The Earthquake Minister was required to reconsider and make a fresh offer to uninsured red zone owners. The Quake Outcasts group filed a fresh action to judicially review this second Ministerial decision. The group lost in the High Court but on appeal, the Court of Appeal found* Minister Brownlee’s actions to have been unfair, unreasonable and unlawful. All Crown arguments in support of the Minister’s decision, were rejected.    The Crown then settled. Publicly, the National government announced that Quake Outcasts members received ‘only 80%’ of the 2007 value of their improvements, but an interest component saw clients receive about 105% with a substantial costs payment in addition. 

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As National would only settle the claims of those persons in the action, with a change of government GCA lobbied the new government seeking payment for all uninsured homeowners in red zones to receive their full entitlements. In August 2018 the Labour government confirmed it would pay $12M to over 100 remaining uninsured homeowners in full and final settlement of this affair. 
*Quake Outcasts v The Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery and Chief Executive of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority [2017] NZCA 332

The firm represented 46 owners of uninsured property in ‘red zones’ created after the February 2011 quake. The Crown sought to buy insured owner’s properties for the 2007 Rateable Value, but offered the uninsured owners, only half the value of the land alone. The action addressed the Crown’s right to acquire citizen’s land for less than fair market value and raised constitutional, property and human rights issues. The group succeeded before the High Court, Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court in a first round of judicial review*.
*Quake Outcasts v The Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery and Chief Executive of the Canterbury Earthquake Recover [2016] NSSC 166