and still this saga goes on
Court bid to avoid eviction Three Lower Hutt state housing tenants appeared in the Court of Appeal today to make a special application to appeal a decision by Housing New Zealand (HNZ) to evict them from their homes.
Eviction notices were served in March last year on the three women with gang connections living in state houses in Farmer Cres, Pomare.
They were refused permission to take their case to the Court of Appeal in November, but were told they could make a special application to be heard in that court.
The trio - Robyn Winther, Huia Tamaka and Billy Taylor - have so far sought and failed to overturn the eviction through the Tenancy Tribunal, Lower Hutt District Court, and High Court.
A lawyer for the tenants, Elizabeth Hall, told Justices Mark O'Regan Terence Arnold and David Baragwanath it was an "issue of public importance" because it affected the way HNZ dealt with 90-day termination notices for all their tenants.
She said HNZ was a public entity that had social obligations over those of private landlords.
But Steve Haszard, who was representing HNZ, argued the law was silent on the differences between public and private responsibilities.
He pointed out the lower courts had already ruled against the tenants three times already based on the same arguments used today.
The eviction notices had been served after a neighbour left her state house, saying she and her two young children had been terrorised by gang members associated with the women.
Last February police arrested nine Mongrel Mob members and associates in the area, charging them with intimidation, burglary and other offences.
The justices reserved their decision.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/local/3334979/Court-bid-to-avoid-eviction