow and favours the ‘shamming’ settlor at the expense of creditors who have given good consideration in comparison with volunteer beneficiaries. Moreover the family trust has become a mechanism that bears little relationship to recognised equitable principles and should lose the protection accorded to properly constituted trusts.

year: 2009

title: Bloom formation, species succession, toxin variability and benthic  recruitment of cyanobacteria in Lake Rotorua, Kaikoura

authors: Ferreira Borges, Hugo Leandro

subjects: cyanobacteria

abstract: Cyanobacteria are an ancient group of photosynthetic prokaryotes that are found in a wide range of habitats including freshwater lakes and rivers. In aquatic ecosystems, under favourable environmental conditions, cyanobacteria can form dense and expansive blooms. The increasing prevalence of cyanobacterial blooms globally has been linked to environmental changes in freshwater ecosystems including anthropogenic eutrophication, catchment modification and climate change. One of the most common genera of bloom-forming cyanobacteria is Microcystis. It can produce microcystins, a potent cyanotoxin that poses a risk to human and animal health. It also possesses physiological adaptations that confer a competitive advantage over other phytoplankton and cyanobacteria. One of these is the ability to vegetatively ‘overwinter’ on sediment surfaces.  When conditions are favourable in spring or summer cells are recruited back into the water column and may provide a substantial inoculum for summer blooms. 
To better understand the variables that promote Microcystis aeruginosa blooms, this study investigated; (i) how environmental variables influence M. aeruginosa bloom formation and species succession during a bloom, as well as the seasonal variability of microcystin production, and (ii) how environmental, biotic and ultrastructural changes in the cells influence recruitment of  benthic M. aeruginosa. The study focused on Lake Rotorua, a small eutrophic lake in Kaikoura, South Island, New Zealand. 
To address the first objective, surface water samples were collected weekly or fortnightly from Lake Rotorua between 14 January 2014 and 27 May 2015. Samples were analysed for cyanobacterial cell density and species composition, total and dissolved nutrients, mcyE genotype composition, and microcystin quota. Temperature was measured using loggers at different depths in the water column and weather data were acquired from the Kaikoura weather station (approximately 8 km from the study site). To address the second objective, surface sediment samples were collected from near-edge (containing Microcystis and Aphanizomenon gracile) and mid-lake (containing predominantly Microcystis) sites in Lake Rotorua. A series of laboratory experiments were undertaken which investigated the effect of ammonium (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1 and 5 mg N L-1), light intensity (dark, 1.5, 10, 50 and 100 µmol photon m-2 s-1) and temperature (4, 13, 16, 19 and 25°C) Changes in cellular structures of Microcystis isolated from sediment collected in spring, early and late summer were also analysed using transmission electron microscopy to assess how this influenced recruitment
Cyanobacteria species composition in Lake Rotorua was dominated by Microcystis aeruginosa, Aphanizomenon gracile, and Dolichospermum crassum. Moderate levels of nitrate in the lake appeared to be related to intermittent high-rainfall events during the austral summer of 2014, and may have contributed towards dominance by A. gracile and D. crassum. While both species are capable of nitrogen-fixation, heterocytes were absent. M. aeruginosa blooms subsequently occurred when ammonium concentrations increased, water temperature was high (>27°C), and the total nitrogen: total phosphorus ratio was low. A storm towards the end of the 2014 summer rapidly cooled and mixed the lake, and was followed by bloom collapse. In contrast, an extended drought over summer 2015 resulted in prolonged stratification, increased dissolved reactive phosphorus and very low dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations. Cyanobacterial pattern of species succession differed substantially between 2014 and 2015. Aphanizomenon gracile and D. crassum contained a higher heterocytes frequency compared to 2014 and M. aeruginosa density remained relatively low. Picocyanobacteria consisting of Aphanocapsa sp. were abundant. There was no relationship between toxic genotype abundance and M. aeruginosa biovolume or environmental parameters. However, univariate analysis showed that there was a significant positive relationship (p<0.001) between microcystin quotas and surface water temperature. 
In all benthic recruitment experiments single cells, rather than colonies, accounted for the majority (>55%) of recruited cells and it was speculated this may have been because they had more immediate access to light and nutrients. Linear Mixed Effect Models (LMEMs) analysis showed that M. aeruginosa recruitment was significantly lower (ANOVA; p<0.001) in near-shore sediment samples, suggesting that A. gracile may elicit allopathic effects on M. aeruginosa. In mid-lake sediment samples, M. aeruginosa recruitment was significantly higher at moderate ammonium concentrations (0.1, 0.2 and 0.5 mg N L-1; ANOVA; p<0.001), at two temperatures (16 and 25°C; ANOVA; p<0.001) and high light intensities (50 and 100 µmol m-2 s-1; ANOVA; p<0.01). Under transmission electron microscopy the area of benthic cells occupied by gas vesicles increased significantly (ANOVA; p<0.001) for the three samples collected during the study period. 
The results highlight the complex successional interplay of cyanobacteria species and their physiological adaptations (e.g., nitrogen fixation, buoyancy regulation). Climate, through its effect on runoff, water temperature and stratification, can lead to successional sequences amongst different cyanobacteria species according to whether the combination of physiological adaptations is advantageous or disadvantageous with environmental change. The benthic recruitment experiments collectively demonstrated that allopathic interactions, ammonium, light and temperature individually and synergistically regulate gas vesicle synthesis and M. aeruginosa recruitment in Lake Rotorua.

text: Bloom formation, species succession, toxin variability and benthic  recruitment of cyanobacteria in Lake Rotorua, Kaikoura Cyanobacteria are an ancient group of photosynthetic prokaryotes that are found in a wide range of habitats including freshwater lakes and rivers. In aquatic ecosystems, under favourable environmental conditions, cyanobacteria can form dense and expansive blooms. The increasing prevalence of cyanobacterial blooms globally has been linked to environmental changes in freshwater ecosystems including anthropogenic eutrophication, catchment modification and climate change. One of the most common genera of bloom-forming cyanobacteria is Microcystis. It can produce microcystins, a potent cyanotoxin that poses a risk to human and animal health. It also possesses physiological adaptations that confer a competitive advantage over other phytoplankton and cyanobacteria. One of these is the ability to vegetatively ‘overwinter’ on sediment surfaces.  When conditions are favourable in spring or summer cells are recruited back into the water column and may provide a substantial inoculum for summer blooms. 
To better understand the variables that promote Microcystis aeruginosa blooms, this study investigated; (i) how environmental variables influence M. aeruginosa bloom formation and species succession during a bloom, as well as the seasonal variability of microcystin production, and (ii) how environmental, biotic and ultrastructural changes in the cells influence recruitment of  benthic M. aeruginosa. The study focused on Lake Rotorua, a small eutrophic lake in Kaikoura, South Island, New Zealand. 
To address the first objective, surface water samples were collected weekly or fortnightly from Lake Rotorua between 14 January 2014 and 27 May 2015. Samples were analysed for cyanobacterial cell density and species composition, total and dissolved nutrients, mcyE genotype composition, and microcystin quota. Temperature was measured using loggers at different depths in the water column and weather data were acquired from the Kaikoura weather station (approximately 8 km from the study site). To address the second objective, surface sediment samples were collected from near-edge (containing Microcystis and Aphanizomenon gracile) and mid-lake (containing predominantly Microcystis) sites in Lake Rotorua. A series of laboratory experiments were undertaken which investigated the effect of ammonium (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1 and 5 mg N L-1), light intensity (dark, 1.5, 10, 50 and 100 µmol photon m-2 s-1) and temperature (4, 13, 16, 19 and 25°C) Changes in cellular structures of Microcystis isolated from sediment collected in spring, early and late summer were also analysed using transmission electron microscopy to assess how this influenced recruitment
Cyanobacteria species composition in Lake Rotorua was dominated by Microcystis aeruginosa, Aphanizomenon gracile, and Dolichospermum crassum. Moderate levels of nitrate in the lake appeared to be related to intermittent high-rainfall events during the austral summer of 2014, and may have contributed towards dominance by A. gracile and D. crassum. While both species are capable of nitrogen-fixation, heterocytes were absent. M. aeruginosa blooms subsequently occurred when ammonium concentrations increased, water temperature was high (>27°C), and the total nitrogen: total phosphorus ratio was low. A storm towards the end of the 2014 summer rapidly cooled and mixed the lake, and was followed by bloom collapse. In contrast, an extended drought over summer 2015 resulted in prolonged stratification, increased dissolved reactive phosphorus and very low dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations. Cyanobacterial pattern of species succession differed substantially between 2014 and 2015. Aphanizomenon gracile and D. crassum contained a higher heterocytes frequency compared to 2014 and M. aeruginosa density remained relatively low. Picocyanobacteria consisting of Aphanocapsa sp. were abundant. There was no relationship between toxic genotype abundance and M. aeruginosa biovolume or environmental parameters. However, univariate analysis showed that there was a significant positive relationship (p<0.001) between microcystin quotas and surface water temperature. 
In all benthic recruitment experiments single cells, rather than colonies, accounted for the majority (>55%) of recruited cells and it was speculated this may have been because they had more immediate access to light and nutrients. Linear Mixed Effect Models (LMEMs) analysis showed that M. aeruginosa recruitment was significantly lower (ANOVA; p<0.001) in near-shore sediment samples, suggesting that A. gracile may elicit allopathic effects on M. aeruginosa. In mid-lake sediment samples, M. aeruginosa recruitment was significantly higher at moderate ammonium concentrations (0.1, 0.2 and 0.5 mg N L-1; ANOVA; p<0.001), at two temperatures (16 and 25°C; ANOVA; p<0.001) and high light intensities (50 and 100 µmol m-2 s-1; ANOVA; p<0.01). Under transmission electron microscopy the area of benthic cells occupied by gas vesicles increased significantly (ANOVA; p<0.001) for the three samples collected during the study period. 
The results highlight the complex successional interplay of cyanobacteria species and their physiological adaptations (e.g., nitrogen fixation, buoyancy regulation). Climate, through its effect on runoff, water temperature and stratification, can lead to successional sequences amongst different cyanobacteria species according to whether the combination of physiological adaptations is advantageous or disadvantageous with environmental change. The benthic recruitment experiments collectively demonstrated that allopathic interactions, ammonium, light and temperature individually and synergistically regulate gas vesicle synthesis and M. aeruginosa recruitment in Lake Rotorua.

year: 2016

title: A study of iwi communication between Te Tau Ihu iwi and intergenerational diasporic whānau

authors: Wright, Karamea Moana

subjects: diaspora

abstract: This study looks at the online communication methods used between Te Tau Ihu iwi and intergenerational uri who live in the diaspora. Preferences and perceptions of methods of communication utilized by both iwi, and tāngata who live in the overseas diaspora were explored. Most important are the implications for uri living away from Aotearoa, and their desire to remain connected to iwi in New Zealand. This is a mixed methods study, comprising of a survey of fifty-eight emigrant respondents living abroad, and interviews with one member of the first, second, and third generations of emigrants to the United States, with affiliation to at least one of the eight tribes who claim tāngata whenua status of Te Tau Ihu.

The implications of the findings from the study provide both iwi and tāngata the opportunity to create a synergistic relationship of communicating. Assisting iwi to develop and implement a strategy for relevant communication, and iwi members engaging in a dialogue with iwi about relevance of communication is critical in strengthening ties between iwi and future generations regardless of location. “He aha te mea nui, he tangata, he tangata.”

text: A study of iwi communication between Te Tau Ihu iwi and intergenerational diasporic whānau This study looks at the online communication methods used between Te Tau Ihu iwi and intergenerational uri who live in the diaspora. Preferences and perceptions of methods of communication utilized by both iwi, and tāngata who live in the overseas diaspora were explored. Most important are the implications for uri living away from Aotearoa, and their desire to remain connected to iwi in New Zealand. This is a mixed methods study, comprising of a survey of fifty-eight emigrant respondents living abroad, and interviews with one member of the first, second, and third generations of emigrants to the United States, with affiliation to at least one of the eight tribes who claim tāngata whenua status of Te Tau Ihu.

The implications of the findings from the study provide both iwi and tāngata the opportunity to create a synergistic relationship of communicating. Assisting iwi to develop and implement a strategy for relevant communication, and iwi members engaging in a dialogue with iwi about relevance of communication is critical in strengthening ties between iwi and future generations regardless of location. “He aha te mea nui, he tangata, he tangata.”

year: 2019