The Changing Place of Remedies

Abstract

This is a paper presented by Sir Robin Cooke on the changing place of remedies in the common law. He argues that courts today have a “rich heritage of remedies” available, arising from the “changing and more direct emphasis on working out substantive rights”. He illustrates this by discussing issues that had come before the New Zealand Court of Appeal and other common law courts, including the Rugby Union case (Finnigan v New Zealand Rugby Football Union Inc [1985] 2 NZLR 159 (CA)), intellectual property piracy, freedom of information (Commissioner of Police v Ombudsman [1998] 1 NZLR 385 (CA)), damages, fiduciary duty, and contributory negligence (Day v Mead [1987] 2 NZLR 433 (CA)), constructive trusts and unjust enrichment (Gillies v Keogh (leported as [1989] 2 NZLR 327 (CA)), and issues arising from providing declarations (Re Chase [1989] 1 NZLR 325 (CA)). He concludes by commenting that “[r]emedies no longer rule” in terms of the development of the common law yet continuance to be of assistance with its gradual development. Abstract by Tim Cochrane.