Services Terms
Terms of Engagement
Before we can work with you we need you to read our Terms and Conditions and fill-out a Client Information Form.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Set out below is the information required by the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Conveyancers of the New Zealand Society of Conveyancers ("NZSoC").
1. Fees
The basis on which fees will be charged is set out in our letter of engagement. When payment of fees is to be made is set out in our Standard Terms of Engagement. We may deduct from any funds held on your behalf in our trust account any fees, expenses or disbursements for which we have provided an invoice.
2. Professional Indemnity Insurance
We hold professional indemnity insurance that meets or exceeds the minimum standards specified by the New Zealand Society of Conveyancers. We will provide you with particulars of the minimum standards upon request.
3. Conveyancer’s Fidelity Fund
The NZ Society of Conveyancers maintains the Conveyancers Fidelity Fund for the purpose of providing clients of Conveyancers with protection against pecuniary loss arising from theft by Conveyancers. The maximum amount payable by the Fidelity Fund by way of compensation to an individual is $1,000 or an amount equal to 60% of the money in the fund whichever is the greater at the time the claim is admitted by the Board. Christchurch Property Law Ltd has Professional Indemnity Insurance with fidelity cover for up to $100,000 for any one claim, which will be payable in the event that the Conveyancers Fidelity Fund is insufficient to provide compensation up to the maximum amount of $100,000 per claim.
4. Complaints
We maintain a procedure for handling any complaints by clients, designed to ensure that a complaint is dealt with promptly and fairly. If you have a complaint about our services or charges, you may refer your complaint to the person in our firm who has overall responsibility for your work. If you do not wish to refer your complaint to that person, or you are not satisfied with that person’s response to your complaint, you may refer your complaint to NZ Society of Conveyancers, refer www.nzsconveyancing.co.nz for contact details.
5. Conveyancers Complaints Service
Conveyancers Complaints Service is administered by the NZ Society of Conveyancers and you are able to make a complaint to that service. To do so, email info@nzsconveyancing.co.nz and you will be referred to the nearest Complaints Service Office, which can provide information and advice about making a complaint.
6. Persons Responsible for the Work
The names and status of the person or persons who will have the general carriage of or overall responsibility for the services we provide for you are set out in our letter of engagement.
7. Client Care and Service
The Conveyancers Society client care and service information is set out below. Whatever legal services your Conveyancer is providing, he or she must:
- Act competently, in a timely way, and in accordance with instructions received and arrangements made.
- Protect and promote your interests and act for you free from compromising influences or loyalties.
- Discuss with you your objectives and how they should best be achieved. Provide you with information about the work to be done, who will do it and the way the services will be provided.
- Charge you a fee that is fair and reasonable and let you know how and when you will be billed.
- Give you clear information and advice, protect your privacy and ensure appropriate confidentiality.
- Treat you fairly, respectfully and without discrimination.
- Keep you informed about the work being done and advise you when it is completed.
- Let you know how to make a complaint and deal with any complaint promptly and fairly.
The obligations Conveyancers owe to clients are described in the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Conveyancers. If you have any questions, please visit www.nzsconveyancing.co.nz.
8. Limitations on extent of our Obligations or Liability
Any limitations on the extent of our obligations to you or any limitation or exclusion of liability are set out in our letter of engagement.
Standard Terms of Engagement
These Standard Terms of Engagement (“Terms”) apply in respect of all work carried out by us for you, except to the extent that we otherwise agree with you in writing.
1.1 We advise on the legal effect but not the financial wisdom of transactions
1.2 FINANCIAL ADVICE: Christchurch Property Law will never give you financial advice under the Financial Advisers Act 2008 and the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008, and in particular we will not advise you on:
- the ability of you or any other borrower to meet its financial and other obligations to the lender or on the viability of the transaction/business which the borrower is undertaking;
- your ability to satisfy any financial and other obligations (such as compliance) for any transaction you enter into except to the extent (if any) specified in the engagement letter for the relevant matter.
The services we are to provide for you are outlined in our engagement letter.
2.1 TAX
Christchurch Property Law are not giving you tax advice unless specified in our engagement letter for the relevant matter.
2.2 PRICE OR QUALITY
Christchurch Property Law will never advise you on the price, value or quality of your investment in any type of property you are buying, selling, or mortgaging.
2.3 RELATIONSHIP PROPERTY
Christchurch Property Law are not advising you on relationship property consequences unless specified in our engagement letter for the relevant matter.
3. Fees
The fees we will charge or the manner in which they will be arrived at, are set out in our engagement letter. If the engagement letter specifies a fixed fee, we will charge this for the agreed scope of our services. Work which falls outside that scope will be charged on an hourly rate. We will advise you as soon as reasonably practicable if it becomes necessary for us to provide services outside our agreed scope, and if requested, give you an estimate of the likely amount of the further costs. Where our fees are calculated on an hourly basis, the hourly rate will be disclosed to you in our engagement letter.
4. Disbursements and expenses
In providing services we may incur disbursements or have to make payments to third parties on your behalf. These will be included in our invoice to you when the expense is incurred. We may require an advance payment for the disbursements or expenses which we will be incurring on your behalf.
5. GST
Is payable by you on our fees and charges.
6. Invoices
We will send our invoice/s to you, in the interim if required, and on completion of the matter, or termination of our engagement. We may also send to you an invoice when we incur a significant expense.
7. Payment
Payment for purchase/sale transactions are to be paid on day of settlement. Invoice/s are payable within 7 days of the date of the invoice, unless alternative arrangements have been made with us. We may require interest to be paid on any amount which is more than 7 days overdue. Interest will be calculated at the rate of 5% above our firm’s main trading bank’s 90-day bank bill buy rate as at the close of business on the date payment became due. We will be entitled to pass on to you the costs of collection of any overdue amounts including but not limited to any court fees, service fees, commissions payable for collection and Conveyancing costs on a Conveyancer/Client basis.
8. Security
We may ask you to pre-pay amounts to us, or to provide security for our fees and expenses. You authorise us to debit against amounts pre-paid by you and to deduct from any funds held on your behalf in our trust account any fees, expenses or disbursements for which we have provided an invoice.
9. Third Parties
Although you may expect to be reimbursed by a third party for our fees and expenses, and although our invoices may at your request or with your approval be directed to a third party, nevertheless you remain responsible for payment to us if the third party fails to pay us.
10. Confidentiality
10.1 We will hold in confidence all information concerning you or your affairs that we acquire during the course of acting for you. We will not disclose any of this information to any other person except: (a) to the extent necessary or desirable to enable us to carry out your instructions, or to the extent required by law or by the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Conveyancers.
10.2 Confidential information concerning you will as far as practicable be made available only to those within our firm who are providing legal services for you.
10.3 We will not disclose to you another client’s confidential information.
10.4 Christhurch Property Law reserves the right to record and retain on your file:
- All phone messages and phone conversations;
- File-notes of meetings;
- File-notes of your instructions.
11. Termination
You may terminate your instructions at any time. We may terminate our engagement in any of the circumstances set out in the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Conveyancers. All fees due and expenses incurred must be paid up to the date of termination.
12. Retention of files and Documents
12.1 You authorise us to (without further reference to you) to destroy all files and documents for this matter 7 years after our engagement ends, or earlier if we have converted those files and documents to an electronic format.
12.2 You authorise us to:
- Operate a paperless office by retaining only electronic copies of documents and information received in relation to your instructions, and immediately destroying on a daily basis paper copies.
- Use third-party servers within New Zealand to electronically hold all information relating to your instructions.
13. Conflicts of Interest
We have procedures in place to identify and respond to conflicts of interest. If a conflict of interest arises we will advise you of this and follow the requirements and procedures set out in the Rules of Conduct and Client Care for Conveyancers.
14. Duty of Care
Our duty of care is to you and not to any other person. Before any other person may rely on our advice, we must expressly agree to this.
15. Trust Account
We maintain a trust account for all funds which we receive from clients (except monies received for payment of our invoices. If we are holding significant funds on your behalf we will normally lodge those funds on interest bearing deposit with a bank. In that case we will charge an administration fee of 7.5% of the interest derived.
16. EXCLUSION OF TAX LIABILITY
16.1 You are responsible for any tax liability which may be incurred by or assessed against you as a result of the interpretation of any legal document we prepare on your instructions.
17. Electronic Signing: Electronic Transactions ACT 2002
17.1 You consent to receive from us information and documents which are electronically signed by us (rather than physically signed by us). The electronic signature will be visible on the face of the document.
18. Taxation & Anti-Money Laundering
18.1 AML: Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009.
18.2 FATCA: United States Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
18.3 GATCA: The OECD has developed the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters (AEOI) to provide a global framework for the collection, reporting, and exchange of financial account information about persons that invest outside of their jurisdiction of tax residence. This will assist in detecting and deterring offshore tax evasion.
Christchurch Property Law may collect information from you and disclose that information to third parties:
18.4 Christchurch Property Law at its sole discretion may file STR and PTR reports in relation to you under AML rules: Christchurch Property Law has no obligation whatsoever to disclose any such filing to you.
18.5 Christchurch Property Law at its sole discretion may file reports (including to banks) in relation to you under FATCA or GATCA rules: Christchurch Property Law has no obligation whatsoever to disclose any such filing to you.
18.6 Christchurch Property Law at its sole discretion may request you to provide information to Christchurch Property Law to satisfy compliance requirements of Christchurch Property Law in relation to AML, FATCA, GATCA or New Zealand taxation laws or conveyancing laws such as the Land Transfer Act (1952 or 2017), and may disclose that information to third parties to satisfy the statutory obligations of Christchurch Property Law Limited.
19. General
These Terms apply to any current engagement and also to any future engagement, whether or not we send you another copy of them. We are entitled to change these Terms from time to time, in which case we will send you amended Terms.