St John (Sinjin) Howard-Brown

Senior Associate Pouarataki Pāhake

St John specialises in litigation and dispute resolution. He is passionate about written and oral advocacy and helping clients resolve complex problems.

During his career, he has worked on a broad range of civil commercial disputes and regulatory prosecutions. This has involved appearances in various New Zealand courts and at mediations and arbitrations. His areas of practice include general commercial disputes, insolvency, debt recovery, shareholder disputes, natural resources, health and safety, employment, and construction.

St John has extensive experience advising clients on litigation strategy, drafting court documents, managing cases, briefing witnesses, and working collaboratively with other divisions and external barristers. He prides himself on his plain English communication skills and taking a pragmatic client centric approach to his work. He is easy to work with, and he strives to get quality outcomes for his clients. St John also relishes opportunities to work with new people, learn about clients, and understand their businesses.

St John is a member of Restructuring Insolvency & Turnaround Association New Zealand Incorporated. He is also a volunteer lawyer and relationship contact for Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley’s Johnsonville outreach clinic.

Career highlights

Assisted a property development financier with the recovery of an $18 million debt following the failure of a complicated subdivision project in acrimonious circumstances.

Defending BT Mining Limited in the first ever private climate change proceedings brought against corporate defendants in New Zealand.

Acted for several Uber Group entities in a three-week Employment Court case brought by two unions claiming that four Uber drivers and one Uber Eats driver were employed by the Uber Group.

Acting for clients facing investigations and prosecutions under health and safety legislation (relating to workplace injuries and fatalities) and under environmental legislation (for unintentional discharges of contaminants).

Advising and acting for a major bank on the enforcement of security in relation to agricultural businesses subject to New Zealand’s farm debt mediation regime.

Affiliations
  • Member, Restructuring Insolvency & Turnaround Association New Zealand Incorporated (RITANZ)
Achievements and recognition
  • Tier 1 team, Dispute Resolution, The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific