Meads v Muldrew - [2021] NZHC 1864

NOTE: PURSUANT TO S 35A OF THE PROPERTY (RELATIONSHIPS) ACT 1976, ANY REPORT OF THIS PROCEEDING MUST COMPLY WITH SS 11B,

11C AND 11D OF THE FAMILY COURT ACT 1980. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE

https://www.justice.govt.nz/family/about/restriction-on-publishing-judgments/

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND AUCKLAND REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA TĀMAKI MAKAURAU ROHE

CIV-2021-404-000426

[2021] NZHC 1864

UNDER the Property (Relationships) Act 1976

BETWEEN

SCOTT BRADLEY MEADS

Appellant

AND

KATIE SARAH MULDREW

Respondent

TURRET TRUSTEES LIMITED

Interested Party

Hearing: 23 and 24 June 2021

Appearances:

R J Collis for Appellant

C E Wiseman for Respondent
E C Gellert and B Morris for Interested Party

Judgment:

22 July 2021

JUDGMENT OF WOOLFORD J

This judgment was delivered by me on Thursday, 22 July 2021 at 4:15 pm pursuant to r 11.5 of the High Court Rules.

Registrar/Deputy Registrar

Solicitors: ARL Lawyers (B Sheehan), Lower Hutt, for Respondent
Lowndes Jordan (L Gellert), Auckland, for Interested Party

Counsel: CE Wiseman, Auckland, for Respondent

M Beech, Tauranga, for Interested Party

MEADS v MULDREW [2021] NZHC 1864 [22 July 2021]

[1] Scott Bradley Meads appeals against pre-trial rulings of Judge D A Burns dated 5 August 2020 and the substantive judgment of Judge R von Keisenberg dated 19 February 2021 dividing relationship property between Mr Meads and his former de facto partner, Katie Sarah Muldrew.

[2] One of the principal orders made by Judge von Keisenberg directed the transfer of 19B Cathedral Place, Parnell, Auckland, owned by a third party, Turret Trustees Limited (TTL), as the sole corporate trustee for the Turret Trust, to Mr Meads so that it could be dealt with as relationship property. TTL was not represented in the Family Court. By order dated 9 June 2021 in this Court, Venning J granted TTL leave to be joined and heard as an interested party in this appeal.

Factual background

[3] Mr Meads met Ms Muldrew in August 2011. They were both civil engineers working in Christchurch. Ms Muldrew was from the United Kingdom and had arrived in Christchurch soon after the devastating earthquake in February 2011. They quickly formed a relationship.

[4] On 1 December 2011, Ms Muldrew moved into Mr Meads’ property at 16 McLellan Place, Christchurch, a house that he had purchased in January 2011, before they had met. Judge von Keisenberg found that by June 2012 at the latest, the parties were in a qualifying de facto relationship, in that they were mutually committed to each other.

[5] The parties opened a joint ASB Bank account on 16 April 2013 in anticipation of buying property together.

[6] On 3 May 2013, the parties jointly purchased two properties situated at 1 and 16 Graycliffe Street, Christchurch, from the Mainzeal receivers when that company went into receivership. The prices paid for the properties were $368,104 and $392,308 respectively. The purchases were 100 per cent funded through ASB Bank loans. The properties were registered in the parties’ joint names.

[7] The parties moved into…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Meads v Muldrew

Details

AGLC: Meads v Muldrew [2021] NZHC 1864
Case: [2021] NZHC 1864
Decision Date: 22 July 2021

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Scott Bradley Meads appeals against the pre-trial rulings of Judge D A Burns and the substantive judgment of Judge R von Keisenberg, which divided relationship property between Meads and his former de facto partner, Katie Sarah Muldrew. The principal order under appeal directed the transfer of 19B Cathedral Place, Parnell, Auckland, owned by Turret Trustees Limited (TTL), to Meads so that it could be dealt with as relationship property. The issues to be determined included whether the Family Court correctly exercised its discretion under section 44 of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 to order the transfer of Cathedral Place to Meads and whether the Family Court correctly ordered compensation under section 20E of the Act. The court held that the appeal was dismissed, and the orders set out in the judgment of Judge R von Keisenberg were confirmed. The court found that the Family Court was correct in exercising its discretion under section 44 of the Act to order the transfer of Cathedral Place to Meads, as it was open to the court to find that Cathedral Place was the family home in terms of the definition in section 2 of the Act. The court also held that the Family Court was correct in ordering compensation under section 20E of the Act, as the mortgage over McLellan Place was repaid during the course of the relationship. Costs were to follow the event.

Orders