Supreme Court declines to hear Pascoes’ direct appeal of Mt Messenger High Court decision without the benefit of any views of the Court of Appeal saying submissions can be raised in the Court of Appeal.
The Supreme Court issued a decision on Thursday dismissing Tony and Debbie Pascoes’ application for leave to appeal directly from a decision of the High Court in relation to Pascoes’ objection to compulsory acquisition of their land for NZTA works at Mt Messenger . The Pascoes were ordered to pay Minister for Land Information Chris Penk costs of $2,500.
The Supreme Court said, “we are not persuaded there are exceptional circumstances which justify this Court hearing the appeal without the benefit of any views of the Court of Appeal” and that Pascoes’ submissions “can be raised in the Court of Appeal.”
Minister Penk applied to the Supreme Court in August 2025 to urgently decide the leave application and shorten the timetable for Pascoes’ submissions. The Ngāti Tama Iwi Development Trust supported Pascoes’ access to the standard processes and timeframes of justice and opposition of Minister Penk’s application for urgency. Penk submitted access to the land was required by the end of September to avoid any impact to the 2025/2026 construction season and minimise financial and social costs to the taxpayer but the Supreme Court dismissed the minister’s application for urgency saying, “The correctness of that submission is unclear”, that “The evidence before us therefore does not establish a need for urgency” and that the Pascoes “may also still seek the leave of the Court of Appeal.”
In accordance with Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling, the Pascoe say they will now seek the leave of the Court of Appeal to appeal against the decision of the High Court issued in July. “Being deprived of somewhere tenable to live and the ability to make a living is barbaric and an abomination under the PWA.”
The Supreme Court has, in a separate proceeding set down for hearing on 14 October 2025, granted the Pascoes leave to appeal on the issue whether negotiations under the Public Works Act 1981 prior to any compulsory acquisition of land may be undertaken by an NZTA contractor rather than by an officer of LINZ with delegated authority from the Minister for Land Information.
The Supreme Court said that the outcome of that appeal may affect the lawfulness of any subsequent acquisition.
No justice to be had in this country. That’s becoming increasingly clear. Good luck to these poor people.
Blackrock???