Under recent amendments to the Family Court Act and the Evidence Act, courts can control litigant abuse and witnesses giving evidence of family violence no longer need to face the perpetrator in court.

Litigant abuse orders

Under the Victims of Family Violence (Strengthening Legal Protections) Legislation Act 2025, from 17 February 2026, courts can restrict a party from taking further steps in current proceedings or commencing new proceedings if litigant abuse is occurring. Litigant abuse is defined to include conduct intended to annoy, harass, or harm the other party, or that amounts to psychological abuse. Courts can consider a party’s conduct not only in current proceedings but also in previous proceedings and outside of court.

While aimed at protecting victims of family violence, the amendments are not confined to family law proceedings. The amendments affect the Family Court Act 1980, the District Court Act 2016, and the Senior Courts Act 2016, extending the availability of the orders to all civil proceedings. Litigant abuse orders are separate and distinct from vexatious litigant orders.

An offending party can be restricted from taking further steps in current proceedings or commencing new proceedings without first seeking the court’s leave.

Orders issued under the new provisions generally continue for 3 years, but the court can shorten the period or extend the order for up to 5 years. 

Giving family violence evidence in alternative ways

Changes under the Evidence (Giving Family Violence Evidence in Family Court Proceedings) Amendment Act 2026 mean that from 26 February 2026, witnesses giving evidence of family violence in Family Court proceedings have the right to elect to do so in alternative ways to the general method of preparing an affidavit and being cross-examined on it in open court. 

Previously, this could be granted by applying to the courts for leave. Now, however, witnesses giving evidence of family violence in Family Court proceedings have a right to do so in alternative ways to the usual procedure. They can elect to:

• be in the courtroom but unable to see the person to whom the evidence relates, for example giving evidence from behind a screen; or
• be in an appropriate place outside the courtroom, including outside New Zealand, for example by audio-visual link.

However, in either case, the evidence must be given in a way that the parties and the judge can see and hear the witness, unless the judge directs otherwise.

Any party intending to call a witness in a Family Court proceeding who will give family violence evidence must give written notice to every party and the court stating how the evidence will be given. The notice must be given as soon as practicable and no later than 28 days before the hearing, unless a Judge permits otherwise.

The court can make a direction that the witness give the evidence in the ordinary way, or an alternative way. Before making the direction, the court must give each party an opportunity to be heard.

Publication updates

The By Lawyers Family Law Parenting, Relationship Property Division, and Family Violence guides have all been updated in line with these amendments.

The Employment Relations Amendment Act 2026 commenced on 21 February 2026, introducing several significant changes to the Employment Relations Act 2000.

Unjustified dismissal threshold

Employees whose base salary exceeds $200,000 are no longer able to bring an unjustified dismissal claim unless their employment agreement permits it. The threshold amount is indexed annually pursuant to a statutory formula.

Gateway test for contractors

The definition of employee in s 6 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 has been amended to introduce a legislative test to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor. The test is based on factors such as the existence of a written agreement, the ability to subcontract the work, control over hours of work, and whether the worker is free to work for others.

Restrictions on personal grievance remedies

If an employee has engaged in serious misconduct such as fraud or harassment, and their behaviour contributed to the grievance, certain personal grievance remedies are now unavailable to them.

Removal of the 30-day rule

The rule that new employees must be employed on the terms of any collective agreement for their first 30 days, regardless of union membership, has been abolished. Employers must now inform new employees of any collective agreement and of their right to join the union and be bound by it. If the employee chooses to remain subject to an individual agreement, a 90-day trial period may apply from the first day of employment.

Publication updates

The By Lawyers Employment Law guide has been updated in line with these changes and to assist practitioners in applying the new provisions in practice.

By Lawyers are committed to ensuring legal practitioners have all the practical resources they need to work efficiently and manage risk.

Our AI prompts are drafted and tested by experienced lawyers to ensure they meet the demands of daily practice and deliver functionality that makes practice easier.

We have recently added new prompts to our Purchase of business and Leases publications. 

Purchase of business

Prompt for letter to client with summary of agreement for sale and purchase of business

This prompt reviews the agreement for sale and purchase of business and creates a competent first draft of a letter of advice to the client on the terms of the agreement.

Prompt comparing instructions with draft agreement for sale and purchase of business

This prompt is a risk management tool to ensure the agreement reflects the client’s instructions.

Leases

Prompts for letters to client with advice on a lease

This includes 2 different prompts that review either a commercial lease or rural lease to create a competent first draft of a letter of advice.

Prompt comparing instructions with draft lease

This is a risk management tool to help practitioners ensure that the lease drafted meets the client’s instructions.

By Lawyers prompts are developed for use with LEAP’s Matter AI and have not been tested or validated with any other software or AI platforms.

Explore our new prompts and an extensive library of other useful resources in By Lawyers Commercial Leases and Purchase of business publications.