Two Christchurch women have won the right to lift their name suppression, but the man who sexually abused them as children is able to keep his name secret.
The woman had asked the District Court to lift their name suppression, with the expectation that it would also identify their abuser, but the judge has said he has no power to lift the offender's name suppression.
The women's lawyer, Nikki Pender, says laws around name suppression are not working in the way they were intended and there is now the ridiculous situation where the abuser has name suppression in his own right.
The women took the man to court in 1995 over historical sexual abuse and he was convicted on five counts and sentenced to a year in jail.
At the time, the man was given interim name suppression to protect the identities of the complainants.
In his ruling, Justice Paul Kellar said the women's names can now be published, but he has no jurisdiction to change the name suppression order on the offender's name.
Justice Kellar says a just outcome may be to have the case reconsidered by a higher court.
The women's lawyer, Nikki Pender, says laws around name suppression are not working in the way they were intended and there is now the ridiculous situation where the abuser has name suppression in his own right.
