Reference: 20260264
22 April 2026
John Armstrong
[FYI request #34233 email]
Dear John
Thank you for your Official Information Act request, which was partially transferred to
the Treasury from Crown Law on 10 April 2026.The request was for:
1. Total Legal Costs to Date
The total legal costs incurred by Crown Law in relation to proceedings:
CIV-2024-404-845 – Whittome v Director-General of Health: common bundle
This should include, but not be limited to:
- External counsel fees (if applicable)
- Internal Crown Law time/costings
- Disbursements (including expert reports, court filing fees, document
management, and preparation of the common bundle)
2. Breakdown of Costs
A breakdown of the above costs, to the extent held, including:
- Costs attributable to preparation of the common bundle
- Counsel vs solicitor time
- Any third-party/vendor costs
3. Budgeting / Estimates
Any internal budgets, estimates, or cost projections prepared for this proceeding.
4. Funding Source
Confirmation of the appropriation or funding source used to meet these legal
costs.
5. Ongoing / Forecast Costs
Any current estimates of anticipated future legal costs for this proceeding.
Confirmation of the appropriation or funding source used to meet these legal
costs.
The portion transferred to the Treasury was as fol ows
4. Funding Source
1 The Terrace
PO Box 3724
Wellington 6140
New Zealand
tel. +64-4-472-2733
https://treasury.govt.nz
Confirmation of the appropriation or funding source used to meet these legal
costs.
Response
The costs that Treasury paid to Crown Law in relation to this matter were funded from
within the Treasury’s baseline.
This reply addresses the information you requested. Under section 28(3) of the Act,
you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to review any decisions made under this
request. The Ombudsman may be contacted by email at:
[email address] or by calling 0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely
Ben Martell
Manager, Public Law
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