The Supreme Court recently delivered its judgment in Routhan v PGG Wrightson Real Estate Ltd ([2025] NZSC 68) with Bankside Barrister Tiaan Nelson acting for the successful appellants, led by Daniel Kalderimis KC of Thorndon Chambers.
The case concerned the scope of a real estate agent’s liability for misrepresentations about a dairy farm’s production levels (where it wrongly led the purchasers to believe that it had verified that information).
Importantly, the Supreme Court held (3:2) that the agent’s liability extended not just to the overpayment on purchase, but also to wasted costs incurred in trying to reach the represented production.
The Court also gave detailed consideration to the House of Lords’ decision in South Australia Asset Management Corp v York Montague Ltd and the proper place of the ‘scope of duty’ principle in New Zealand negligence law.
The decision affirms that professionals can be liable for consequential losses – not just transactional overpayments – where those losses arise from risks for which they assumed responsibility.
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