Tim Smith

Tim advises and represents major clients across a wide range of commercial issues.

He is known for providing clear, pragmatic advice and is instructed on significant and complex private and public law issues, including competition law, economic regulation, contractual disputes, and tort claims. Tim has extensive experience across a wide range of sectors, and in particular telecommunications, energy and transport.

Tim appears as lead counsel in all senior courts, including the Supreme Court of New Zealand, but also works effectively as part of a team with senior counsel. Tim has extensive experience in commercial arbitrations and mediations in addition to his senior court practice.

He is recognised as a Band 1 lawyer by Chambers Asia Pacific and a Litigation Star in Benchmark Litigation Asia Pacific.

Recent highlights

• Acting as lead counsel for First Gas in its challenge to input methodologies decisions under Part 4 of the Commerce Act 1986. Tim also acts for Wellington International Airport and Christchurch Airport in relation to ongoing appeals from the Commerce Commission’s 2023 input methodology decisions.
• Acting as lead counsel for Transpower in successive judicial review proceedings in the High Court and Court of Appeal challenging the Electricity Authority’s development of the new Transmission Pricing Methodology under the Electricity Industry Act 2010 and Transpower decision making under the new Transmission Pricing Methodology.
• Representing James Hardie in major building product liability litigation, including two significant class actions as part of a broader specialist team, with particular responsibility for expert witnesses on building science.
• Acting as lead counsel in the Supreme Court for Z Energy in Smith v Fonterra & Ors, as well as in the lower courts, on the first climate change test case concerning tortious liability for emitters or suppliers of products that produce emissions. Tim also acted for Z Energy in litigation concerning New Zealand’s first ‘greenwashing’ claims under the Fair Trading Act 1986.
• Acting as lead counsel for Local Government New Zealand in its intervention in the Supreme Court in Auckland Council v C P Group Limited, the leading case concerning judicial review of local government financial decision-making.
• Representing iwi litigants intervening in the leading Supreme Court case of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Trust v Attorney-General, establishing that claims seeking declarations concerning the Crown’s cross-claims policy could proceed to hearing, as well acting as lead counsel as in the subsequent High Court litigation establishing tikanga as a constraint on Crown decision-making.
• Advising New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi on numerous public and private law disputes, including contractual claims arising from significant projects and judicial review proceedings relating to funding decisions. This includes representing NZTA in the High Court and Court of Appeal on challenges to the decision to approve the ~$18 bn National Land Transport Programme 2021-2024.