Sam Jones

Sam is a senior associate in Russell McVeagh's Litigation team. He is a general litigator, with a particular focus on restructuring and insolvency matters. 
 
Based in our Auckland office, Sam's practice includes advising creditors, insolvency practitioners and other stakeholders on restructuring and insolvency processes and related litigation, along with ongoing involvement in complex commercial disputes. He has particular experience in relation to insolvent financial services businesses and has acted on a number of cross-border insolvency matters.

Sam's recent work includes:

• Acting for the liquidators of the Halifax group, a failed trans-Tasman online brokerage business, including in proceedings concerning the distribution of trust funds to investors heard jointly by the New Zealand and Australian courts (see Re Halifax New Zealand Ltd [2021] NZHC 1113 and Loo v Quinlan [2022] NZCA 561). 

• Acting for a creditor in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Samoa on a successful application to remove a liquidator for lack of independence and impartiality (see Petterson v Chan Mow & Co Ltd [2023] WSCA 7) and on other aspects of the liquidation of a failed insurance company. 

• Advising the receivers of Tamarind Taranaki Ltd, the operator of the Tui oilfield.

• Advising the voluntary administrators of CBL Corporation and subsidiaries, formerly an NZX-listed insurance business. 

• Acting for a secured creditor in respect of an invalid appointment of liquidators to a tech spin-out entity. 

• Acting on general commercial disputes including arising out of sale and purchase agreements. 

LLB (Hons First Class), BA (University of Canterbury)

Sam joined Russell McVeagh as a graduate in 2017. He was promoted to senior solicitor in 2020 and senior associate in 2023, and is currently admitted to practise in New Zealand and Samoa.
 
Sam is a member of the Restructuring, Insolvency and Turnaround Institute of New Zealand and has contributed to the International Corporate Rescue journal (see "Robt. Jones Holdings Ltd v McCullagh [2019] NZSC 86, [2019] 1 NZLR 641: Diminution of the Asset Pool Available to Creditors not Required for Voidable Transactions under s 292 of the Companies Act 1993 (NZ)" (2020) 17 ICR 357 and "Re CBL Insurance Ltd (in liq) [2018] NZHC 2547, [2019] 2 NZLR 262: Comparative Assessment of the Powers of Interim/Provisional Liquidators in New Zealand and Other Jurisdictions" (2020) 17 ICR 106).