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Grace Cooper
Grace has experience in a range of commercial, civil, criminal, taxation and regulatory matters and in government reviews. She has appeared for individuals and companies in multiple courts and mediations. Prior to joining Rechtwise Liberty, Grace was a junior barrister to a leading chambers in Auckland and a corporate and tax solicitor.
Areas of practice
Grace began her career as a tax solicitor, defending taxpayers in civil disputes and criminal proceedings against the Inland Revenue.
She then moved to a boutique corporate law firm, where she assisted in Overseas Investment Act compliance and investigations, investigations by the Serious Fraud Office, and a multitude of corporate matters relating to listed and unlisted companies.
Most recently, she was a junior barrister at Shortland Chambers, where she acted as junior counsel on a wide variety of commercial, civil, regulatory, and family matters. Notable cases include *Ruscoe v Cryptopia Ltd (in liq)*, a leading New Zealand case on cryptocurrencies; *America’s Cup Event Ltd v NZME Publishing Ltd*, a high-profile case about the use of funds allocated for the America’s Cup events in New Zealand; and *Sai Louie v Pengelly’s Properties Ltd*, a novel contractual interpretation case involving the Public Bodies Leases Act 1969.
Since taking membership at Rechtwise Liberty in January 2023, Grace has assisted in government reviews, including a review into Immigration New Zealand’s out-of-hours compliance activity (led by Michael Heron KC) and a review into the Civil Aviation Authority’s management systems (junior to Michael Heron KC and Erin McGill). She has also acted as court-appointed counsel in *Ruscoe v Cryptopia Ltd (in liq)* (junior counsel to Jenny Cooper KC) and in a criminal trial concerning a struck-off director (junior counsel to Marie Taylor-Cyphers).
She maintains a comprehensive civil practice and provides advisory and advocacy services to commercial and private clients on all manner of civil disputes, including breach of contract, negligence (including professional negligence matters), trusts and estates, land-related disputes (including caveats), judicial review, and shareholder disputes. She offers thoughtful and strategic advice and is available for instruction, whether as sole counsel or in support of senior counsel.
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY
| 2023 – Present | Rechtwise Liberty |
| 2019 – 2022 | Junior Barrister Shortland Chambers |
| 2017 – 2019 | Associate Harmos Horton Lusk |
| 2015 – 2017 | Law Clerk & Solicitor Denham Martin Tax Law |
News & Insights
What is the difference between aiding and abetting?
REGULATORY PROCEEDINGS & LITIGATION
So what is the difference between aiding and abetting? Aiding, as the names suggests, is helping. To abet means to urge on, instigate, or encourage. In any criminal case a defendant can either be charged as a principal or as a party to the offence.
Rae v Commissioner of Police [2023] NZSC 156
CASE SUMMARY
Does the Supreme Court have jurisdiction to hear an appeal from the Court of Appeal’s decision to decline to recall a judgment in a civil proceeding? The Supreme Court addressed this issue, among others, in an “unusual, combined leave-and-appeal hearing”.