Joel Murphy

Holland Beckett Law today announced the promotion to partnership of three of its associates, Joel Murphy, Jeremy Sparrow and Tim Conder effective from April 1st. The Bay of Plenty wide law firm has offices in Tauranga, Rotorua and Whakatāne with over 130 staff. The firm caters to a vast range of legal needs including property, commercial, trusts & estates, resource management, civil litigation, employment, and family law. Holland Beckett Law also has a specialised Māori Legal Unit. While many provincial law firms are struggling with succession planning we are proud to say that our recruitment strategies of the past 10 years have produced the next generation of Holland Beckett Law leaders. They are true experts in their respective specialities, and we are thrilled to announce their promotion to partnership. Joel Murphy, Partner Joel joined Holland Beckett in 2019 after returning from the United Kingdom, working as an in-house counsel for one of the world’s largest large scale solar developers. He has 12 years of legal experience and, prior to his experience in the United Kingdom, he worked at Meredith Connell in Auckland. Joel advises clients on all aspects of property, including acquisitions and disposals, leasing, developments, financing, subdivisions and related transactions. He has particular expertise in solar farms, kiwifruit orchards and residential developments. Joel is an advocate for the growth of the Bay of Plenty and is a committee member of the Central Regional Committee for Property Council New Zealand. Outside of work Joel enjoys spending time with his young family, fishing, diving and playing touch rugby. Jeremy Sparrow, Partner Jeremy joined Holland Beckett Law as a graduate in January 2012, and has become the first law clerk to Partner of Holland Beckett Law. Jeremy started in the wider litigation department, where he acted on some of the firms major cases including businesses affected by the Rena sinking. Jeremy then spent two years working as a lawyer in London. Upon his return to the Bay of Plenty, Jeremy has developed into a specialist employment lawyer. Jeremy has grown a substantial employment practice and continues to be sought after by clients for his effective and practical advice: this is from some of the firms biggest clients to the smallest. Outside of the office, Jeremy is an avid tennis fan and a passionate traveller. Jeremy is also the President of Tauranga Musical Theatre, and spends most of time outside of work volunteering in this capacity. He is also the Honorary Solicitor for Musical Theatre New Zealand. Tim Conder, Partner Tim joined Holland Beckett Law in January 2016 after two years as a Judges’ Clerk in the Auckland High Court. Like Jeremy – Holland Beckett is the only firm that Tim has worked at while practicing as a lawyer. Tim has driven the creation of a specialist public and local government team within the firm, that serves both local government and private clients who are involved in government related matters. Tim’s work has included assisting insurers and private clients defending regulatory charges in a range of settings (such as environmental offending, export offences and health and safety matters), as well as working for Council prosecutors and acting as an amicus curiae, to assist the Court during a challenging environmental trial. He has also appeared in the Court of Appeal on numerous occasions, on diverse issues such as Māori Land Trusts, Fair Trading Act cases and murder sentencing. More broadly, Tim has been heavily involved in advising clients about regulatory compliance and engaging with central and local government. Throughout the changing landscape of Covid-19 restrictions, Tim was frequently called in at short notice to advise businesses on the way that new laws would impact their business and was involved in keeping essential projects for Tauranga’s development moving during periods of lockdown. He has also helped clients transition through changes to privacy and environmental law, while helping lobby on their behalf for well thought out legislation that will meet the policy objectives of central government while allowing businesses to thrive. Tim’s practice is marked by his efforts to use his knowledge of the law and his creativity to achieve positive outcomes for clients. For Tim, success if about finding the best way through the law for individual clients – even if it means thinking outside the box.

New Zealand is currently seeing another boom in the renewable energy sector but this time in the form of large scale solar farms. There is currently a land grab of existing dairy and grazing farms by national and international solar developers. This is partly due to the high New Zealand wholesale price of electricity and the New Zealand government setting a target of 100% renewable power generation by 2030. This is further compounded by the push for electrification of historical technology and the demand for EV vehicles. There are some significant benefits to landowners converting from existing farm activities to solar, including the security of long term leases with lucrative rentals. In addition to the lucrative leases, there is an opportunity for the landowners to graze sheep on the solar farm and receive an additional return. Conversely, there are some significant risks involved which landowners need to be made aware of, including the likeliness of the landowner not being able to return the land back to dairy farming at the expiry of the lease. We are seeing various approaches by developers in the documentation of solar farms in New Zealand. Generally, the solar project will initially be documented with a letter of intent / memorandum of understanding between the developer and landowner. This is then progressed to an investigation licence and option to lease (Option) or agreement to lease. The Option will usually include a payment for signing and a per hectare rate during the Option term. It will also include the developers conditions which would typically include due diligence, Overseas Investment Office (OIO) consent and sometimes a subdivision consent to enable a longer lease than permitted under the Resource Management Act (depending on the developer). The Option is negotiated side by side with the lease itself. We are also seeing some developers proposing easements in substitution of the more commonly used lease. When acting for a landowner, there are some really important questions / points which need to be addressed, including: Is the structure of the documentation fit for purpose? The lease and timing of existing leases in place; Rental (per hectare rate or linked to a percent of electricity generation). Rent reviews, which will generally be annual CPI / PPI increases and ratcheted. Understanding whether the permitted use is adequate for all intended purposes. The developer’s obligations (including maintenance). Whether a security bond for decommissioning the solar farm is being provided. Assignment and whether the developer can assign to a third party (ie. an investor / purchaser of the project ) with or without the landowners consent. Whether a Tripartite Agreement is required to be entered by the landowner, developer and the developer’s financier. Reinstatement obligations. Health and safety obligations. Landowner grazing rights. Termination rights (including early termination rights of the developer). Force majeure (unforeseen circumstances that prevent a party from fulfilling its obligations). If you have been approached by a developer or would like to understand more about large scale solar farming, Joel Murphy has first-hand solar development experience working in London for one of the world\'s largest solar developers and has negotiated multiple large scale solar farms throughout New Zealand for landowners. Please get in touch to discuss any solar matters.