The health, safety and wellbeing of our team, communities and clients is of the highest concern to Holland Beckett Law. Consequently, we take very seriously the guidelines and policies put into place by the Ministry of Health and Government, whilst at the same time trying to be flexible and responsive to the needs of all our clients and staff.
As most will be aware, the shift in alert levels means many businesses across the country can now open for staff and clients with appropriate measures in place. As a result, we would like to update you on Holland Beckett Law’s approach under COVID-19 Alert Level 2.
Keeping Clients and Staff Safe
- Our preference remains for client appointments to be via phone/held virtually, but we understand there will be circumstances where a face-to-face meeting is required. Therefore, on Thursday, 9 September we will re-open our offices to clients for pre-arranged appointments. If you are feeling unwell, showing cold or flu-like symptoms or have recently been to a location of interest, please refrain from coming into our offices and instead email or phone us.
- In advance of your appointment our team will email you with a link to this article so you can be assured prior to your appointment that our workplace is safe.
- All Holland Beckett Law hosted events will remain postponed until further notice.
- The majority of Holland Beckett Law employees will continue working remotely from home, but we will be allowing a small proportion of staff to work from Holland Beckett Law offices under strict physical distancing precautions.
Important to note prior to visiting our branches/offices for your pre-arranged appointment
- During COVID-19 alert level-two, our offices across the Bay of Plenty will be open for pre-arranged appointments only.
- If you are feeling unwell, showing flu-like symptoms or have recently been to a location of interest we ask that you do not visit our offices and instead encourage you to contact us by email or phone.
- You are required to wear a face covering when accessing our offices.
- When you arrive for your appointment you will be required to ‘check in’ for contact tracing purposes at reception.
- Please keep the recommended 2-meter distance from each other and staff when in our building and use the hand sanitiser that we’ll provide as you enter our reception area.
- Our reception area will be marked, and we ask that when approaching reception, you please stay behind the marking.
- Once you have been ‘checked in’ at reception, you will be taken to a meeting room where social distancing can be adhered to.
- Our staff will endeavour to open and close all doors to prevent you from contacting any common surfaces unnecessarily.
- All meeting rooms will be thoroughly cleaned between meetings.
- Under COVID-19 alert level 2 we will not be offering coffee or tea in meetings to ensure we stay in line with the guidelines provided by MOH. You are welcome to bring your own.
This is a challenging situation for everyone; however, we are confident that the measures that we have put in place best protect our clients and staff whilst still allowing us to work collaboratively and meet objectives. We will continue to monitor the impacts of COVID-19 and adapt our responses accordingly.
Should you have any questions or concerns about Holland Beckett Law’s response to the COVID -19 situation and our ability to meet your business needs, please contact the person you would ordinarily deal with at Holland Beckett Law.
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Our offices are closed for the holidays until Monday 6th January
Holland Beckett wishes you a Meri Kirihimete, Happy New Year and sunny Summer break.
Our offices will be closed for the holiday season from 5:00pm on Friday, 20 December 2024 and will re-open with skeleton staff at 8:30am on Monday, 6th of January 2025.
From 6th of January all matters which require assistance can be covered by our skeleton team. The full team will be back on Monday, 13th of January.
We look forward to seeing you in the new year.
Community – walking the walk
Every year, each Hobec team dedicates a day to community service. This is an opportunity for our people to spend time out of the office as a team, support initiatives they are passionate about and give back to the communities they care about. Hobec community days take many different forms and cover the whole Bay of Plenty.
As the year draws to a close, it’s the perfect time to share some of the activities our people dedicated time to this year...
In May, Georgina Smith and her property team spent the afternoon at Tauranga Musical Theatre completing a wardrobe makeover, sorting and organizing (and trying on) costumes. TMT is run entirely by volunteers, and it simply wouldn\'t be possible for them to put on the incredible shows they do without the time and energy of their dedicated supporters. Georgina also helps out backstage on their productions, while you’ll find Jeremy Sparrow on stage in the limelight.
John Mackay\'s property and commercial team spent an afternoon at Mount Maunganui Main Beach, cleaning up litter from the dunes. Some interesting things were found, including a road cone and a barbie doll leg.
The corporate and finance team spent an afternoon in July with the Graeme Dingle Foundation’s Te Puke Highschool Project K, cooking up a storm of freezer meals for those in the community who might need them. Ruby Bell is also a mentor for Project K students, and this was another fun and rewarding way to work with them.
Tauranga\'s litigation team hit the beach in September and spent the afternoon planting with Coast Care Bay of Plenty, a coastal restoration programme that aims to restore and protect the sand dunes along our Bay of Plenty beaches. Fierce debates regarding optimal hole depth and fertilizer ratios could be heard, as well as Partners trying to find the best reception amongst the dunes to check their emails.
The wonderful women in our family team spent an October morning at Papamoa College for Kura Kai. Kura Kai is an organisation which lives by the value of manaakitanga (generosity and care for others) with a simple kaupapa of “Whānau cooking for Whānau”. They do this by raising funds to purchase chest freezers, which are donated to the High Schools they support. Local community volunteers then give their time, money and resources to cook nutritious meals to keep the freezers well stocked. Our team prepared 15 family-sized meals, which the school then distributes to rangatahi and whānau who need them.
Our Admin, Accounts and AML teams headed over to Rotorua in early October and spent the day clearing and preparing trails ahead of the Whaka 100. As well as getting stuck in with spades and hedge trimmers, Holland Beckett also sponsors the Whaka 100’s huge volunteer contingent, recognising and rewarding those who donate their time and vibes to the event. Many of our team use trails throughout Rotorua’s forests on a regular basis, walking and mountain biking, so seeing what goes in to keeping these maintained and safe to use year-round by so many passionate people was inspiring - not to mention, it’s a beautiful place to spend the day!
In October our HR team, along with some of our Admin and AML team, went across the road to the Tauranga Pregnancy Choice Centre to volunteer for the day. Pregnancy Choice provides information and support to women facing an unexpected pregnancy, including free pregnancy testing, counselling, information about abortion and adoption and support groups. Our people cleared winter clothing and replaced the racks with summer stock, with the winter clothing put out in boxes for people to take for free. They cleaned and disinfected toys, vacuumed and wiped down shelves, and organised the newborn baby donations. They also created baby boxes for expecting mums, and sorted, tagged and priced clothing donations for the Graced Opp Shop and Koha shop. All the earnings raised through the opp shop go towards assisting Pregnancy Choice and the Koha shop, and it is run completely by volunteers (aside from management).
As spring growth took hold, our employment team put their green thumbs to use at Awhina House, clearing and tidying the garden to be enjoyed by the women who live there. Awhina House provides transitional housing support and wraparound services for women in need, working with a range of other local providers. The space is operated by He Kaupapa Kotahitanga Charitable Trust (HKKT). The mission statement of HKKT is to \"nurture, advocate for, and protect displaced women in Tauranga Moana\" with a vision that \"no woman in Tauranga Moana wake up in the morning without a hopeful future\" - Tania Lewis-Rickard, Board Chair, HKKT.
Our Whakatāne team spent a Friday in early November painting the new Whakatāne Kiwi Trust space on The Strand, which will be a fun and interactive space for locals and visitors to learn about the Kiwi Trust and the work they do to protect the precious kiwi who live right on the doorstep of Whakatāne. Our team is passionate about this initiative, Jayden McNeil is a trustee, and the firm also sponsors the Trust to help them continue their dedicated work.
To close out the year, our Rotorua office (along with some Tauranga additions) spent a day with Tipu Wai Trust on Tarawera Road. We purchased native seedlings and planted these, and then spent time clearing weeds around previously planted natives. Tipu Wai Trust are a hands-on not-for-profit, who work to restore, regenerate and rebuild the Waiāriki waterways and native fish species.
Community days are a rewarding and insightful part of Hobec’s community commitment, allowing our people to give back and be present in the communities they care about. These wonderful organisations are always on the lookout for help if you have any spare time on your hands. For more information or to get involved in any of the initiatives, see below:
Tauranga Musical Theatre
Graeme Dingle Foundation
Coast Care Bay of Plenty
Kura Kai
Whaka 100
Tauranga Pregnancy Choice Centre
Awhina House
Whakatāne Kiwi Trust
Tipu Wai Trust
Framework for Collaborative Pro Bono in Aotearoa
We are proud to be one of the six founding signatories of the Framework for Collaborative Pro Bono in Aotearoa.
The country\'s first pro bono network, the Collaborative Framework is a strategic group which aims to enhance access to justice for all New Zealanders, especially our most vulnerable communities. Along with the 25 hour target set for each lawyer, to motivate more pro bono work, the framework provides a network to align with, sharing knowledge to improve efficiencies and the impact of pro bono work nationally.
Tim Conder contributed to the development of this initiative, led by Te Ara Ture, along with five other firms - Gilbert Walker, Simpson Grierson, DLA Piper, Russel McVeagh and Luke Cunningham Clere.
\"As a litigator, I have seen first hand the challenges that many clients face in accessing justice. This is one of the reasons why I\'ve been so eager to see more lawyers providing Pro Bono (and Legal Aid) services. Te Are Ture has been doing important work in this area, providing Community Law Centres with a network of lawyers who can acheive positive outcomes for clients who would not otherwise have the assistance of a lawyer. But that depends on as many lawyers as possible putting their hand to the wheel.\"
Tim sees cross-firm collaboration as key to creating more successful and impactful use of pro bono time. A structured pathway and a platform for collaboration, the group will share ideas and best practice, report on targets, and work together to solve challenges - ensuring pro bono work is more effectively tailored to serve those who need it and facilitating more high-quality services nationally.
One of Holland Beckett\'s core values is community and pro bono work plays a key role in our committment to supporting the communities we are part of. This framework is a significant step towards improving access to justice for the more vulnerable and will support New Zealand lawyers to give back to communities in need. As one of the \'founding firms\', we look forward to many more joining the network to support each other and make a difference together.
For more information on joing the collective, you can visit the Te Ara Ture website here: Pro Bono Framework - Te Ara Ture