A case is reported from Seattle USA, where Yofi, a 12 year old cat was mauled to death in her owner’s back yard by the neighbour’s Chow dog.  The dog had a reputation for escaping. Yofi’s owner was awarded $15,000.00 for emotional distress as she was so traumatised she suffered sleep disturbances and panic attacks and became depressed.

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Prior to parliament dissolving before the recent general elections, the Companies and Limited Partnerships Amendment Bill was introduced into parliament.  Assuming that this Bill is adopted by the incoming government, the Bill is set to amend the Companies Act 1993 and Limited Partnerships Act 2008.  At a high level, the purposes of the Bill are to “increase confidence in New Zealand’s financial markets and in New Zealand’s regulation of” companies and limited partnerships, and to “ensure New Zealand remains a trusted place to do business”.  In order to help achieve this purpose, the Bill is set to make the following changes:

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What are the rules which apply to getting a quorum for a meeting of a society?
First look at the rules or constitution. If the society is incorporated then you should find a copy by going to http://www.business.govt.nz/companies/app/ui/pages/companies/otherSearch

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Obviously the imminent abolition of gift duty has focussed peoples attention on trusts and whether a trust is something they should be considering. Trusts have come under attack recently from some quarters however there are still a number of valid reasons why you might want a family trust namely:

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