Former CEO wins $186k after unfounded misconduct allegations, unjustified dismissal

Author: Brianna McIlraith,
Publish Date: Thu, 27 Aug 2026, 1:16pm

Former chief executive Juliet Hull was left “humiliated” after being accused of blackmail and a “hostile takeover” of Sleaktek.

Hull became the Auckland biotech startup’s chief executive in 2022, and in 2024 the company began running low on funds. It became apparent the business had almost exhausted the money needed to pay salaries.

While attempting to find a financial solution to keep the company from collapsing, Hull found her position suddenly disestablished by founder Robert Lawrence and was made redundant. The company then raised concerns about Hull and alleged serious misconduct.

But in a recent Employment Relations Authority (ERA) decision, following Hull’s personal grievance claim, authority member Claire English found none of Sleaktek’s claims of misconduct were true and that Hull had acted in the best interests of the company.

As a result, it was found that her dismissal was unjustified.

The company was ordered to pay Hull $186,000 in compensation, lost and unpaid wages and holiday pay. It was also ordered to pay a $2000 penalty to the Crown.

“Ms Hull had a right to fair treatment by her employer, including that it would not seek to carry out a restructuring process for an ulterior motive or where it had already made up its mind,” English said in the decision.

“Mr Lawrence’s verbal comments to Ms Hull at the time, which he confirmed in email shortly thereafter, that the restructuring process would be needed regardless of the surrounding circumstances to get her out of the business, amount to an unjustified action.”

Lawrence told the authority there were three actions he considered serious misconduct justifying dismissal.

He said Hull had allowed mentor Neil Craig to provide an unsecured loan to Sleaktek rather than investing via a Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE-note); that she sent what Lawrence referred to as a “begging email” to a potential funder; and that she allegedly blackmailed him.

English ruled that no serious misconduct had occurred by Hull and she was acting in the best interests of the company.

Lawrence also accused Hull of a “hostile takeover” of Sleaktek alongside chief financial officer Bobby Kanji and Craig.

The group met to discuss further funding solutions and Lawrence accused Hull of attempting to take shares from him.

However, English dismissed the takeover claim along with the company’s other counterclaims against Hull.

Hull told the authority she was left feeling “personally and professionally upset and humiliated” and that her professional reputation had been tarnished by repeated, unfounded and public allegations of serious misconduct.

English ruled Hull had been disadvantaged by Sleaktek by having her “integrity and competency brought into question”.

Brianna McIlraith is a Queenstown-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the lower South Island. She has been a journalist since 2018 and has had a strong interest in business and financial journalism.