Corporate and Commercial Law
The Auckland Law School, based in New Zealand’s largest commercial centre, has long had corporate and commercial law as one of its strengths.
We offer an LLM degree with a specialisation in Commercial Law, and a wide range of electives in that degree, and in the LLB and LLB(Hons) degrees.
The courses in the LLM are taught by a combination of the faculty’s permanent staff, staff of the Department of Commercial Law in the Faculty of Business and Economics, distinguished overseas academics and senior law practitioners.
The faculty is home to the New Zealand Centre for Law and Business which has a primary goal of facilitating interdisciplinary research connecting law and business, with a strong focus on the interface between the two.
Visit the New Zealand Centre for Law and Business
Academic staff researchers and teachers
The following members of staff conduct teaching, research and postgraduate supervision in the area of Corporate and Commercial Law.
Rob Batty | Senior Lecturer
Email: r.batty@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 4370
Field of research: Trade mark law, intellectual property
Francis Dawson | Professor
Email: f.dawson@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 9413
Field of research: Contract, equity, legal history
Craig Elliffe | Professor
Email: c.elliffe@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 8990
Field of research: International tax, tax avoidance, tax reform
Rohan Havelock | Senior Lecturer
Email: r.havelock@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 8020
Field of research: Insurance law, equity and equitable remedies, unjust enrichment and restitution, private law taxonomy, building and construction law
An Hertogen | Senior Lecturer
Email: an.hertogen@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 1129
Field of research: Regulation of economic activity by states, competition and consumer law
Amokura Kawharu | Associate Professor
Email: a.kawharu@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 6397
Field of research: International commercial arbitration, investment arbitration, international economic regulation, international disputes settlement
Michael Littlewood | Professor
Email: m.littlewood@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 5633
Field of research: New Zealand Tax, Hong Kong tax, Chinese tax, international tax, comparative tax, tax planning, tax policy, the politics of taxation, tax history, constitutional aspects of taxation
Chris Noonan | Associate Professor
Email: c.noonan@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 7444
Field of research: International competition law, World Trade Organisation, regional economic integration
Marcus Roberts | Senior Lecturer
Email: m.roberts@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 8802
Field of research: Contract, torts, vicarious liability, negligence
Richard Scragg | Honorary Academic
Email: rj.scragg@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 x81973
Field of research: Credit and personal property security law, legal ethics, legal system, professional legal education.
Paul Sumpter | Senior Lecturer
Email: p.sumpter@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 6459
Field of research: Copyright, trademarks, biotechnology and patents, confidential information, designs, commercial licensing of IP
Warren Swain | Professor
Email: w.swain@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 1275
Field of research: Legal History, Contract, Tort, Restitution, Legal Biography
Susan Watson | Professor
Email: s.watson@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 373 7599
Field of research: The legal relationship between shareholders and boards, the role of the board, corporate governance, the liability of company directors and professionals, the relationship between leadership and governance, the development of internal rules in companies including corporate sustainability, theories of the corporation including entity theory, public private divide in corporate law, role of the board, directors’ duties, and comparative corporate law and corporate governance, legal personality.
Peter Watts | Professor
Email: pg.watts@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 923 7829
Field of research: Agency law, company law, law of restitution
Courses available in Corporate and Commercial Law
Subject to availability the following courses may be offered:
Undergraduate courses
- LAWCOMM 401 - Commercial Law
- LAWCOMM 402 - Company Law
- LAWCOMM 403 - Tax Law
- LAWCOMM 404 - Intellectual Property
- LAWCOMM 405 - Restitution
- LAWCOMM 407 - Conflict of Laws
- LAWCOMM 420 - Advanced Tax Law
- LAWCOMM 421 - Commercial Arbitration
- LAWCOMM 422 - Competition Law
- LAWCOMM 423 - Company Liquidations
- LAWCOMM 424 - Insurance Law
- LAWCOMM 425 - International Trade
- LAWCOMM 426 - Law and Information Technology
- LAWCOMM 427 - Vendor and Purchaser
- LAWCOMM 430 - Law of Capital Markets
- LAWCOMM 432 - Commercial Transactions
- LAWCOMM 435 - European Commercial Litigation
- LAWCOMM 440 - Guarantees and Indemnities
- LAWCOMM 441 - Creditors Remedies
- LAWCOMM 442 - Law of Personal Property
- LAWCOMM 444 - Financial Markets Law
- LAWCOMM 445 - Takeovers
- LAWCOMM 454 - Trade Mark Law
- LAWGENRL 445 - The History of the Law of Obligations
- LAWPUBL 425 - Employment Law
Postgraduate courses
- COMLAW 740 - The Tax Base
- COMLAW 741 - International Tax
- LAWCOMM 702 - International Arbitration
- LAWCOM 706 - Competition Law
- LAWCOMM 709 - Corporate Governance
- LAWCOMM 711 - Commercial Equity
- LAWCOMM 713 - Intellectual Property
- LAWCOMM 720 - Law of Insurance Contracts
- LAWCOM 730 - Special Topic: International Trade Law
- LAWCOMM 731 - Special Topic: Global Commercial Contract Law
- LAWCOMM 734 - Contemporary Free Trade Agreements
- LAWCOM 735 - Special Topic: Artificial Intelligence Law and Policy
- LAWCOMM 736 - Special Topic: Comparative Company Law
- LAWCOMM 739 - Special Topic: International Commercial Contracts
- LAWCOM 739 - Mergers and Aquisitions
- LAWCOMM 742 - Remedies Law
- LAWCOM 746 - Special Topic: Data Privacy and the Law
- LAWCOM 747 - Goods and Services Tax
- LAWCOM 749 - Special Topic: International Litigation
- LAWCOM 769 - Special Topic: Economic Regulation: Principles and Practice
- LAWCOM 775 - International Tax Law
- LAWCOM 778 - Special Topic: Selected Topics in Tort Law
- LAWCOM 779 - Tax Avoidance
- LAWCOM 780 - Corporation and Investor Tax
- LAWCOM 788 - Special Topic: Asia Pacific Tax