A senior Chapman Tripp litigator sees fewer disputes being resolved on a lawyer-to-lawyer basis and heading directly to an overcrowded court system.
Chapman Tripp partner Justin Graham, who oversees a team of about 80 litigation says that courts are currently so backlogged that it’s taking more than two years to bring cases to trial, which is the longest delay in recent memory.
While Graham acknowledges that the level of litigation in New Zealand does not reach the extremes seen in the United States, he observes that disagreements that might have been resolved through lawyer-to-lawyer negotiations in the past are now proceeding directly to the justice system.
Although precise statistics are difficult to obtain, Graham sees an uptick in litigation, often prompted by or directed towards banks as a result of their involvement ranging from class actions over fees to debt collection efforts, spanning approximately 40 to 90 cases annually.
He believes that one of the reasons behind the rise in litigation is the challenging economic climate.
“People are probably a bit more desperate and turn to litigation as a last resort, and probably a bit more readily than perhaps we’re used to in New Zealand,” he told RNZ.
The combination of both economic hardship and impatience in the aftermath of COVID-19 have led people to view litigation as a more viable option than before, with less apprehension about pursuing legal action compared to the past.
The emergence of litigation funders in New Zealand may have also contributed to the increasingly litigious trend in the same manner as has occurred with litigation financing in the United States and elsewhere.
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Australia and New Zealand’s Peak Body for Recruitment, Consulting and Staffing (RCSA) says data released by the World Employment Confederation (WEC) revealing a global move towards flexible working models, proves we are in line with the rest of the globe.
In a survey of 715 senior executives from across the world, 92% of respondents said they’ll need a more flexible workforce in the next two years to fill labour market gaps, keep up with developments and shield permanent employees from volatile workload shifts. 80% of Australian and 100% of New Zealand executives surveyed agreed.
The data was gathered by the WEC to support its ground-breaking The Work We Want campaign which was launched in Australia today by RCSA. The study was commissioned to shed light on the scale of the challenges relating to how people work and how organisations manage talent.
The release of the data aligns with what recruitment and staffing professionals are seeing on the ground in Australia and New Zealand. Post Covid, and with the emergence of AI and technologies supporting hybrid and remote working models, the desire for flexibility in the workplace has increased. RCSA CEO, Charles Cameron says the campaign data proves that Australia and New Zealand are not an anomaly when it comes to workforce trends.
“We are not outliers. The data in the WEC reports highlights we are facing the same challenges experienced on a global scale and that the way people want to work and the way employers want to hire has fundamentally shifted worldwide. It’s time for governments to recognise this shift by using policy to support these changing employment dynamics in today’s world of work,” says Charles.
Most organisations surveyed reported they are struggling with big skills gaps in key areas, particularly in digital expertise.
81% of senior executives say AI and tech disruptions require them to radically rethink skills and resources across large areas of the workforce.
88% of respondents also admit they plan to increase their use of agency workers in response to the market dynamics.
“12 of the 16 Australian, and 9 from 10 New Zealand companies surveyed say they are looking to increase their engagement with agency workers. The data highlights how vital agency workers have become in today’s employment and economic landscape, says Cameron.
“In Australia, New Zealand and across the globe, businesses are looking towards that flexible workforce to plug holes and employees are enjoying the freedom of casual work. 75% of Australian and 70% of New Zealand senior executives surveyed by the WEC say employees now value flexibility around where or when they work as much as factors like compensation.”
The second wave of data released looks at “The Missing Workforce” and how businesses are filling talent gaps. Respondents say that a major part of the strategy to redress the imbalance between labour market supply and demand is by supporting talent from underemployed sectors of the workforce, such as people who are long-term unemployed, the disabled, people with criminal records, and people from ethnic minorities.
“Our members across Australia and New Zealand are very active in that department, says Cameron.
“It once again shows that we are on the same page as the rest of the world. We are on the precipice of a global change in how the world views work, it’s great to see that our trajectory is the same.”
Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 of the WEC “The Work We Want” campaign is available to view now, with the third and final wave of research to be released soon.
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