An Auckland law firm has won its appeal against a Complaints Review Tribunal finding that it breached the Human Rights Act and discriminated against an Indian client by withholding his passport.
Vallant Hooker & Partners appealed to the High Court at Auckland after the tribunal ruled it discriminated against Rawi Rawatby retaining his Indian passport for 18 months as security for money he owed it.
The tribunal ruled that holding the passports of non-New Zealand citizens until their bills were paid breached the Human Rights Act because those clients were being treated less favourably than New Zealand citizens.
But Justice John Laurenson said in his written judgment that the case against Vallant Hooker & Partners was based on a "strained and technical interpretation of the act which was flawed from the outset."
"It was submitted on behalf of the appellants that to find their actions discriminatory would be carrying political correctness to the extreme," the judgment said.
"We have to agree with this criticism."
The law firm had been subjected to public criticism which had caused "extreme distress."
He therefore awarded costs to the company.
Mr Rawat, a taxi driver, cross-appealed seeking $23,000 in damages and costs for humiliation, legal costs and application fees for a new passport.
