RETENTIONS IN NEW ZEALAND
REVISING THE RETENTIONS REGIME By Nick Gillies (Partner) and Emily Woods (Solicitor), Hesketh Henry
Ebert Construction Ltd’s collapse in 2018 was the first test of the new retentions trust regime (Regime). The Regime, introduced as an amendment to the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (CCA) in 2017, was intended to protect retentions, primarily in an insolvency. Unfortunately, it has largely failed to live up to that aim following the decision in Bennet v Ebert Construction Limited (In Rec & Liq) [2018] NZHC 2934 (Ebert). This article considers the problems exposed by Ebert and the future of the Regime in light of this.
24 - MARCH 2020 - BUILT ENVIRONMENT ECONOMIST
