3.3 NEUTRAL CITATION

Element	Case name	Year	Court identifier	Judgment number	Pinpoint reference
Example	Attorney-General v X	[2007]	NZCA	388	at [70]
Rule	3.3.1	3.3.2	3.3.3	3.3.4	3.3.1

When citing a case, the neutral citation should always be given (if available). Only use official neutral citations provided on the original copy of the judgment.

Some websites, such as the New Zealand Legal Information Institute, available at <www.nzlii.org>, have catalogued judgments using a numbering system that looks like a neutral citation. Do not use these numbers as they are not universally associated with the judgment and are liable to cause confusion. For guidance on when the various New Zealand courts and tribunals adopted neutral citations, see rules 3.3.3(b) and 3.3.3(c).

3.3.1 Case name and pinpoint reference

Cite the case name and pinpoint reference in accordance with the relevant rules for reported judgments: see rules 3.2.1 and 3.2.8.

3.3.2 Year

Give the year as it appears in the official neutral citation on the judgment in square brackets. This will be the year in which the case was decided.

3.3.3 Court identifier

(a) General rule

Use the official court identifier adopted by the court. The identifier will generally indicate both the jurisdiction and the court. Given this information is provided as part of the core citation, it is not necessary to include a court identifier after the starting page.

(b) New Zealand courts

The table below lists the New Zealand courts that have adopted neutral citations and indicates the official court identifier.

Court	Court identifier	Year of adoption	Example
Supreme Court	NZSC	2005	Pue v R [2005] NZSC 55
Privy Council	UKPC	2001	Commissioner of Inland Revenue v Auckland Harbour Board [2001] UKPC 1
Court of Appeal	NZCA	2007	R v Fowler [2007] NZCA 1
High Court	NZHC	2012	Smith v Jones [2012] NZHC 20
District Court	NZDC	2015	R v Du-Plessis [2017] NZDC 3994
Accident compensation appeals in the District Court	NZACC	2010	Brown v Accident Compensation Corporation [2011] NZACC 57
Employment Court	NZEmpC	2010	Matsuoka v LSG Sky Chefs New Zealand Ltd [2011] NZEmpC 44
Environment Court	NZEnvC	2010	Reid v Tararua District Council [2010] NZEnvC 21
Family Court	NZFC	2012	DKN v RDA [2012] NZFC 278
Youth Court	NZYC	2013	R v BT [2016] NZYC 227

(c) New Zealand tribunals

The table below lists the New Zealand tribunals that have adopted neutral citations and indicates the official tribunal identifier.

Tribunal	Tribunal identifier	Year of adoption	Example
Accident Compensation Appeal Authority	NZACA	2010	Bosman v Accident Compensation Corporation [2011] NZACA 1
Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority	NZARLA	2013	Clement v LAL’s Enterprises Ltd [2017] NZARLA 297
Commerce Commission	NZCC	2012	Re PMP Print Ltd and APN Print NZ Ltd [2012] NZCC 5
Copyright Tribunal	NZCOP	2010	Phonographic Performances (NZ) Ltd v RadioWorks Ltd [2010] NZCOP 1
Customs Appeal Authority	NZCAA	2010	X v Chief Executive of the New Zealand Customs Service [2011] NZCAA 1
Deportation Review Tribunal	NZDRT	2010	Rogers v Minister of Immigration [2010] NZDRT 26
Human Rights Review Tribunal	NZHRRT	August 2007	Bullock v Department of Corrections [2008] NZHRRT 4
Immigration Advisors Complaints and Disciplinary Tribunal	NZIACDT	2010	JM v DTM [2011] NZIACDT 1
Immigration and Protection Tribunal	NZIPT	2010	AB (Afghanistan) [2011] NZIPT 800017
Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (Design Decisions)	NZIPODES	2012	Best Berries (NZ) Ltd v Greig [2014] NZIPODES 1
Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (Patent Decisions)	NZIPOPAT	2012	Cream Ltd v Crème Ltd [2012] NZIPOPAT 7
Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (Trade Mark Decisions)	NZIPOTM	2012	Yates v Ecotricity Group Ltd [2018] NZIPOTM 3
International Education Appeal Authority	NZIEAA	2010	Smith v University of New Zealand [2011] NZIEAA 12
Land Valuation Tribunal	NZLVT	2010	Napier Lane Ltd v Minister of Lands [2010] NZLVT 3
Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal	NZLCDT	2009	Auckland Standards Committee v Comeskey [2010] NZLCDT 19
Legal Aid Tribunal	NZLAT	2011	A v B [2011] NZLAT 15
Licensing Authority of Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers	NZSHD	2010	Re Southcombe [2011] NZSHD 8
Liquor Licensing Authority	NZLLA	2010–2012	Crepin v Beck [2011] NZLLA 43
Motor Vehicle Disputes Tribunal	NZMVDT	2010	Spindler v Brian Corric Motors Ltd [2011] NZMVDT 36
Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority	NZPSPLA	2011	A v B [2011] NZPSPLA 15
Real Estate Agents Disciplinary Tribunal	NZREADT	2010	Complaints Assessment Committee v Downtown Apartments Ltd (in liq) [2010] NZREADT 6
Social Security Appeal Authority	NZSSAA	2010	An appeal against a decision of the Benefits Review Committee [2011] NZSSAA 10
Student Allowance Appeal Authority	NZSAAA	2010	An appeal against a decision of the Chief Executive, Ministry of Social Development [2010] NZSAAA 8
Taxation Review Authority	NZTRA	2010	BB v Commissioner of Inland Revenue [2011] NZTRA 1

In addition, the tribunals listed in the table below have also adopted neutral citations. In the case of these tribunals, the district in which the decision was made is included following the tribunal identifier and before the decision number.

Tribunal	Tribunal identifier	Year of adoption	Example
Employment Relations Authority	NZERA	2011	Griffin v Citibus Ltd [2011] NZERA Christchurch 137 Ozieranska v Cintra Quad Group Ltd [2011] NZERA Auckland 407
Tenancy Tribunal	NZTT	2010	Smith v Jones [2010] NZTT Wellington 904
Weathertight Homes Tribunal	NZWHT	2010	Eggers v Wellington City Council [2011] NZWHT Wellington 26 Chee v Stareast Investment Ltd [2010] NZWHT Auckland 33

Note that Waitangi Tribunal reports should be cited in accordance with rule 3.6.

(d) Decisions without an official neutral citation

If a court or tribunal that normally uses neutral citations fails to include an official neutral citation on a particular judgment or decision, cite that judgment or decision in accordance with the rule applicable for judgments or decisions without a neutral citation (rule 3.4).

3.3.4 Judgment number

The judgment number follows the court identifier. Each judgment issued by the court is given a unique number.

So, for example, the 96th judgment issued by the Court of Appeal in 2008 would be cited as Craggy Range Vineyards Ltd v Campbell [2008] NZCA 96.