17 September 2025
Erika Whittome
[FYI request #32287 email]
Tēnā koe Erika
Your request for official information, reference: HNZ00098210
Thank you for your email on 11 September 2025, asking Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora for
the following under the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA):
“I refer to this information supplied in this request on the Legal bil s at Te Whatu ora/Health
New Zealand for vaccine mandates here
https://fyi.org.nz/request/24993/response/99295/attach/4/HNZ00033341%20OIA%20Respo
nse.pdf
Health NZ has paid approximately $272,000 in legal costs responding to the COVID-19
vaccine mandate worker claims.
1. Would you kindly share the procurement process for these legal services in relation to
the Government Procurement rules which are here
https://www.procurement.govt.nz/principles-charter-and-rules/government-procurement-
rules/
There are no tenders that I can find for legal services to Health NZ on the Government
Electronic
Tenders Service (GETS) website https://www.gets.govt.nz/ExternalIndex.htm
2. Please share the "Opt-out" approvals if these services did not go through GETS."
Response
For clarity, I wil address each question in turn.
1. Would you kindly share the procurement process for these legal services in relation to
the Government Procurement rules which are here
https://www.procurement.govt.nz/principles-charter-and-rules/government-procurement-
rules/
The Government Procurement rules apply for when Crown Entities make a purchase with a total
estimated value of $100,000 or more.
As identified in the response to OIA HNZ00033341, the legal claims in the Employment Relations
Authority and Employment Court were handled by the former District Health Boards (DHBs). The
$272,000 identified in the OIA response involved claims at multiple DHBs and total legal costs for
each individual claim was under the $100,000 threshold.
It is worthwhile noting that Health NZ is part of th
e Al of Government supplier contract for legal
services and therefore procurement for legal services is not publicly advertised.
2. Please share the "Opt-out" approvals if these services did not go through GETS
Not applicable as per the response to question 1 above. Accordingly, we are refusing this part of
your request under section 18(e) of the OIA, as the information does not exist.
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us at
[email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, Health NZ may proactively
release a copy of this response on our website. Al requester data, including your name and
contact details, wil be removed prior to release.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Danielle Coe
Manager (OIA) Government Services
TeWhatuOra.govt.nz
Health NZ, PO Box 793,
Wel ington 6140, New Zealand
