Re Greenpeace of New Zealand Inc

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Greenpeace of New Zealand Inc sought leave to appeal from a decision of the Court of Appeal, which had dismissed their appeal against a decision of the Charities Board to revoke the applicant’s charitable status. The Charities Board had revoked Greenpeace’s charitable status on the basis that its primary purpose was political in nature, and as such, it was not entitled to charitable status under the Charities Act 2005 (NZ). Greenpeace contended that the Charities Board had erred in its determination of the applicant's primary purpose and that the Court of Appeal had failed to properly apply the relevant legal principles in its review of the Board's decision.

The central legal issue before the Supreme Court was whether the Court of Appeal had correctly interpreted and applied the relevant statutory provisions in determining the primary purpose of Greenpeace. The Court of Appeal had held that the applicant's primary purpose was to influence government policy and that this rendered it ineligible for charitable status. The Supreme Court was asked to determine whether this conclusion was sound, particularly in light of the Court of Appeal's analysis of the relevant case law and statutory provisions.

The Supreme Court held that the Court of Appeal had erred in its interpretation of the statutory criteria for determining an organisation’s primary purpose. The Supreme Court found that the Court of Appeal had not adequately considered the broader context in which Greenpeace operated and had placed too much emphasis on the political nature of the applicant's activities. The Supreme Court held that the applicant’s activities were predominantly charitable in nature, and as such, the revocation of its charitable status was unjust. The Court also found that the Court of Appeal's reasoning in relation to the statutory interpretation was flawed, leading to an incorrect outcome. Consequently, the Supreme Court granted leave to appeal on the specified ground.

The final orders of the Supreme Court were that leave to appeal was granted on the specified ground, and the matter was remitted back to the Court of Appeal for further consideration in light of the Supreme Court's judgment. The Court of Appeal was directed to reconsider the applicant's primary purpose and the appropriate application of the statutory criteria to that purpose, and to determine whether Greenpeace was entitled to charitable status under the Charities Act 2005 (NZ).

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established