Victim cross-examined by rape accused to see retrial through
A rape victim who was grilled for hours in court by her alleged attacker, prompting public outrage, may have to face him in court again after the man's convictions were set aside. But the woman, who was 16 when allegedly abducted...

Parties wait on judge's ruling
Whether groups seeking to have the Electoral Finance Act declared in breach of the Bill of Rights will have their day in court or not is now in the hands of a High Court judge. Aucklander John Boscawen - a fierce opponent of the...

Toy giant Mattel spits the dummy in doll war
Mattel, the world's biggest toymaker, may add as much as US$500 million ($661.3 million) a year to its revenue if it wins a copyright suit against MGA Entertainment over the Barbie doll's hip urban rival, Bratz. The maker of Matchbox...

Retrial for rape accused who cross-examined victim
A mentally disordered man convicted of rape after representing himself at trial has had his convictions set aside and a new trial ordered. The appeal by Jason John Cumming, of Christchurch, was granted by the Supreme Court in a...

Union wants ruling on objections to third parties
The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union wants to prevent the Electoral Commission from entertaining public objections to the registration of third parties under the Electoral Finance Act. The union yesterday asked the...

Fairfax editors ticked off over coverage of terrorism raids
Six Fairfax Media editors and a reporter have been rapped over the knuckles for their coverage of the Operation Eight terrorism investigation last year. Police arrested 17 people in raids around the country in October alleging...

Passenger sues after in-flight banishment to loo
A man is suing JetBlue Airways Corp for more than US$2 million ($2.6 million) because he says a pilot made him give up his seat to a flight attendant and sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California. Gokhan...

Dying Kahui boys had few family visits says witness
A social worker has told a High Court jury the Kahui twins received few visits from family even though they lay dying in their hospital beds. The Child, Youth and Family worker, who has name suppression, told the double-murder...

Decision reserved on Bain pre-trial arguments
Legal arguments about a series of applications relating to the retrial of David Bain on charges of murdering five members of his family have concluded in the High Court at Christchurch. Justice Graham Panckhurst reserved his decisions...

Gagging order in Kahui case
A gagging order has been issued against the Herald on Sunday , preventing it from publishing a story about the Kahui double-murder case. The newspaper was set to publish a story today about a witness who gave evidence for the...

'Busy' police miss interview
The detective who arrested Chris Kahui for his sons' murders has admitted police were too busy with a wave of violent crime to re-interview the twins' mother about a development in the homicide inquiry. Detective Sergeant Chris...

NZ 'unchanged' on Japanese whaling
The Government says its position on whaling remains unchanged, after reports that the Australian Government is looking at abandoning its bid to pursue legal action against Japan over whaling. The Australian newspaper yesterday...

Research partners to face off over deal gone wrong
Honey-based health products company Comvita and WaikatoLink are suing each other after a breakdown between the two firms. In December 2006 Comvita entered into an agreement with WaikatoLink - the commercial arm of the University...

Iwi celebrate return of 'The Mount'
Its name means "caught by the dawn" and, as the sun rose on Mauao today, the Bay of Plenty landmark known generally as Mount Maunganui was once more owned by local iwi. Parliament yesterday passed legislation which saw the Crown...

Gull beats big players to meet biofuel target
Oil industry minnow Gull has laid down the gauntlet to its large competitors by declaring itself just days away from meeting a proposed mandatory sales obligation for biofuels. Although the fate of the Biofuels Bill in Parliament...

Jay Rayner: Ramsay's buy local crusade a bit rich
For all his alpha male posturing, Gordon Ramsay has rarely managed to induce in me waves of nausea. The man's standard currency is deliciousness and his wallet is usually full. His declaration, however, that chefs who use ingredients...

Colin James: Cheeseboard next on climate change menu
One of the hazards of MMP is Swiss cheese policy - big holes where cheese should be. Is this what is happening to the greenhouse gas emissions trading legislation? The carbon tax ended up with more holes than cheese as the Government...

Customary land excluded from Samoa bill
APIA - A controversial land bill in Samoa has been amended to exclude customary land. Government officials said that the Land Titles Registration Bill, due for its third reading within weeks, had now been amended following advice...

Emissions trading bill running out of time
The Government is in danger of running out of time to push through major pieces of legislation before the election - including its cornerstone climate change policy, the emissions trading-scheme. With fewer than 37 sitting days...

Editorial: Marriage, it seems, has life in it yet
Today, like every other Saturday, is a day that several hundred New Zealanders will never forget. They fixed this date many months ago and have planned its activities down to the last corsage and place card. It is of course their...

Fran O'Sullivan : Clark's climate change agenda put into reverse
Helen Clark's finely honed political instincts are again to the fore as she courageously throws her pet climate-change agenda into reverse to avert mounting economic pressures. In any normal situation Clark would face allegations...

Fuel retailer Gull warns it could exit NZ
Independent fuel retailer Gull is warning that the Government's proposed emissions trading scheme could hurt its profits to the point where it reconsiders operating in New Zealand. Gull general manager Dave Bodger yesterday made...

Renewable energy 'cheaper than gas-fired plants'
Investment in renewable generation, especially geothermal and wind power, is already a better economic proposition than gas-fired plant, so a ban on the latter is not needed, Contact Energy says. Its public affairs manager Bruce...

Craigslist sues eBay, alleges corporate spy plan
SAN FRANCISCO - Online classifieds leader Craigslist.com filed a countersuit against business rival eBay, alleging eBay had used its minority stake in Craigslist to steal corporate trade secrets. In a lawsuit filed in California...

Fairfax editors ticked off over coverage of terrorism raids
Six Fairfax Media editors and a reporter have been rapped over the knuckles for their coverage of the Operation Eight terrorism investigation last year. Police arrested 17 people in raids around the country in October alleging...

Actress Uma Thurman sues Lancome for $15m
NEW YORK - Actress Uma Thurman is suing Lancome, seeking $US15 million from the French cosmetics company, accusing it of using her name and face in advertisements after her contract had expired. The actress claims the cosmetics...