Law experts are warning Kiwis about the hidden costs of free and cheap wills that may end up hijacking a chunk of their assets in fees or causing family problems after a death.

More defamation damages awarded to Joe Karam, judges clamping down on media reporting and legal aid payments dropping in this week's legal blog.

The receivers of failed lender Bridgecorp have eked out another $4m after cutting a deal over a loan on which it held an insurance policy.

One of the former owners of internet company Orcon who has debts of $3.57m has avoided bankruptcy and will attempt to appease creditors with a $343,000 deal.

A High Court lawsuit involving the botched sale of a $6 million luxury Auckland property, an allegedly negligent real estate agency and a Takapuna law firm is set to begin today.

The developer behind a controversial $10 million marina project that will divide Waiheke Island says investors can "kiss their money goodbye" if the project is scrapped.

A controversial artist's portrait of a convicted murderer could be destroyed if allegations of copyright infringement are pursued through the courts.

Simpson Grierson has achieved a certificate called a Rainbow Tick, which recognises the law firm for being inclusive of gender and sexual diversity.

The ex-wife of a struck-off Papakura lawyer - who fled NZ during a SFO probe - is unable to bring a claim here to establish her stake in an Irish country estate.

A finance company directed by Mark Hotchin and Eric Watson has convinced a High Court judge to keep freezing orders over two properties as it chases down a $300,000 loan.

Bridgecorp's jailed chief financial officer Rob Roest has been denied parole because of the risk he could pose to the community.

The Law Society has not criticised Justice Minister Judith Collins over the naming of Sir Robert Chambers Lane in Christchurch, as Jock Anderson writes.

The Crown will not appeal a decision to give a teen who assaulted schoolboy Stephen Dudley before his death last year a discharge without conviction.

Crime barristers are up in arms over an increase in self-represented litigants and a surge in appeals based on the competency of lawyers, writes Jock Anderson.

Failed finance company director Trevor Ludlow has done contract work for a receiver with his own fraud convictions since being released on parole.

Whiskas has won the first round of a legal cat fight with the maker of Purina pet food.

There are signs the judiciary may be eager to restrict news media court coverage, writes legal blogger Jock Anderson.

Let's not get sidetracked over whether or not Housing New Zealand's dog ban failed.

Disgraced Bridgecorp boss Rodney Petricevic has been denied parole on the grounds he may still pose an undue risk to the safety of the community.

John Banks is to be sentenced tomorrow after being earlier found guilty of electoral fraud in relation to his last mayoral bid. What is likely to happen to him?

Vladimir Putin is facing a multimillion-dollar legal action for his alleged role in the shooting down of a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet over eastern Ukraine.

As the brakes go on this fiscal profligacy, legal hand-wringers continue to whine about a so-called "justice gap" created by cuts to legal aid, writes Jock Anderson