The second stage in Turners & Growers’ court case against single-desk kiwifruit marketer Zespri, which was due to kick off in Auckland tomorrow, has been delayed due to “unforeseen personal circumstances” in the Turners & Growers’legal team.
“Turners & Growers’legal team has sought and been granted a postponement of tomorrow’s High Court case against Zespri,” a company spokesperson said.
A new date will be determined tomorrow for the hearing, the latest stage in almost two years of legal wrangling between New Zealand’s two largest horticulture businesses.
The High Court trial will focus on Turners & Growers’ (T&G) allegations that Zespri has breached the New Zealand Commerce Act, and is expected to run for five weeks.
T&G has alleged that Zespri has contravened the Commerce Act in three ways, according to statement by the company:
1: Zespri’s three-year rolling exclusivity contracts with growers and the exclusivity arrangements with suppliers, which Turners & Growers says have the purpose, and will have the effect of, restricting competition by Turners & Growers and other exporters for growers’ fruit post-deregulation;
2: Zespri’s service level agreements with suppliers for Australia in 2009, which Turners & Growers says were intended to prevent suppliers selling class 2 fruit to Turners & Growers and other exporters to Australia in that season; and
3: Zespri’s policy not to agree to the export of fruit from third party cultivars unless the fruit has been through Zespri’s testing process, which Turners & Growers says has the effect of giving Zespri control of cultivars as well as control of exports.
The case is the second part of T&G’s legal challenge of Zespri’s single-desk export status. T&G lodged itsinitial statement of claimin July 2009, which was thensplit by the High Courtinto two parts.
The first of those wasruled in favour of Zespriin August last year, and has been appealed by T&G. The appeal hearing is set for 16-17 November this year.
The case is part of a long-running campaign by Turners & Growers to break up the Zespri single-desk system and deregulate New Zealand’s kiwifruit exports.
Despite the recent departure of T&G chairman Tony Gibbs, a key figure behind the campaign against Zespri, the company has stated it intends to continue its deregulation efforts, and has heated up the media campaign against the kiwifruit marketer since the start of the year.
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