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Sign an affidavit in support of Robert Lee’s Judicial Review

If you wish to show the court your support for Robert Lee’s Judicial Review you must first read the Statement of Claim filed in the High Court in Rotorua on 29 April 2022.

The next thing to do is sign an Affidavit in support. An affidavit is a formal legal document that is admissible as evidence in a court. It must be signed and witnessed by a Justice of the Peace, solicitor, lawyer or at your local court house. You can either swear (on the bible) or affirm that you believe the contents of the affidavit to be true and correct.

By signing an affidavit in support, you do not became a party to these proceedings and so are not liable in any way for any award of costs etc. You are welcome to seek legal advice before signing an affidavit in support.

If you’re happy with the following wording you can just download either the swearing affidavit template or the affirming affidavit template, print it off – single sided – and take it to a Justice of the Peace for signing.

  1. I am aware that the Rotorua District Council is attempting to rush the Rotorua District Council (Representation Arrangements) Bill through Parliament by the end of May 2022 so that the Bill will take effect for the October 2022 local government elections.
  2. I oppose the Rotorua District Council’s decision to seek statutory reform through parliament for this year’s local government elections.
  3. I have read the Statement of Claim filed by Mr Robert Lee on 29 April 2022 which asks that the decision by the Rotorua District Council to seek statutory reform for representation arrangements at this year’s local government elections be set aside.
  4. I therefore fully support Mr Lee’s claim and his application for this matter to be dealt with urgently before the Bill can become law.
  5. I believe this action is necessary in order to ensure that Rotorua has a free and democratic election, having regard to the principle of equal suffrage, rather than so called “voter parity”.

Standard blank affidavit template

The easiest way is to download and print either the swearing or affirming template affidavit above and take it to a Justice of the Peace (JP), solicitor, or at your local court. You can then handwrite in:

  1. your name and the date you sign the affidavit (cover page);
  2. your name, occupation and address (at the top of the next page);

For example:

I, Jane Doe, retired, of 123 High Street, Rotorua solemnly and sincerely swear as follows:

    1. I am aware that the Rotorua District Council is attempting to rush the Rotorua District Council (Representation Arrangements) Bill through Parliament by the end of May 2022 so that the Bill will take effect for the October 2022 local government elections.
    2.  …

Customisable affidavit template

If you would like to customise your affidavit you can download an editable version of the affidavit and make the changes as you please. You may wish to seek legal advice.

You can type in the information on the cover page and at the top of the next page if you wish. The information at the bottom of the page must be completed in front of the JP, solicitor etc.

Affidavit must be witnessed by a Justice of the Peace, solicitor, court officer etc.

The affidavit must be signed before a  JP / solicitor / notary / court officer etc., and they will assist you the process of the making solemn a declaration and with signing your name, and filling in the date in front of a Justice of the Peace (JP, solicitor, or at your local court).

Return the signed document to Robert Lee

You’ll then just post or deliver the signed document to Robert Lee, 101 Springfield Rd, Rotorua.

Your support of this Judicial Review is much appreciated because it shows the court that this is important to many people.

Donation?

This Judicial Review is being done on a “shoestring” budget with Robert Lee representing himself in Court, which is much cheaper than hiring a lawyer. The filing costs were $740. A one-day hearing has been set down for 4 August 2022. The associated “Scheduling Fee” and “Hearing Fee” is $1,280, which brings total costs to date of $2,020.

If you’d like to make a donation to help support the cause details on how to do so are available here.