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Articles by Tom Goodwin
March 2026 Client of the Month: ITFixio Ltd
This month we spoke to Nik, founder and CEO of ITFixio Ltd. ITFixio Ltd | LinkedIn ITFixio is a proactive IT support and technology solutions provider dedicated to helping businesses stay secure, productive, and stress-free when it comes to their technology. We work with small to medium-sized organisations, delivering reliable managed IT support, cybersecurity solutions, cloud services, and strategic IT consultancy tailored to each client’s needs.
Can I Use Flat Rate Expenses If I Have Multiple Businesses?
Flat rate expenses are designed to simplify record keeping and save time working out expenses, but the rules can be confusing if you have multiple sole trader businesses. In this article, we’ll explain exactly what flat rate expenses are, as well as how to work out your claim if you run more than one business as a sole trader.
Received a statutory demand? Consider these three proven grounds to dispute the debt
Statutory demands can be issued by a creditor to a debtor company to demand payment of a debt due and owing. Failure to respond to the demand may result in the debtor company facing a winding-up application based on the company’s presumed insolvency. However, there are several avenues available to a debtor company to apply for a court order setting aside a demand.
Asmar v Albanese: extending the scope of legal professional privilege
To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com. In examining legal professional privilege (LPP), a tension has always existed between litigants' interest in the disclosure of all relevant documents in a dispute, and society's expectation that clients be allowed to talk openly with their lawyers without fear that their communications will be made public.
New office, new horizons
“New Zealand is a competitive market,” says Jackson. “Kiwis are an innovative bunch and are always looking for ways to make their businesses more competitive. In particular, we think there’s a lot of opportunities and value add for the farming and agricultural businesses as well as startups seeking a global perspective or insight.
Frontier Software CEO on the power of paying it forward
Southcombe has seen firsthand the importance of having effective payroll systems in place – particularly this year. 2020 has served as an object lesson on why payroll and supporting payroll teams is so important. “If we put aside its primary function to pay people, payroll is a key contributor to employee confidence. COVID-19 definitely led to a lot of employee and business uncertainty alike. Having an effective payroll system in place can have a considerable stabilising effect.
How do you recruit for a position before it exists?
At face value, that seems like a daunting prospect. But Banks is confident that the core guiding principles will remain relatively straightforward – a good worker now will likely be a good worker in the future, too. What will change, rather, is the way that hiring criteria are considered and assessed. “We’re seeing a bit of a shift away from the traditional ‘resumes and experience’ approach,” explains banks.
When you put people first, inspired work follows
It is critical as business, regulatory and workforce landscapes become increasingly complex, that organisations take the opportunity to invest in their people as one of the key pillars of business success. A people-first technology partner will recognise and ensure your workforce are put at the forefront of every project. “It took a lot of time and investment to not just subconsciously be more people-oriented, but bring that into the active consciousness of the company,” says DeWitt.
'An agile approach to the bottom line'
AL speaks with Shauna Gerrand of Gilchrist Connell By Tom Goodwin As Chief People & Development Officer at Gilchrist Connell, Shauna Gerrand is a firm believer that a successful, rewarding career in the legal profession doesn’t have to be incompatible with a well-rounded personal life. “I think we’re at a really good size in terms of being able to provide people with a balance of both,” says Gerrand. “We have challenging matters for our teams where they are working with sophisticated clients.
Leading and learning by example
The point seems particularly salient in the closing days of 2020; if it were this time in 2019, the interview may well have been taking place in person. But the COVID-19 pandemic has upended any sense of normalcy, rendering a great deal of communication impossible without the aid of technology. And if we flash back a few years earlier – even as recently as 2015, Powrie notes – the situation might have been entirely unmanageable with the frameworks that were in place at the time.
Putting people power first
AL speaks with Shauna Gerrand of Gilchrist Connell By Tom Goodwin As Chief People & Development Officer at Gilchrist Connell, Shauna Gerrand is a firm believer that a successful, rewarding career in the legal profession doesn’t have to be incompatible with a well-rounded personal life. “I think we’re at a really good size in terms of being able to provide people with a balance of both,” says Gerrand. “We have challenging matters for our teams where they are working with sophisticated clients.
Key skills for your future workforce
Analytical thinking and innovation Active learning and listening strategies Complex problem-solving Critical thinking and analysis Creativity, originality and initiative Leadership and social influence Technology use, monitoring and control Technology design and programming Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation Emotional intelligence Troubleshooting and user experience Service orientation Systems analysis and evaluation Persuasion and...
Forging future skills
Analytical thinking and innovation Active learning and listening strategies Complex problem-solving Critical thinking and analysis Creativity, originality and initiative Leadership and social influence Technology use, monitoring and control Technology design and programming Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation Emotional intelligence Troubleshooting and user experience Service orientation Systems analysis and evaluation Persuasion and...
Screening for success
“The first is new regulatory requirements; rescreening is mandatory in many high-level finance roles and education roles,” says Heeney. “Qualifications need to be maintained, and certain background checks – such as a Working with Children Check or working visas – must be renewed periodically.” The second are criminal checks and finance-related checks.
Katie Bhreatnach on in-house law and legal tech
“LawVu – that goes without saying,” notes Bhreatnach. “From a management perspective I can track work without being in the same location as someone.” Her industry was one of the hardest hit this year, but Bhreatnach remains chipper. “The aviation sector has been enormously impacted. But one of the things that we were really lucky on is that very quickly we understood the enormity of what we were facing into,” explains Bhreatnach.
Hiring in a post-crisis world
Curtis points to Criteria’s recently released 2020 Hiring Benchmark Report, The State of Hiring in a Year of Crisis. Hiring, perhaps paradoxically, was reported to have become easier. Curtis points to a variety of factors for this; the increased emphasis on remote meeting technology has made it substantially easier to interview a broader selection of candidates. Survey respondents noted that video interview usage went up 159% -- from 22% in 2019 to 58% this year.
Three key promotions for Auckland firm
The last 12 months have been challenging for New Zealand as a whole, and it’s been no exception for Brookfields Lawyers. The adjustment to large-scale work from home arrangements and the delays experienced by the court system have all contributed to strain among the wider legal system. It’s presented some frustrating scenarios – but Andrew Green, Chairman of the Brookfields Board, isn’t one to dwell on the negative.
Only the price of a coffee?
But what if a small business is already with the cheapest company? And that increase, along with all the other increases across their particular field, renders them unable to financially cope with that increase? That business obviously wouldn’t be able to afford the more expensive companies, so their choice is to either suck up the increase, passing that onto consumers, or exit the agreement and give up that particular service.
Getting HR back on track
All positive initiatives, with big considerations at stake. But then the pandemic hit – “This year’s been a crazy ride,” notes Paff – and suddenly a host of technological and policy shifts sidelined the goals of HR departments all over Australia. “Workplace mental health came pretty firmly into focus,” says Paff. “We also had businesses dealing with mass layoffs, stand downs and reduced hours in some sectors.
Staging better leadership presentations
“Everything had to pivot earlier this year,” says Dunlevie. “We had a great response to our online courses – there was such an immediate demand to upskill in the areas of communicating and presenting in a virtual world. People suddenly realised how different engaging with people in person is, to doing it well with an online audience. And who better to teach how to engage on screen than an actor?” With a return to in-person classes, the training principles remain the same.
The tools for better representation
Last time NZ Lawyer caught up with K3 Director Julie Ding, she touched on her experience working within the legal aid sector, and how she was looking to apply for PAL 4 “as soon as possible”. But it seems that “as soon as possible” has ended up being “far sooner than might have been expected in a pandemic” – less than a month later, Ding has achieved her goal. “It’s particularly exciting, especially when you consider how chaotic the rest of the year has been,” says Ding.
Avoiding staff - and reputational - injuries
This can be problematic in both the short and longer-term, if it’s not picked up before the person begins work, Macksy notes. There’s not only the potential for injury to the individual themselves, but to surrounding co-workers. While the specific duty of care legislation varies state by state, there’s the potential for common law negligence if such issues occur.
Signs of growth with new partners
Sargent will be transitioning across from his own practice, Sargent Lawyers, throughout October and will be on board full-time at the end of the month. Sargent’s work encompasses a range of specialist legal disciplines, including commercial, property, banking and construction law.
Handling employee theft
If an employee has been caught with their hand in the till, what are the next steps? Julie Ding of K3 Legal shares her insights By Tom Goodwin Employee theft can be an unfortunate reality of doing business, irrespective of the industry you’re in. But for many employers – even within the legal profession – there’s often uncertainty about the best way to handle the process when it’s uncovered.
Getting your due credit
Toni Brown and Harriet Krebs of K3 Legal share their insights into Section 47 of the Property (Relationships) Act and how it can benefit creditors By Tom Goodwin Tucked away quietly in the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 is Section 47 (s47). Under-utilised and under-celebrated, it relates to separation agreements that have been entered into by parties to a relationship (i.e. a husband and wife), in order to defeat creditors – or an agreement that has the effect of defeating a creditor.
Civil debt recovery options
As NZ moves beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be increased demand for debt recovery. Patrick Shanahan-Pinker of K3 Legal shares some of the options available for creditors By Tom Goodwin In the wake of the economic climate left behind after COVID-19, an increase in debt recoveries is inevitable, as both individuals and companies seek to secure their finances. But it’s not necessarily an easy process.
Shared parenting in high-conflict cases
Lawyers working such cases need to clearly demonstrate to their clients the potential harm caused by such an approach, notes Li. De-escalating conflict is crucial; parents need to understand it is in a child’s welfare and best interest that a child should continue to have a relationship with both of their parents and extended family, whether or not the parent wishes to believe that is so. Most – if not all – children want to share their time with both of their parents.
COVID-19’s infection of the legal system
“If proceedings are to be heard, registrars need to practice social distancing and only the larger courtroom can be used,” says Ding. “Only participants required for priority proceedings are to be present in the courtroom, while people are to appear or participate via audio-visual link or telephone where possible.” While this is understandable under the circumstances, Ding notes that this potentially means that thousands of cases will be delayed.
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