Jones Dail: Judicature (High Court Rules) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Jones Dail: Judicature (High Court Rules) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:649;Page:17958] 
DAIL JONES (NZ First) 
: 
 When I saw the Judicature (High Court Rules) Amendment Bill it brought a very warm glow to my heart because it reminded me of something that Justice Barker once said before he became a judge. We were discussing civil procedure and a most important issue arose—that is the question of costs. How does one work out one’s costs on a case? Justice Barker said: “Well you just hold up the file.” The nice heavy weight of this particular folder made me think quite warmly that it must have cost a lost of money to get this bill through the system and it will be very interesting to see how it is carried out. 
The High Court Rules or as Mr Worth would say the Code of Civil Procedure were in existence when I started practice. In looking at this set of new High Court Rules—New Zealand First of course will be supporting the bill and its quick passage through the House—I have just a couple of queries. Very little has been done in the mortgagee sale area. Once upon a time mortgagee sales were the domain of the High Court. One had to lodge one’s documents through the High Court until I think the late 1980s when as a result of the economic times High Court mortgagee sales were dispensed with. I notice also the provisions for company liquidation and I expect practitioners will be very interested in the simplification of the process for winding up companies which will be big business in the not too distant future and will get even bigger still. 
The area that is of greatest interest to me is Part 27 of the new schedule 2 to be inserted in the Judicature Act which deals with grants of probate and letters of administration. This area of law is something that I was involved with from I think as early as 1963 as a clerk in a law firm that had a reasonable High Court probate practice. It is useful to see the new provisions—the new draft affidavits and suchlike—in the schedule. I know that some practitioners have experienced problems with regard to changes in the affidavit for a planning grant of probate and the probate form and the application itself were brought about by confusion in the Law Society’s draft form on the Internet. I suggest that any practitioner who is having difficulties gets a copy of these rules in advance to get a better idea of what is required by the Law Society. 
These rules have become more complicated over the years and what was pretty simple once upon a time is now confused. For example if a deceased person has no will and there is an intestacy it can become complicated in so far as administration is concerned where a claim is made by the deceased person’s spouse de facto spouse or civil union partner or by one or more of them as the case might be. Furthermore the decision of which option to choose in the application in terms of the relationship property legislation can be complicated. 
It is something of a minefield at the moment to try to get letters of administration through the courts. I had a dreadful case a while ago where a 76-year-old lady who had been happily married for more than 40 years had to include in her documentation a provision that no she did not have a lesbian partner. It is quite crazy the way that the rules have developed but I guess this is a consequence of modern times. 
However I am sure that these rules will simplify matters. I look forward to them being put through the House as soon as possible. I am sure that the select committee will hear from the Law Society and will take up any comments it has to make. In fact New Zealand First wants to make sure that the Law Society and any other legal groups that want to make submissions can make submissions and be heard. I doubt that there would be any objections to that at this stage bearing in mind the 800 or 900 pages of this legislation and the amount of time that has been taken on it. I look forward to the legislation being put through the House before the election.