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Disputes Tribunal Act 1988

Rehearings and appeals

50: Appeals

You could also call this:

"What to do if you disagree with a Disputes Tribunal decision"

Illustration for Disputes Tribunal Act 1988

You can appeal to the District Court if you are unhappy with a decision made by the Tribunal. You can appeal against an order made by the Tribunal under certain sections, such as section 18(8), section 46(2), or section 47(3)(b). You can also appeal against the approval of an agreed settlement or the variation of a term of an agreed settlement. If you think the Tribunal was unfair, you can appeal. This can happen if the Referee did not follow the rules or did not listen to important information. The Referee must consider all the relevant laws when making a decision. To appeal, you need to file a notice of appeal in the District Court within 20 working days. A Registrar will then lodge a copy of the notice in the Tribunal's records. The Registrar will also set a time and place for the appeal hearing and tell you about it. All parties involved will get a copy of the notice of appeal and can attend the hearing. Filing an appeal can stop the Tribunal's decision from being enforced, but the Tribunal can change this if needed.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM134102.

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49: Rehearings, or

"Asking for a Rehearing of a Tribunal Decision"

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"Getting a report from the Referee or Investigator after appealing a decision"

Part 4Rehearings and appeals

50Appeals

  1. Any party to proceedings before the Tribunal may appeal to the District Court against an order made by the Tribunal under section 18(8) or section 46(2) or section 47(3)(b), or against the approval by the Tribunal of an agreed settlement under section 18(3), or against the variation of a term of an agreed settlement under section 47(3)(a), on the grounds that—

  2. the proceedings were conducted by the Referee; or
    1. an inquiry was carried out by an Investigator—
        1. in a manner that was unfair to the appellant and prejudicially affected the result of the proceedings.

      1. Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), a Referee shall be deemed to have conducted the proceedings in a manner that was unfair to the appellant and prejudicially affected the result if—

      2. the Referee fails to have regard to any provision of any enactment that is brought to the attention of the Referee at the hearing; and
        1. as a result of that failure, the result of the proceedings is unfair to the appellant.

          1. An appeal shall be brought by a party by the filing of a notice of appeal, in a form approved by the chief executive after consultation with the Principal Disputes Referee, in the District Court within 20 working days of the making or giving of the order or approval or variation appealed against, or within such further time as a District Court Judge may, on application, allow.

          2. As soon as practicable after such notice of appeal has been filed, a Registrar shall lodge a copy of the notice in the Tribunal's records relating to the proceedings.

          3. A Registrar shall fix the time and place for the hearing of the appeal and shall notify the appellant.

          4. A copy of every notice of appeal together with a notice of the time and place for hearing the appeal shall be served by a Registrar on every other party to the proceedings before the Tribunal, and each such party may appear and be heard.

          5. The filing of a notice of appeal against an order or the approval of an agreed settlement or the variation of a term of an agreed settlement shall operate as a stay of any process for the enforcement of that order or that settlement or that variation, as the case may require, but the Tribunal may at any time, on the application of a party to the proceedings, order that any process may be resumed or commenced or, the process having been resumed or commenced, order that it be further stayed.

          Notes
          • Section 50(1): amended, on , by section 261 of the District Court Act 2016 (2016 No 49).
          • Section 50(3): amended, on , by section 57 of the Tribunals Powers and Procedures Legislation Act 2018 (2018 No 51).
          • Section 50(4): amended, on , by section 63 of the Tribunals Powers and Procedures Legislation Act 2018 (2018 No 51).
          • Section 50(5): amended, on , by section 63 of the Tribunals Powers and Procedures Legislation Act 2018 (2018 No 51).
          • Section 50(6): amended, on , by section 63 of the Tribunals Powers and Procedures Legislation Act 2018 (2018 No 51).