He negotiated the deal himself, took the money, then said it was signed under duress
A former chief executive who tried to unwind his own exit settlement lost every claim, Authority member Geoff O'Sullivan ruled on 22 May 2026.
Lee Pownall became chief executive of Hutt Valley Youth Health Trust, which operates as Vibe, in February 2024. Within months, concerns were raised about his leadership, communication and management style. Those concerns were never tested. Instead the two sides exchanged correspondence, including a "without prejudice" letter dated 24 May 2024, and began negotiating an exit.
Pownall did the negotiating. The Authority found the changes he secured to the original proposal appeared to be in his favour. On 7 June 2024 he signed a Record of Settlement under section 149 of the Employment Relations Act 2000, later certified by a mediator from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
He later sought to reopen it. Pownall claimed Vibe had breached the settlement by delaying an agreed certificate of service and refusing an agreed reference, that it had acted in bad faith and committed fraud, that a clause unlawfully restricted his Privacy Act rights, and that he had signed under duress. He sought $82,400 for lost earnings, plus compensation for emotional harm, a compliance order, a declaration and a penalty.
The Authority worked through each claim. On the certificate, the evidence showed Vibe sent it on 8 July 2024; when Pownall later said he had not received it, Vibe resent it. On the reference, clause 7 of the settlement required only a verbal reference if requested, and no request had been made. On fraud, the member found Pownall had no evidence beyond his own assertion that Vibe had misrepresented anything.
The Privacy Act claim turned on clause 14, which the member quoted: This includes the recent request made by the employee pursuant to the Privacy Act 2020. Reading the clause plainly, the member found it had simply resolved a request Pownall had already made and did not stop him making another. There was no breach.
On duress, Pownall said he had signed while medically unwell, unsupported and unaware of the specific concerns raised against him. Pointing to the May letter, he said in a later statement that "the letter was in effect a threat – resign or face suspension and investigation. I rely on this letter as evidence of duress and constructive dismissal."
The member was not persuaded. Pownall had been given the chance to take advice. He raised no duress when he signed, accepted the payments due to him without comment, and then corresponded with Vibe about enforcing the very deal he now wanted gone. Duress was not mentioned until October 2025. "The letter is simply not evidence of duress," the member found.
In Pownall v Hutt Valley Youth Health Trust [2026] NZERA 314, the Authority dismissed every claim, finding Vibe had complied with the settlement, that Pownall had not signed under duress, and that after signing he had expressly sought Vibe's compliance with its terms. There were no grounds on which the Record of Settlement could be set aside. Costs were reserved, with the parties encouraged to resolve them between themselves.
