Tiaan Nelson

• LLM - Harvard Law School (“Honours” average and Dean’s Scholar Prize in constitutional law)
• LLB (Hons) – University of Auckland (Senior Scholar)
• BCom (Econ) – University of Auckland (Senior Scholar)

Tiaan is a commercial barrister.  He is focused on helping people and businesses resolve disputes.  He has experience doing so across a broad range of practice areas, with particular expertise in disputes involving company law, contracts, corporate insolvency, finance, negligence, insurance and property developments.

Examples of Tiaan’s recent instructions include:

• acting for property developers and investors in disputes with second tier financiers;
• acting for a mezzanine financier in relation to an alleged joint venture with a property developer;
• acting for the defendants on a claim alleging misrepresentations in relation to the sale of several hospitality businesses;
• acting for an investor on a claim of breach of fiduciary duties in relation to several property investments;
• acting for the purchasers of a farm on a negligence and misrepresentation claim against a major real estate company, including on the Supreme Court appeal (with Daniel Kalderimis KC); and
• acting for a beneficiary in a complex, high value trust dispute (which spanned across three High Court proceedings).  

Tiaan is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, where he teaches a course on advanced commercial litigation to fourth and fifth year students, and he regularly publishes on contract law and other topics related to commercial litigation in leading legal publications.  

Tiaan holds an LLM from Harvard Law School, which he obtained on William Georgetti and Spencer Mason Scholarships. Before that, he worked as a barrister in Auckland and as a Judges’ Clerk at the High Court. He also holds LLB (Hons) and BCom (Econ) degrees from the University of Auckland, where he graduated with Senior Scholar Awards in both law and economics, a Dean’s Academic Excellence Award and six First in Course Awards. He excelled in advocacy competitions, winning the Stout Shield (best oralist) and four other mooting competitions. Tiaan also represented New Zealand at the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot, where his team won the prize for best applicant team in the world.

Company and insolvency – High Court and Court of Appeal

Acted for the liquidator in a trial and appeal about a claim against directors, the effect of a settlement reached by shareholders and the reasonableness of the liquidator’s conduct (with Greg Blanchard KC).

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Negligence, Fair Trading Act and deceit – High Court, Courtof Appeal and Supreme Court

Acted for the plaintiffs (purchasers) on a negligence and misrepresentation claim against a major real estate company (with Daniel Kalderimis KC).

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Company and contract – High Court

Acted for the defendant shareholders in a dispute about a contract involving the sale of several hospitality businesses.  

Finance – High Court

Acted for the investors in a dispute with non-bank financiers about complex lending in relation to several failed property developments.  

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Contract, fiduciary duties and trusts – High Court

Acted for the mezzanine-financier defendants on a claim for alleged breaches of contractual (joint venture) and fiduciary duties concerning a large property development (with Graham Kohler KC).

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Judicial review – High Court

Acted for public interest groups on judicial review claims relating to free speech rights and compensation for the expropriation of property (with Jack Hodder KC).

• T Nelson “Insurance Contracts in the Supreme Court: 2014–2023”, chapter in “The Supreme Court: The Second Ten Years” (edited by Professors McLean KC and Littlewood, LexisNexis, December 2024).  
• T Nelson “Third Party Debt Orders in the High Court” [2023] NZLJ 299.  
• T Nelson “Negligence, Negligent Misstatements and Leaky Buildings: Southland Indoor Leisure Centre Charitable Trust v Invercargill City Council” (2018) 24Auckland U L Rev 294.
• K Davenport QC and T Nelson “The Court’s Role in Assisting Trustees: Re Beddoe”(2017) 23 Trusts and Trustees 343.