Open main menu Close main menu
Search by keyword

Resources and publications

Ngā rauemi me ngā tānga

Search guides, case notes, opinions, reports and other information. Resources and publications can also be searched by date and other options. 

Use the search bar to make your search. Then use the filters to narrow down the results by resource type or topic. 

More information about the resource categories on this page
Search by keyword

41 Resources Show all

  • Request for agency peer review of Family Violence Death Review Committee draft annual report

    Case notes
    Release of free and frank comments made in the context of peer reviewing a draft annual report would inhibit the expression of similar comments in future—s 9(2)(g)(i) applied

  • Request for names of staff involved in sending email to parents about Pink Shirt Day

    Case notes
    Section 9(2)(a) OIA applied—correspondence with the requester and information supplied by the New Zealand Police suggested the requester would approach the staff outside of the official complaints process, and may have behaved in an abusive and threaten

  • Request for due diligence report, site visit reports and reference checks

    Case notes
    Section 9(2)(ba)(i) applies in part to the due diligence report and to the correspondence from supplier—public interest in accountability of Department for steps taken to satisfy itself regarding supplier’s performance—sections 9(2)(ba)(i) and 9(2)(g)(i) apply to information obtained from site visits, but not to the executive summary of the reports—public interest in accountability for decision to award contract—sections 9(2)(ba)(i) applies to reference checks—release would deter referees from providing full and complete information in future—public interest requires release of summary information about the reference checks

  • Cancellation of transport card and refusal to refund money stored on the card

    Case notes
    A complaint was made against Auckland Transport (AT) about its cancellation of an ‘AT HOP’ card used by commuters on Auckland’s public transport system.

  • Request for names of guests invited to Mayor’s Christmas function

    Case notes
    Section 7(2)(a) LGOIMA applied—low privacy interest in the names of the guests—as guests were representatives of local businesses or other organisations the information was more about their public lives than their private ones—the function was a public

  • Request for information about decision to grant diversion

    Case notes
    Section 9(2)(a) OIA applied—withholding necessary to protect highly private details of alleged offender’s personal life—public interest in accountability for the Police decision to grant diversion in contentious circumstances required disclosure of summ

  • Request for approved codes of ethical conduct for animal testing

    Case notes
    Section 9(2)(ba)(i) OIA did not apply—25 of 26 code holders had voluntarily released their codes—no obligation of confidence—release of ‘benign’ information would not be likely to prejudice the future supply of similar information—information released

  • Request for draft job sizing reports

    Case notes
    Reports formed an early stage of developing options for consideration and consultation— disclosure would likely inhibit the willingness of officials and consultants to tender a wide range of preliminary options, and to canvass issues in comprehensive written form, to the detriment of prudent and effective decision making

  • Local Authority’s efforts to mitigate effects of resource consent errors not unreasonable

    Case notes
    Local Authority decision about wall constructed on boundary—Council erred by not requiring resource consent and then offered assistance to owners to lodge application—complainant considered Council unfair not to offer assistance to him to oppose the consent

  • Local Authority’s Code of Compliance Certificate on drainage reasonable in circumstances

    Case notes
    Local Authority decision on detection of cross connection piping problem not unreasonable—Body Corporation of building forced to pay costs—question whether Code of Compliance Certificate should have been issued—Ombudsman concluded Council not aware of problem

  • Regional Authority decision on resource consent for pergola on non-notified basis not unreasonable

    Case notes
    Regional Authority’s decision to grant resource consent for a pergola on a non-notified basis was reasonable in the circumstance—permitted baseline test under section 95E of the Resource Management Act 1991

  • Local Authority’s Trespass Notice unreasonable in circumstances

    Case notes
    Local Authority issued Trespass Notice for two years at sports stadium—Ombudsman noted serious misconduct on part of complainant to warrant action but trespass sanction extreme—complaint sustained and Council implemented Ombudsman’s recommendations

  • Local Authority did not act unreasonably in remedying damage following tree removal

    Case notes
    Local Authority—removal of two pohutukawa trees—Council agreed to mitigate loss of these in conjunction with the land owner—Ombudsman considered Council did not act unreasonably

  • Request for list of persons banned from entering New Zealand

    Case notes
    Request for list of persons banned from entering New Zealand—privacy considerations—public interest in disclosure did not outweigh reason to withhold

  • Request for results of disciplinary investigation

    Case notes
    Request for results of disciplinary investigation undertaken by Fire Service Commission and related correspondence—significant privacy interests not outweighed by countervailing public interest, subject to release of an appropriate balanced statement

  • Request for information about potentially contaminated sites

    Case notes
    Request for information about potentially contaminated sites—Regional Council held information not known to District Council—privacy interests requiring protection—Land Information Memoranda—public health interests recognised—information withheld from requester but released to owner/occupier and District Council—complaint settled by agreement

  • Request for a report about the escape of a psychiatric patient from a secure forensic unit

    Case notes
    Request for report prepared by Capital and Coast District Health Board after escape by psychiatric patient from the secure forensic unit—information withheld—clinical information about patient protected—public interest identified in accountability of CCDHB for escape and steps taken to prevent future escapes—short statement released

  • Request for information about action taken by a university after a student was convicted of fraud

    Case notes
    Request by journalist for information about action taken by a university after a student was convicted of fraud in relation to applications for aegrotat passes—s 9(2)(a) applied—public interest satisfied by release of media statement explaining action taken

  • Request for report of misappropriation of funds and fraud by employee

    Case notes
    Request for internal investigation report into allegations of misappropriation of funds and fraud by senior employee of Fire Service Commission—information withheld to protect privacy—legitimate concern about the expenditure of public monies—summary released

  • Council offers ex gratia payment to complainant following its failure to provide correct information about dispute between neighbours

    Case notes
    Abatement notice issued in respect of non-complying structure—verbal agreement brokered by Council regarding acceptable modifications—modifications undertaken as agreed—other party to agreement disputed terms of agreement and withdrew—Council provided incorrect calculations regarding non-compliance—owner of non-complying structure incurred nugatory expenses—Council agreed to make ex-gratia payment to resolve matter

  • Council agreed to purchase land containing toxic residue given that purchasers were unaware of site state

    Case notes
    Prior to availability of a LIM, property owners’ development of their land revealed previous use was illegal toxic waste dump—Council knew this prior to purchase but had taken no action to either assess or remedy the problem as a matter of public safety—Ombudsman concluded the Council had a responsibility to assist the complainants—Council then purchased the land with the intention of declaring it an ‘orphan site’ prior to assessment and clean up if necessary.

  • Request for details of risk management processes

    Case notes
    Request for details of risk management processes—relevant documents provided apart from the ‘risk register’—register consisted of free and frank expressions of opinion—release might undermine risk management strategy—public interest met by release of Risk Management Policy

  • Request for a letter of resignation of senior manager

    Case notes
    Request for letter of resignation of senior manager—information withheld to protect privacy—public interest considerations

  • Request by non-custodial parent for child’s prize-giving result

    Case notes
    Request by non-custodial parent for child’s prize-giving result—child requested results be withheld because of use made by parent of other information—meaning of ‘endanger the safety’ of a person—discussion of ‘necessary’ test—no grounds to withhold

  • Request for a staff member’s salary from educational institution

    Case notes
    Request to University for information as to whether staff member was in receipt of a salary and if so the nature of her duties—information withheld to protect privacy—public interest considerations

  • Request for information about appointments to Fire Service Commission

    Case notes
    Request for information about appointments to the Fire Service Commission—two letters withheld—contents raised privacy and confidentiality issues—good reason to withhold

  • Request by son for access to mother’s child welfare file

    Case notes
    Request by adult son for access to natural mother’s child welfare file—son placed for adoption—natural mother now deceased—information withheld to protect privacy—relevance of requester’s relationship to subject of information considered in determining strength of privacy interest—information about mother made available in summary form

  • Request for deceased birth mother’s medical records

    Case notes
    Request by adult adopted woman for copy of late birth mother’s medical records—information withheld to protect privacy—requester in contact with birth mother prior to her death—birth mother left no will, did not name executor of her estate—no other surviving relatives—information relevant to requester’s own health—conditional release of information—Health Information Privacy Code

  • Request for documents relating to a party’s tender for land offered by Council

    Case notes
    Request for documents relating to tender submitted by another party (X) for land being offered for sale by Council—negotiations subject of legal proceedings—name suppression sought by X—Council refused to confirm or deny existence of information—information normally publicly available—information provided to requester subject to minor deletions to protect privacy

  • Request for information about adoption

    Case notes
    Request for information about requester’s adoption—requester unaware she had been adopted until recently—birth mother now deceased—information withheld to protect privacy—relevance of family relationship and age of information considered in determining strength of privacy interest—file made available to requester in its entirety

  • Local Authority has no right to demand legal and court fees from non-paying customer

    Case notes
    Local Authority issued legal proceedings to recover unpaid mooring charges along with an account for ‘legal and court costs’—as the case had not been heard by a Court, the complainant claimed this was wrong—Ombudsman upheld the complaint, noting that a Local Authority cannot claim costs and legal fees (this being a matter for the Court to determine) and the Local Authority cannot list these on a person’s account as owing—the Local Authority changed its procedures regarding recovery of court costs

  • Local Authority not unreasonable to grant non-notified resource consent despite neighbour’s objections

    Case notes
    Local Authority granted non-notifiable resource consent for building extension where complainant claimed the structure would block his lake views. Council correctly applied s 94(2)(b) when it determined that no persons would be affected by the building because the adverse effect of the proposal on the environment was minor—allowing the proposal to proceed on a non-notified basis was not unreasonable