About
Stephen
has had extensive Court experience, both in the fields of
Criminal and Civil law. Previously, Stephen was employed
as a litigation solicitor at a busy general practice. This
allowed the opportunity to discover a wide range of areas
of law, and discover what areas he is best suited to.
Since starting out as a sole practitioner, Stephen has
established Heretaunga Law,
a barrister's chambers with the other founding members Michael Bott
and Steve
Taylor. Within the chambers there
is a wide range of knowledge and experience, and if one of
the lawyers can not assist, it is likely another can.
A huge asset to Stephen's practice is his associate
barrister, Dr Roderick Mulgan. Roderick manages his own
clients and assists on matters that require more than one
lawyer.
In
the Civil Jurisdiction, we represent clients in
commercial and contractual disputes, manage debt
collection, act for debtors and creditors involved in
insolvency proceedings in the High Court, and take
Judicial Review proceedings against the state. Trust
and Will disputes are also within our area of
practice.
In the Criminal Courts, we have regularly
appeared in all of the lower Courts in the region, for
people accused from matters ranging from the serious (such
as supply of A-Class Drugs or Sexual Assault) to the minor
charges (such as careless driving, trespass or disorderly
behavior.) We also have experience taking appeals, and
will consider looking at your case if you are unhappy with
an outcome you have already received in the District or
High Court.
How
you will be charged
Stephen
is not accepting legal aid work under the current regime,
but remains approved to provide those services. As
barristers, an instructing solicitor is required. This can
be arranged with no additional cost. Once instructions
have been confirmed, you will receive a letter of
engagement setting out how you will be charged. This is
primarily with reference to our competitive hourly rates,
which you will be advised about before committing to any
cost. Where possible, we will try to keep your costs down.
However, as with many services, quality is worth paying
for. In most cases, we can give you an indication of how
much your case is likely to cost, depending on what path
it takes. Again, you will not be billed simply for asking
about your situation. In
some instances, a flat-fee arrangement is available.