Legal Project Management Plan & Checklist
Purpose of this Guide: Use this plan when your client, a New Zealand employee, alleges they have been unjustifiably dismissed or unjustifiably disadvantaged by their employer under the Employment Relations Act 2000. This guide is designed for legal practitioners and advocates representing employees to navigate the grievance process, raise claims, seek remedies, and handle filings in the Employment Relations Authority.
Jurisdiction: New Zealand Employment Relations Authority (national registries) and the Employment Court. This parent plan covers the standard unjustified dismissal grievance from initial intake through to substantive hearings. Specialized dispute tracks for trial periods, high-income bars, contractor status, and de novo challenges are covered in the forks below.
The Process at a Glance: The process starts with conducting conflict checks and auditing jurisdictional gateways such as the high-income threshold and trial period clauses. The practitioner then requests written reasons under section 120 and serves a formal personal grievance letter within the strict 90-day limitation window. The parties engage in compulsory good faith disclosure and attend MBIE mediation. If unresolved, the practitioner files a Form 1 Application in the Authority registry and represents the client at the case conference and investigation meeting to secure remedies including reinstatement and lost wages.
Use this plan when a worker engaged as an independent contractor wishes to challenge their status under the 2026 contractor gateway to claim employee rights and raise an unjustified dismissal grievance. This guide is used by legal practitioners to analyze the relationship, raise the grievance, and secure a declaration of employment status in the Authority.
Use this plan when the employer asserts that the employee's annual remuneration meets or exceeds the NZ$200,000 threshold, barring their unjustified dismissal claim under the 2026 amendments, and the employee disputes this bar. This guide is used by practitioners representing employees to dispute the remuneration calculation, assert transitional grace periods, or verify opt-in clauses.
Use this plan when the employer asserts that a 90-day trial period clause bars the unjustified dismissal claim, and the employee disputes the validity of that trial period. This guide is used by legal practitioners representing employees to challenge the execution dates, contract wording, or notice delivery to defeat the trial period defense.
Use this plan when the dismissed employee seeks urgent interim reinstatement to their former position pending the final determination of their unjustified dismissal claim. This guide is used by legal practitioners to prepare the application package, execute the damages undertaking, and argue the urgent application in the Authority.
Key Legislation and Case Law: Employment Relations Act 2000 - s 103(1)(a) (unjustified dismissal grievance); s 103A (justification test incorporating 2026 amendments); s 114 (90-day raise limit); s 115 (exceptional circumstances for late filing); s 123 (remedies); s 127 (interim reinstatement); s 128 (lost wages); s 149 (binding settlements); s 173A (mediation requirements); s 179 (appeals). Employment Relations Authority Regulations 2000 - Reg 5 (Form 1 Application); Reg 8 (Form 3 Statement in Reply timeline). Key cases: [Smith v Stokes Valley Pharmacy [2010] NZEmpC 111](https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/) on trial period validity; [A Ltd v H [2016] NZCA 419](https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/) on overall fairness assessment; [JP Morgan Chase Bank NA v Lewis [2015] NZCA 255](https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/) on settlement certification (its approach to the Authority's jurisdiction was overruled in FMV v TZB [2021] NZSC 102); [INY v HYI [2024] NZERA 359](https://www.era.govt.nz/) on mental capacity during exit agreements.
* Disclaimer: We're nobody's lawyer, because we aren't lawyers. You are, so you know better than to take legal advice from an app. We also aren't accountants or dog trainers - just digital spirit guides taking zero liability for any of this. This site exists to gather the collective knowledge of practitioners like you. Verify everything and submit your feedback on the Personal Grievance for Unjustified Dismissal (Applicant) matter plan to improve the playbook. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, it's a request for input.
This legal matter plan provides a structured workflow for Employment Law cases, outlining the standard DISPUTE_LITIGATION process. Utilize these tracking templates to manage your legal cases efficiently.
| Field | Token | Type | Required | Defined in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matter(4) | ||||
| Matter numberⓘ | matter.matterNumber | text | Required | inheritedmatter-core |
| Matter title | matter.title | text | - | inheritedmatter-core |
| Matter typeⓘ | matter.matterType | text | - | inheritedmatter-core |
| Matter status | matter.status | text | - | inheritedmatter-core |
| Client(1) | ||||
| Client name | matter.clientName | text | Required | inheritedmatter-core |
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