The strangest airline route in America is between Pago Pago and the Manu’a Islands in American Samoa. No U.S. carrier serves this “domestic” route. Therefore, it is the only route between two points in the United States (or, more accurately, its territories) that is regularly scheduled...

COVID-19 nearly wiped out demand for commercial air travel in 2020, driving down passenger traffic by a jaw-dropping 94.3% from the previous year. The airline industry thus understandably lobbied for a government bailout to manage what was nothing short of an existential crisis, with losses...

Deaths, hauntings, and other scandalous business can impact the value of a home. What must sellers of such “stigmatized” properties disclose to buyers? With the Supreme Court of Canada recently declining to answer the question, this piece aims to help sellers and professionals decide what to...

The concept of racial capitalism has been embraced by scholars and activists as a means of exploring the common roots of contemporary social and ecological crises. These include unprecedented environmental degradation, extreme economic inequality, the resurgence of authoritarian...

This paper was commissioned as part of the New Zealand Law Commission review on various aspects of the law of succession, in particular the Family Protection Act 1955. The author begins by reviewing criticisms of the Act in case-law, before considering a number of options for the transmission of...

For most people, the preparation for eventual death involves deciding what to do with their property. Should they make a will? If so, how, and on what terms? Do they have any obligations to provide for family members or friends? What if their mental capacity is diminishing? What happens if they...

This paper is the transcript of the author’s Inaugural Professorial Lecture, delivered at the University of Otago on 23 October 2008. The author discusses and dispels myths and misconceptions about trusts and identifies some of the pitfalls that become apparent when people’s personal or...

This paper addresses how the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (PRA) may affect elderly people, particularly where the parties have assets from a prior relationship. The author considers what happens to their property if their relationship ends on separation or death. The author also makes brief...

In this article, the author reviews the first New Zealand Court of Appeal decision on the Property (Relationships) Act 1976: Nation v Nation. The article concludes that this decision should be welcomed particularly by property lawyers, because it provides some much-needed certainty in regard to...

This article discusses the death provisions in the New Zealand Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (PRA) and their application in the New Zealand Court of Appeal decision in Public Trust v Whyman. The author argues that the decision reveals the general uncertainty as to the overall purpose and...