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COUNCIL BRIEF
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The monthly newspaper of the
Wellington Branch NZ Law Society
OCTOBER 2014
ISSUE 440
President’s Column
Watching out for each other –
‘Practising Well’ and other matters
By Nerissa Barber, President, Wellington Branch, NZLS
A recent American survey
cited the disturbing statistic
that lawyers are 3.6 times
more likely to suffer from
depression than non-lawyers.
One of our Wellington
Branch Council’s most important priorities this term is
advancing initiatives relating to the welfare of
members of our profession.
This includes establishing a “welfare committee” to offer assistance to people in need
within the profession, and raising the profile
of the Solicitors Benevolent Fund. (This has
helped many lawyers over the years in financial stress.) Julia White has plans underway
for a Benevolent Fund charity fundraising
event in February next year. There is an article
on the Benevolent Fund (‘Benevolent Fund
crucial to all…’) on page 7 in this issue of
Council Brief.
Practising Well
Our Branch Manager, Catherine Harris, in
addition to providing support to our Wellington profession, leads the New Zealand Law
Society’s Practising Well Programme. The
Council’s “practising well” working party of
Mary More, Melanie Baker, Julia White, Katie Elkin and Vicky Anderson, is undertaking
further planning.
Admission to the profession
Around 70 lawyers were admitted to the
profession in ceremonies in the High Court on
Friday 19 September. I was privileged to
move the admission of two applicants and was
again inspired by the insightful addresses
from the presiding Judiciary. The Wellington
Branch Council hosts a welcome lunch for the
newly admitted lawyers, their moving counsel
and families and this is a wonderful opportuni-
ty for members of Council to meet the newest
members of the profession, and for us to encourage them to participate in our Branch’s
many activities. It was also very nice that
Christine Grice, Executive Director of the
New Zealand Law Society joined us.
Shirley Smith Address
The Shirley Smith Address was again an
outstanding success. The Auditorium at Victoria University’s Law School was packed for
a thought-provoking address by the Honourable Justice Susan Glazebrook DNZM on protecting the vulnerable in the 21st century, an
international perspective. My thanks to our
Women in Law committee and particularly
Ruth Nichols, and co-convenors of the committee Karen Feint and Georgina Rood.
Breakfast meeting
Our September breakfast Council meeting
was an opportunity to hear from Christine
Grice, Executive Director and Mark Wilton
Wellington Vice President on happenings at
the national level. Council members also took
the opportunity to discuss the LCRO backlog
and other matters of concern with Christine.
Call to Inner Bar
Also in September, the New Zealand Bar
Association hosted an excellent evening at
Fratelli celebrating the calling to the Inner
Bar of David Laurenson, Matthew McClelland, Matthew Palmer and Paul Radich. This
was ably MC’ed by Lisa Hansen, and with
brilliant speeches by each of our new Queen’s
Counsel. A great night had by all.
And more than 80 members of the profession enjoyed a fabulous evening at the Hutt
Valley Lawyers’ Dinner at La Bella Italia.
Continued page 2
The recent Wairarapa Bar dinner almost finished before it began after a fire alarm
caused a rapid evacuation into the chilly Greytown night. Christine Grice, Judge Binns,
Steph Dyhrberg, Mark Wilton and Nerissa Barber seem happy enough. Fortunately, the
fire brigade quickly established that there was no danger and the enjoyable event could
continue. The guest address from Sir Anand Satanyand was warmly appreciated.
More pictures page 6
The Marlborough connection
By Nerissa Barber
A WARM hello to Simon Gaines,
President of the Marlborough Branch
and to all our colleagues in
Marlborough. On Friday 12
September I attended the Marlborough
Branch’s get-together at the
Cornerstone Bar and Restaurant in
Blenheim.
My thanks to Simon, Jacki Eves,
Rennie Gould, and to everyone else for
making David and me so welcome.
Details of Marlborough Branch
events are posted in e-brief. I hope we
get to welcome our colleagues on this
side of the Strait sometime soon!
Horowhenua change 2
Shirley Smith Address 4-5
Benevolent Fund 7
Louise Elder 3
Wairarapa Dinner 6
Hutt Bar Dinner 8
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Page 2 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
From page 1
Wellington Branch Diary October
President’s Column
Thursday 9 October
Courts and Tribunals Committee
Family Law Committee
This year’s guest speaker was His
Honour Judge Bill Hastings, who
provided wonderful anecdotes and
insights from his career as Chief
Censor, and head of the Office of
Film and Literature classification.
A real treat. My thanks to His Honour, and to the organisers: master of
ceremonies, Ed Cox, and Melanie
Baker who provided a toast to our
friends who had passed away.
Monday-Tuesday 13-14 October
10th Employment Law Conference, NZLS CLE Conference, Auckland. 13 CPD Hrs.
Wednesday 15 October
Trusts – compliance and risk, NZLS CLE Webinar, 11.00am-noon,
1 CPD Hours
Wellington Branch Council meeting
Thursday 16 October
District Court Procedures: review and reform, NZLS CLE Seminar.
Noon-2pm. Hotel Coachman, Palmerston North. 2 CPD Hours
Jeremy Cooper, Kelvin Campbell and Ross Kerr.
Friday 17 October
Parole Law Committee
Monday 20 October
Logic for Lawyers, NZLS CLE Workshop, Wellington Club, 9am-4pm.
5 CPD Hours
Monday-Tuesday 20-21 October
Introduction to High Court Civil Litigation Skills, NZLS CLE Entry Level
Programme, Terrace Conference Centre. 9 CPD Hours
Tuesday 21 October
Advanced Logic for Lawyers, NZLS CLE Workshop, Wellington Club,
9am-4pm. 5 CPD Hours
Mediation – how to influence the outcome, NZLS CLE Seminar. Terrace
Conference Centre. 2-5pm. 2.5 CPD Hours. (Webinar 9.30-11.30am, 2 CPD Hrs)
Thursday 23 October
Human Rights Law Committee
Thursday-Friday 23-24 October
CORO Conference 2014 – Conference of Regulatory Officers, NZLS Conference,
Rydges Hotel Wellington. www.lawyerseducation.co.nz
9 CPD Hours
Tuesday 28 October
Health Law Committee
Wednesday 29 October
Asset Protection Update, NZLS CLE Seminar, NZICA. 2-5pm.
2.5 CPD Hours. (Webinar 10.30-11.30am, 1 CPD Hours)
Legal Assistance Committee
Thursday 30 October
Employment Law Committee
Public Law Committee
Friday 31 October
Women, the Law and the Corner Office, NZLS CLE Conference,
InterContinental. 6 CPD Hours
Women in Law Committee
Changes in Horowhenua firm
JEREMY Cooper and Ross Kerr
have sold their Levin-based
practice to Kelvin Campbell, who
has shifted from the South Island
with his wife and two young
children. The firm is now known as
Cooper Campbell Law. Kelvin has
had a number of years’ legal work
in government departments and
more recently in private practice.
He co-edits Brookers Law of
Transportation, and brings a wide
experience in prosecutions and also
in court work – civil and criminal,
youth and family.
Ross and Jeremy were both admitted in February 1970 at Wellington. The firm has served the
Horowhenua since 1971, when Jeremy Cooper joined the practices
named Philip & Cooper and then
Bertram, Grover & Co. Ross Kerr
practised in several Wellington law
firms, before spending 12 years in
the Wellington City Council legal
office, latterly as its assistant city
solicitor, before he joined Jeremy’s
firm in 1990, subsequently becoming his partner in 1999.
They both remain as consultants
to the firm.
For his part, Jeremy is in a long
family legal tradition, which has included his grandfather, Harold
Cooper (of Cooper Rapley, Palmerston North, died 1948) and father,
A.R.Cooper (of Hornblow, Cooper
& Co, Wellington, died 1968);
whilst his daughter Wendy Cooper
is an IRD solicitor, and her two
sons David McLellan (now overseas) and George McLellan (of Mai
Chen, Auckland) continue the tradition.
COUNCIL BRIEF CROSSWORD
PRACTISING WELL
You can use this diagram for either the Quick or Cryptic Clues, but the answers
in each case are different. This month’s solutions are on page 7.
Chaplain, Julia Coleman, 027 285 9115
Cryptic Clues
ACROSS
7. Putting back in the ice-box? It’s
terrifying (5-8)
8. They prevent low joints being
exposed (8)
9. What one has to do for tax (4)
10. Remained sober, we hear (6)
12. Consumer round the south associated
with eggs (6)
14. He originated many current devices
(6)
16. There is one on both sides of the
capital where services are held (6)
18. Strikes back to prepare for a fight (4)
20. They follow on at the back to show
what is coming ahead! (8)
22. Made out to be illustrious (13)
DOWN
1. Full of life, but secretly abducted (8)
2. Among those who give the verdict for
damage (6)
3. Some of the elder cardinals hold the
measure back (4)
4. Men’s tips badly used (8)
5. Oars used by the cutter (6)
6. A tough piece of wood giving a
negative result, one hears (4)
11. Got in and changed to acting as a
benefactor (8)
13. Altered the size of the shot (8)
15. Moves conceitedly - members taking
the strain! (6)
17. Harry the underground worker has a
short way for traffic! (6)
19. Soft melody - two in fact (4)
21. Lily shows a certain spirit (4)
Conferences
October 3-6 2014 – 27th Lawasia
Conference, Bangkok. lawasia.asn.au
October 9 2014 – RMA, Emergency
Management & Infrastructure Resilience,
Resource Management Law Association Wgtn,
DLA Phillips Fox. www.rmla.org.nz
October 13-14 2014 – Employment Law
Biennial Conference, Auckland. NZLS CLE
Conference.
October 16 2014 – CLANZMini – Legal
Project Management, Rydges Hotel,
Wellington. [email protected]
October 19-24 2014 – IBA Annual
Conference, Tokyo. www.ibanet.org
October 22-24 2014 – The Australian & NZ
Sports Law Association (ANZSLA) 24th
Annual
Conference,
Adelaide.
www.anzsla.com.au
October 23-24 2014 – CORO Conference
Wellington: Conference of Regulatory Officers,
Rydges Hotel Wellington. NZ Law Society.
October 31 2014 – Women, the Law and the
Corner office, Wellington. NZLS CLE
Conference. www.lawyerseducation.co.nz
October 31 2014 – Mental Health Law
Conference, Wellington. Claro and ANZAPPL.
Email Anne Le’aupepe, [email protected]
November 14 2014 – NZ Supreme Court: the
first ten years, Auckland Law School.
[email protected]
November 17-18 2014 – Intellectual Property
and Alternative Regimes: is there life outside the
big three? NZ Centre of International Economic
Law. Wellington. [email protected]
November 16-18 2014 – ACFE Asia-Pacific
Fraud Conference, Hong Kong. www.acfe.com
December 3-5 2014 – Law and Society
Association of Australia & NZ Annual
Conference, Queensland. www.law.uq.edu.au/lsc
January 31-February 1 2015 – International
Criminal Law: IBA annual conference, The
Hague, Netherlands. www.ibanet.org
February 23-24 2015 – 7th Annual Elder law
Conference, Auckland. www.conferenz.co.nz
April 12-16 2015 – 19th Commonwealth Law
Confererence, Glasgow. www.clc2015.co.uk
April 30 2015 – The Maritime Law
Association of Australia and NZ Conference,
Taupo. www.mlaanz.org
Louise Elder
Earlier in the month I attended
the funeral of past Council member
Louise Elder in Masterton. Over
800 people packed the church to
reminisce about Louise, her life and
contribution to the law. Mark
Wilton, who grew up in Masterton
and had organised a Wairarapa Bar
Dinner with Louise, spoke for the
Law Society. I sat next to one of
Louise’s former clients, who spoke
of the extent to which Louise had
helped her over the years. A large
number of our profession from the
Wairarapa and Wellington attended. Our thanks to Louise’s colleagues, particularly members of
the Family Law Section, who have
been providing much help and support with Louise’s law practice. Our
thoughts are with her family and our
colleagues in the Wairarapa.
Quick Clues
ACROSS
7. G. Britain and N.
Ireland (6,7)
8. Taciturn (8)
9. Competent (4)
10. Mild (6)
12. Deed (6)
14. Roadway (6)
16. Tried (6)
18. Urge forward (4)
20. Way in (8)
22. R e l i g i o u s
organisation (9,4)
DOWN
1. Concern (8)
2. Severe (6)
3. Lazy (4)
4. Divert (8)
5. Horrified (6)
6. Labour (4)
11. Petition (8)
13. Conquer (8)
15. Salad-plant (6)
17. Sailor (6)
19. Spoken (4)
21. Jog (4)
Council Brief Advertising
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MA
DESIGN
m
Answers: See page 11
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It is white’s turn to move.
should white do?
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COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014 – Page 3
OBITUARY
‘One of a kind…’ Louise Elder – 13 August 1964 - 8 September 2014
MEMBERS of the legal
profession were stunned and
saddened by the sudden death of
Masterton lawyer Louise Elder,
aged 50, on 8 September 2014.
Colleagues, court staff, police
and clients were all profoundly
shocked to hear the tragic news at
a Masterton District Court sitting
that morning, causing the abandonment of the session.
Described as a “defender of
the weak, representative of the
downtrodden, a great litigator,
someone who made a difference”, and also “vivacious, happy, outgoing, and free-spirited”,
Louise ran her own law practice
in Masterton as a criminal defence and family court lawyer.
Her practice was wide-ranging
and included youth work, civil
litigation and compliance prosecutions, as well as a great deal of
pro bono work for SPCA, Forest
and Bird and other clients.
Louise was born on 13 August
1964 in West Drayton on the
western edge of greater London
and lived with her family in a
small Norfolk village for her first
few years. Her father George was
in the Royal Air Force and the
family – mum Angela and children Louise, Nigel and Philip,
moved frequently – as is the way
of military families – living in
East Anglia but also in North
Wales and most memorably in
Hong Kong from 1969 to 1971.
Older brother Nigel Elder,
speaking at Louise’s funeral, said
she was a very happy little girl
who made friends easily and
managed the frequent changes of
school with aplomb. “She was
talented in many areas and was
always a ‘sporty tryer’,” he said.
“She was a ‘mature sister’ to both younger
brother Philip and to
myself.”
In 1977 her father
George completed 20
years service and retired
from the military. This
provided an opportunity
to take stock and look
around at opportunities
and as a result the family decided to start a new
life outside the UK in
New Zealand. They set
up home first in Johnsonville and Louise,
then 13, went to Onslow
College. A move a few
months later to the
Wairarapa took Louise
to Solway College and
then for her last two
years to Wairarapa College.
She studied at Victoria University, majoring
in anthropology for a BA, but
being of pragmatic disposition
thought that she may have limited her job prospects and decided
to study for a second degree in
law.
While a student at Vic the
more “free-spirited” aspects of
her personality came to the fore.
Georgina Miller, a close friend
from student days, related Louise’s formation of the “Growlers” hockey team, later
transformed into a netball team,
which included Louise wearing a
set of so-called “elephant undies” that caused consternation
and dismay among opponents.
The team played together for a
decade.
“An early hint of her litigation
skills came with her debating with
the referees, opponents and their
supporters… She was sparkling,
loyal, funny and irreverent, a
friend for life.”
Georgina said Louise loved
shopping, particularly for shoes,
and dressed really well. “She also
loved parties and dancing – she
was like a real life Patsy from Ab
Fab.”
Louise was admitted to the bar
on 2 November 1988 and went to
work with Phillips Shayle George
in Wellington, becoming a duty
solicitor in 1989. In January 1991
she joined Burridge & Co in Masterton where she was responsible
for building and maintaining the
firm’s litigation practice, both
criminal and family. She joined
Gawith & Co in Masterton in 1994, became
a partner in 1996, and
continued in the
merged firm of Gawith
Burridge until she set
out on her own as a
barrister in 2003.
She was a youth advocate in the Youth
Court and a lawyer for
the child in the Family
Court, and also represented those with mental illness. NZ Law
Society Vice President
Mark Wilton said Louise excelled in representing the most
vulnerable members of
the community. “Her
passionate and powerful representation obtained outstanding
outcomes for her clients and she changed
their lives… she was a
dynamo lawyer full of energy
with a wonderful can-do attitude
who made a difference.”
She served as Wairarapa representative on the NZ Law Society Wellington Branch between
2009 and 2010 and recently became a tutor at the Institute of
legal Studies, passing on her
skills to a new generation of advocates.
Friend and colleague Jock
Blathwayt said Louise built the
largest personal practice in the
district, particularly representing
those most at risk. “I have heard
many people say ‘I was a client
of Lou’s – she was my friend’.
When she started in the Wairarapa she was a country lawyer and
did everything, and she contin-
ued to do a surprising range of
work.”
Louise Elder was a special kind
of lawyer and she was also unique
in the way she ran her court practice while caring for her three
children.
Jock Blathwayt: “Intertwined
with her professional life were her
children Hannah, Maddy and Izzy.
The library at the Masterton District Court was the nursery. I remember a prison guard with a
bemused expression with a baby in
his arms. There was a jacket Lou
often wore with dribble down its
back – we all put in for dry cleaning for that. She was the only counsel I have seen appearing in court
with a child latched on!”
Louise was described as a
“fiercely proud mother”. She was
deeply involved in her children’s
many interests, including dancing, swimming, hockey and
school.
Jock Blathwayt again: “She
had a complex structure of friends
often linked by text messaging. It
didn’t look as if it was under control but it was. She had a facade of
casualness, sometimes marked by
sudden disappearances from
court. But she was a top-notch
lawyer, respected by clients, colleagues, police and court staff. I
was privileged to be a sounding
board and friend.”
Jock Blathwayt said it was inevitable to rail against the unfairness of it – the loss of a friend,
partner and mother. “But when I
think that, I feel her tap on my
shoulder. Lou was a pragmatist –
she did not take on battles she
knew she could not win…she was
one of a kind.”
Tributes to Louise may be left on – http://www.heavenaddress.co.nz/Catherine-Louise-Louise-Elder/892510/
New Council
Library News
Thomson Reuters database
changes – training offered
By Robin Anderson Wellington Branch Librarian
Thomson Reuters / Westlaw NZ changes
Thomson Reuters is transferring all its
online clients from the old Brookers Online
platform to the new Westlaw NZ platform.
As part of this process, they will offer training in October in the Wellington Library as
well as offering other training to their subscribers. Because the look and feel of the
new site is so different, we urge regular library users of Brookers Online to take the
opportunity to update your online research
skills with these sessions.
Library photograph collection
The library has a collection of old photographs of the profession and of both New
Zealand and English judges. Recently, all of
these that are not in the main library area
have been rehung in the Robing Room. There
are photographs of the Wellington profession
from the early 20th century onwards as well
as English judges from the same period and a
collection of New Zealand judges. There are
even a few more to be put up once the frames
have been repaired.
New Canadian database
Canadian Case Digests is the online version
of the Canadian Abridgement case digests
which the Wellington Library used to subscribe to several years ago. The easiest way to
access the information is by subject and drilling down. The database has over 840,000 case
digests in 55 subject areas. It is a useful supplement to Bestcase which is also in the Wellington, Canterbury and Auckland libraries.
New Branch Council member – Julia White
JULIA WHITE is a
senior solicitor in
Buddle
Findlay’s
resource management
and Maori law team
where her practice
focuses on drafting
Treaty
settlement
deeds,
consenting
large infrastructure
projects, and advising local government
clients.
Julia graduated from the University of
Auckland with a BA and LLB with honours and was admitted to the bar in 2004.
She began legal practice as clerk to David
Williams QC, then moved to barrister sole
in Bankside Chambers.
She has also been admitted in the Australian Capital Territory where she worked
in 2006 for DLA Philips Fox.
Julia’s two children, now six and seven,
were born when she was back in New Zealand from 2007, this time in Wellington.
During this time she also worked as a consultant to the Electricity Authority and the
Wellington Regional Council.
She is a member of a number of professional bodies including the Resource Management Law Association, Women in
Mining New Zealand, and the Wellington
branch of the New Zealand Law Association for which she is a council member.
In her spare time Julia loves oil painting
and has sold a few pieces. She also enjoys
running, skiing and travelling. She is a
long-standing volunteer at the Wellington
Community Law Centre.
Julia is looking forward to putting her
energy into the Council’s work and exploring with fellow Council representatives new initiatives to benefit Branch
members.
Page 4 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
SHIRLEY SMITH ADDRESS
Protecting the vulnerable in the 21st century
By Georgina Rood
THE seventh annual Shirley Smith
Address was held on 17 September,
with around 250 guests attending to
hear Justice Susan Glazebrook
DNZM speak on the issues faced
by displaced women and children
around the world.
The Address is organised each
year by the Wellington Branch
Women in Law Committee, to honour the late Shirley Smith. Shirley
was New Zealand’s first woman
law lecturer, and was a wellrespected advocate for the marginalised and for the role of women in
the legal profession. The Address
has quickly become a major feature
of the Wellington legal community’s calendar.
In her address, Justice Glazebrook examined how the 1951
Convention relating to the Status of
Refugees could apply to women
and children affected by four current issues: gender-based violence,
residence in refugee camps, climate
change, and natural disasters. Justice Glazebrook began by noting
the Convention’s limitations: it
does not apply to internallydisplaced persons, it has a specific
definition of “refugee” which an individual claiming protection must
meet, and it requires an individual
to reach a country which is party
to the Convention. Each of these
limitations has consequences for
women and children facing displacement.
Justice Glazebrook explained
that one-third of women have experienced physical or sexual domestic
violence, or sexual non-domestic
world. Conditions are often difficult, and women and girls face particular risk of rape and sexual abuse
while living in these temporary
communities. Justice Glazebrook
set out how difficult it is for refugees to leave these camps, with resettlement being particularly
difficult to achieve. In 2013, 27
states accepted 91,000 refugees for
resettlement: amounting to less
than 1 percent of refugees living in
camps. Women and girls find it especially difficult to leave because
of limited mobility (particularly
due to children) and resources.
Justice Glazebrook DNZM
violence. However, gender is not
one of the grounds of persecution
set out in the Convention, and so a
degree of legal maneuvering is required to bring those suffering persecution because of their gender
within its scope. Some states (including New Zealand) have held
that gender can be a ground of persecution under the Convention’s
catch-all “members of a particular
social group” provision. However,
an individual must prove causation
between acts of persecution and
their gender, and that there has been
a failure by their own state to protect them. Ultimately, as Justice
Glazebrook noted, most victims of
gender-based violence are not able
to claim Convention protection because they do not have the resources to leave their own country.
More than four million people
live in refugee camps around the
Climate change
Justice Glazebrook also addressed the growing threat of climate change, which will inevitably
lead to food insecurity, loss of land,
and damage to ecosystems. She
poor, they are likely to be disproportionately affected. Justice
Glazebrook concluded that the
Convention is unlikely to be able to
assist those forced to leave their
homes because of climate change:
though they are involuntary migrants, there is no act of persecution.
Justice Glazebrook then discussed the similar lack of legal protections available to refugees of
natural disasters. As is the case with
climate change, the Convention
cannot assist those who are displaced by natural disasters, particularly given that such refugees are
often internally displaced (rather
than displaced across borders). Justice Glazebrook highlighted the effect of natural disasters on women
and children with the surprising
fact that women are consistently
More than four million people live
in refugee camps around the world.
Conditions are often difficult, and
women and girls face particular
risk of rape and sexual abuse…
pointed out that this will have major consequences for the more than
200 million people living in lowlying coastal regions. It is predicted
that those living in poverty will
bear the brunt of climate change’s
impact and, given that women
make up 70 percent of the world’s
much more likely than men to die in
a natural disaster when one strikes.
The Boxing Day Tsunami, for example, killed three times as many
women as it did men.
Having seen how the Convention struggles to address many of
the issues facing vulnerable women
Committee report
Prisoners, prisons and parole – the big question
By Judith Fyfe, Convenor, Parole Law Committee
A NEW Wellington Branch
committee was established last
year for lawyers who specialise in
parole law.
An informal parole law interest
group had already existed for several years for the purposes of professional development, education,
law reform and collegiality.
ers in custody or released on parole.
The purpose of the meetings is to
also upgrade our skills and keep up
with legislative, regulatory and policy development. We invite representatives from the Department of
Corrections, the Ministry of Justice
as well as the New Zealand Parole
Board to meet with us.
Informal group
Last year the group determined
that it was time to formalise what
has been an informal collective and
become a NZLS Wellington
Branch Committee. By becoming
a committee it would add status to
the group and avoid the notion that
we might be excluding those already involved in, or interested in
taking up, this type of legal work.
We met several times a year
over the past three years, usually at
the Law Society offices, to consolidate our work as specialists in an
increasingly demanding area of
law. The overall objective is to
ensure that we are providing the
best services we can to our clients
who are mainly sentenced prison-
Prison security requirements
In addition to the meetings the
group maintains email contact fortnightly, or as an issue arises. For
example, there have been a number
of issues for lawyers entering prisons as a result of increased security
requirements introduced by the Department of Corrections and these
have been discussed by email.
Parole law is increasingly complex and remains separate from other jurisdictions. This is being
recognised by Legal Aid Services,
Ministry of Justice, who are in the
process of considering that parole
law should be identified as a special
interest category for legal aid purposes.
We are optimistic that this will
happen which makes it even more
essential that there is a body identified as experts which can be consulted about this particular area of
law. Wishing to become more
proactive in terms of ongoing professional development, one of the
functions of the committee would
be organising events that meet the
criteria for CPD.
A number of seminars have been
held over the past year. The most
recent was “Risk Assessment reports – do the Pyschologists get it
right?”. Potential reoffending before the end of sentence is the focus
of the Parole Board when deciding
whether to release an offender to
complete his or her sentence in the
community rather than prison. In
considering this the Board is influenced by reports prepared by
Department of Corrections psychologists. David Riley, former
director of psychological services
and the architect of the main assessment tool used by psychologists, was the ideal person to
address the seminar topic. He provided a fascinating history of risk
assessment, moving from analysing
bumps on the head through to the
current scientific methods of risk
prediction.
The big question
The big question is: is a prisoner
likely to offend if released before
their sentence ends? Clearly scientific tools are preferable to a reading of the physiognomy as a means
answering that question.
and children today, Justice Glazebrook raised the question of whether a new legal instrument is
required. She gave the example of
the Nansen Initiative, driven by the
Norwegian and Swiss governments, which aims to work towards
a protection agenda for people displaced across borders because of
natural disasters and climate
change.
Justice Glazebrook’s address
was an eye-opening reminder that,
while international legal instruments have an important role to
play in protecting the vulnerable, as
the international environment
changes, so too must the legal
framework.
First woman law graduate
Appropriately, the same night as
this year’s address the Victoria
University of Wellington Law Review released a Special Edition in
celebration of the centenary of Victoria University’s first woman law
graduate, Harriette Vine. An article
written by Shirley Smith for a 1993
edition of the Review, ‘My life in
the law’, is republished in the Special Edition.
The Committee would like to
thank Thorndon Chambers for their
generous continued support of the
Address, the Wellington Branch of
the New Zealand Law Society and,
of course, Justice Glazebrook, who
has always been a keen supporter of
the Committee and its work.
CLANZ mini
conference
CLANZ is hosting a Legal Project
Management mini-conference
open to all lawyers on Thursday 16
October, 1.00pm-5.30pm, to be
held at Rydges Hotel in Featherston
Street.
Among the speakers will be
Mark Binns, CEO Meridian Energy. For more information and
registration
apply
to:
[email protected]
Council Brief Advertising
[email protected]
Post-grad law study in Melbourne
THE Melbourne Law School at The University of Melbourne is offering
teaching fellowships for PhD students.
In 2015 the Law School has five teaching fellowships available for
outstanding law PhD candidates.
Each fellowship includes mentoring by senior academics and compehensive paid teacher training and teaching experience, as well as inclusion
in the intellectual life of the law school.
The university also offers a number of scholarships to cover fees and
living allowanaces.
Applications for the fellowships close on 12 October 2014, and applications for PhD and MPhil scholarships for Australian and New Zealand
residents close on 31 October 2014.
More information may be found at www.law.unimelb.edu.au/graduateresearch or by emailing Mr Demi Córdoba in the office for research [email protected]
COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014 – Page 5
SHIRLEY SMITH ADDRESS
Shirlene Anand, Elisabeth Perham, Zsofia Hellyer and Lydia Nobbs.
Choose New Zealand’s premier
Law School for your LLM
Hon Justice Arnold, Liesle Theron and Karen Clark QC.
The Faculty of Law at Victoria University of Wellington scores a
consistently high ranking in international surveys and provides its
students access to unique learning opportunities.
Learning from the law makers
Being located in the capital city, law students at Victoria have the special opportunity to learn in the
place where law is made. The nation’s higher courts, parliament and government agencies are all
here in Wellington, so students get to see cutting-edge modern law in action.
David Green, Matthew Smith and Tiho Mijatov.
Our location means we have access to judges and senior government oﬃcials, who interact with the
faculty as adjunct lecturers in a series of public lectures and programmes of internships at Master's level.
Learning from history
Legal education and its development in Wellington is steeped in history. Law has been taught at
Victoria since the University was established in ��, with the Faculty itself established in ��. Our
Law Review was the ﬁrst to be established in New Zealand in ��.
Learning to suit you
Caroline Rieger, Helen Mackay, Erin Judge, Mark Wilton and Amy Webster.
The LLM at Victoria is a bespoke degree that can be tailored to suit the needs of our students. All of
our academic staﬀ can provide supervised research for Master's degrees and many also supervise PhD
students in their specialist areas.
Learn with the best. Ask about the LLM at Victoria University of Wellington today.
victoria.ac.nz/law
Hon Justice O’Regan KNZM and Hon Sir Hugh Williams QC.
FL��
Brittany Peck and Shanelle Lovegrove.
Hon Justice Susan Glazebrook DNZM who presented the 2014 Shirley Smith Address recently. With her are Shirley
Smith’s daughter Helen Sutch (second from left),and Women in Law Committee members who organised the event:
Karen Feint, Ruth Nichols and Georgina Rood.
Wendy Aldred and Dr Matthew Palmer QC.
Page 6 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
WAIRARAPA ANNUAL DINNER
Andrew Beck, Michael Bale and Matt Adams.
Aroha Black, Steph Dyhrberg and Catherine Rodgers,
while Michael Bale ‘photobombs’ at rear.
Jock Kershaw, Erica Mules and Adam Parker.
John Porter, Mark Hinton and Sir Anand Satyanand
who was guest speaker.
John Greenwood and Christine Grice.
Lance Pratley, Pam Davidson and Graeme Holmes.
Christian Jorgesen, Lindsay Gribben, Jonathan Tanner and Desiree Harvey.
Graeme Reeves and Gareth Bodle.
Anna Bargh and Mark Wilton.
Christine Grice, Judge Jennifer Binns and Judge Barbara Morris.
Milling around in the wilds of Greytown – forlorn Law Society diners wait for the fire brigade to
ensure that the building is safe after a fire alarm.
Nerissa Barber, Andrew Beck, Robin Anderson and Tony Garstang.
John Morrison, John Monk and Judge Grace.
Mark Hinton, Belinda Inglis, Virginia Anderson and John Porter.
COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014 – Page 7
ADMISSIONS
BENEVOLENT FUND
Benevolent Fund crucial to all
age groups says Trustee
Admittee Charlotte Haigh with partner Dave Longhurst and daugher Elizabeth,
her mother Libby Haigh, and brother Alex Haigh with Theodore.
Admittee Craig Hardie with his family, l to r, dad Grant Hardie, wife Alice, children Emily,
Lillian, Matthew and Samuel.
Admittee Martin Bryant with mother Shelley,
Wellington Branch president Nerissa Barber
and Hon Justice Denis Clifford.
Admittee Paul McGregor with parents Pam
and Carl McGregor and Ellie White.
Admittee Michelle Payne with parents
Alan and Judy Payne.
IT is a common misconception that the
Solicitors’ Benevolent Fund is aimed at
mature members of the legal community,
Fund Trustee Wayne Chapman says.
“There are many scenarios which present
themselves. For instance, illness does not discriminate against age – it can affect anyone at
any time. The fund is an extension of the
collegiality of the profession and that it is
useful for there to be a fund that can be used
to help members of the profession who are
suffering hardship, essentially through no
fault of their own,” Mr Chapman says.
Trustee Lance Pratley says the fund “dovetails” by not only helping the beneficiary, but
also the wider legal community.
“For example, the Benevolent Fund gets
people through that stand-down period of income insurance. It could pay the rent, enabling a firm to tick over during an extremely
difficult time and also help support staff
whose livelihoods require that the firm continues to operate and allow the practitioner to
concentrate on what is important,” Mr Pratley
says.
Wellington Branch Manager Catherine
Harris – who receives requests for loans directly from practitioners – says that over the
years, hundreds of local practitioners have
benefited from scheme, but says more regular
donations would go a long way in enhancing
its effectiveness.
“Grants and non-interest bearing loans to
the value of about $25,000 were disbursed to
practitioners between 2012 and 2104. Many
of the beneficiaries who received these loans
were suffering from the strain of having to
care for family members with life threatening
illnesses.
“More donations would allow us to help
more local practitioners and their families,”
Ms Harris says
She says the Benevolent Fund bank account details are now available on the Wellington Branch website and that donations
over $5 are tax deductible.
The Solicitors’ Benevolent Fund began 73
years ago when a Wellington practitioner
gifted the Wellington District Law Society
300 pounds to assist local practitioners.
Confidential grants are made on a case-bycase basis and neither the trustees nor the
New Zealand Law Society take any fees from
the fund.
All donations go directly to the capital
reserve. The Trust is registered as a charitable
trust number CC48709 and has tax deductible status.
Payments can be made to: Bank of New
Zealand: 02-0506-0101108-097
For more information visit https://
my.lawsociety.org.nz/branches/wellington/solicitors-benevolent-fund.
To speak to someone about how to donate, please contact Wellington Branch
Manager Catherine Harris on (04) 463
2921.
Admittee Matthew Webb with Gordon and
Wendy Webb and Wellington Branch
Council member David Dunbar (right).
Admittee Thomas McKearney (third from right) with his moving counsel Nigel Salmons
and from left Denise McKearney, Jessica Kelly, Suzanne Woodward and Peter McKearney.
Admittee Sarah Zydervelt with Hannah
and Erik Zydervelt.
Admittee Helen Dorgan with mother Kathryn
Scully (right) and aunt Nicole Scully.
Candidates admitted to the Bar on 19 September 2014
Mathew Thomas Brown
Craig Lawrence Hardie
Kate Powdrell Henderson
Maeve Evelyn Tess Jones
Kate Louise Maclean
Paul Russell McGregor
Thomas James McKearney
Megan Jane Neill
Nicole Anne Scully
Rachel Megan Ward
Kelsie Ellen Wilkinson
Molly Jane Woods
Gabriel Robert Abdale-Weir
Sarah Eve Baillie
Adam William Goodall
Lucie Julia Greenwood
Charlotte Elizabeth Haigh
George Livingstone Andrews Milne
Sarah Kate McLaughlin
Duran Wong Moy
Michelle Elizabeth Payne
Nicholas Dean Phillips
Vladimir Samoylov
Matthew Phillip Webb
Sarah Rachael Zydervelt
Marama Margaret Broughton
Martin Paul Bryan
Hannah Louise Ferguson
Sarah Emily Jane Grogan
Amelia Marama Guy-Meakin
James Timothy Harty
Mothla Majeed
Malisa Rachel Mulholland
Natasha Kirsty Ng
Jeremy Riddle
Emmalee Sherritt Smith
Patrick Lee Wilson
Che James Ammon
Aidan Matthew Cameron
Camilla Peace Chaplow
Timothy Norman Earle
Joshua Rene Boni Guzman
Anna Maria Kokje
Meghan Kate Nicholson
Danielle Hilary Ross
Christopher Dean Scarrott
Ashleigh Rose Warren
Crystal Sarah Wilson
Michael David Beecroft
Michael Jonathon
Rutherford Blaschke
Jordan Peter Antony Boyle
Abby Ruth Hassan
Buchanan
Joanna Mary Dawn Clifford
Luke Samuel Fitzmaurice
Stephanie Kate Simone
George
Eva Huang
Rosemary Elizabeth Marion
Hodson
Arthur Mugambi
Wade Campbell Pearson
Laura Jane Pouri-Robertson
Anya Nicole Tovey
These pictures were
taken at the
Wellington Branch
social function held
on 19 September to
welcome newly
admitted members
and their families to
the legal profession.
Council Brief Advertising [email protected]
Page 8 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
HUTT BAR DINNER
Mary More, David Dunbar, Catherine Rodgers and Steph Dyhrberg.
Craig Foster and Vicki Nathan.
Gerard Dewar, Chris O’Connor and John Tannahill.
Judge Jill Moss, Jodi Ongley, Jacinda Rennie and Vicki Nathan.
Collette Mackenzie and Lisa Grant.
Amy Croft and Steven Lack.
Judge John Walker and David Butler.
David Butler, Lynda Stevens and Russell Buchanan.
Ashika Bali and David Dunbar.
Liz Hall, Carolyn Heaton and Brett Crowley.
Sam Walker and Mike Barnes.
Nick Davis, Emma Cooney and Anna Chapman.
Sarah Ineson and Danni Ross
Will Notices
Katy Martley, Stephen Iorns, guest speaker Judge Bill Hastings,
and Matt Anderson.
on page 12
Council Brief Advertising
Phyllis Strachan, Annette Gray, Melanie Baker and Nerissa Barber.
[email protected]
COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014 – Page 9
VUW LAW FACULTY
Limping towards constitutional change – view from the UK
By Professor Tony Smith,
Dean of Victoria University’s Law School
THESE have
been interesting
times to have
been in England,
when the vote
as to whether
Scotland might
cede from the
Professor Tony Smith United Kingdom
was taken.
In the days immediately before
the vote, it began to look increasingly as though the United Kingdom was about to be no more. Even
though, in the end, the result in favour of the status quo was decisive,
plausible pundits were saying right
up to the last minute that it was too
close to call. Given the massive alterations that would have been entailed had the vote gone the other
way, it is not surprising that there
was considerable relief at the outcome in certain circles (including,
as we know from the Prime Minister’s constitutional gaffe, royal circles).
Political mistakes
The whole affair was politically
very badly handled, at least by
those who were opposed to change.
The passions to oppose at an early
stage in the referendum campaign
ran really rather low, and hindsight
disclosed that some significant
mistakes had been made by political leaders at an early stage. Why
was it that citizens in parts of the
United Kingdom other than Scot-
land, whose interests were bound to
be affected in all sorts of ways,
were not to be consulted as part of
the process? Why should the 40+
Scottish members of the United
Kingdom Parliament be permitted
to continue to sit in Westminster
and to vote there on issues that were
entirely concerned with England
and English affairs – the Conservative Party not having a single seat
north of the border? In the end,
these questions were substantially
moot.
Sleepwalking to constitutional
change
But they were evidence that the
body politic generally was sleepwalking into constitutional change,
reversing three hundred years of
history. It is no way to run a country, or several countries.
There are various aspects of the
process that are worthy of further
comment. Young people of sixteen
and seventeen were given the vote
for the purposes of this referendum.
My first reaction on learning of this
development was that it was a constitutionally questionable stratagem, largely because it had been
utilised only for the purposes of the
referendum (and my guess was that
young people might be more readily persuaded by the rhetoric in favour of change). My second
thoughts, though, were that even if
my instinctive reaction was right,
there might be some merit in lower-
NZ Law Society – Wellington Branch
Staff Directory
Branch Manager: Catherine Harris
Branch Administrator: Geeta Raman
Branch Administration Assistant: Tessa Seemann
Librarian: Robin Anderson
Research Librarian: Beth Janes
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ing the voting age for general elections. The Scottish voter turnout
was extremely high (just under 90
percent, by contrast with 77 percent
in the recently-held New Zealand
plebiscite) and it is entirely possible
that this was in part due to the larger
and younger electorate. Received
wisdom amongst the political scientists, I believe, is to the effect that
a person’s voting behaviour
throughout life will generally be set
at an early stage. A failure to vote
when the opportunity to do so first
arises is likely to become the citizen’s default practice. There might
be something to be said for capturing the younger set at a time when
their idealism and enthusiasm are
still in their first flush.
There was very little publicity
that I could find in the British press
about the General Election in New
Zealand. These days, the on-line
news sources are such that it is not
difficult to be in touch with developments to the extent that one
might wish. What is not easily captured by these news sources, however, are the differences in
constitutional culture between our
two systems. It seems to me reasonably clear that the current coalition
governing Britain is most unlikely
to survive the election next year
(the United Kingdom having recently adopted a four-year fixed
term electoral arrangement). But it
is equally clear that the party that
has provided the alternative governments for nearly a century (Labour) is also most unlikely to win a
clear majority. The current leadership (under Mr Ed Miliband) simply does not convince, and the antiEuropean, anti-immigration party
UKIP (UK Independence Party),
will in all likelihood take votes
from both parties.
Coalition likely
In other words, even with a firstpast-the-post electoral system, it
would seem that another coalition
party is on the cards, if not almost
bound to happen. But there seems
to be very little general recognition
of some of the implications of this.
Parties are still talking about what
is and is not going to be in their
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BIALL handbook of legal information management, Ashgate 2nd ed 2014
K80.A1 BIA
District Court procedures : review and reform Wellington : New Zealand Law
Society 2014 KN365.3.L1 NEW
Employment and immigration issues : practical advice and pitfalls to avoid,
Wellington : New Zealand Law Society 2014 KN192.9.Q42.L1 NEW
Environmental and resource management law, Wellington : LexisNexis NZ
3rd ed 2005 KN94.L1 ENV
International surrogacy : worldwide approaches, Wellington : New Zealand
Law Society 2014 KN172.85.L1 NEW
Introduction to advocacy, Wellington : NZLS CLE Rev ed 2014 KL93.L1 INT
Issues in unjust enrichment, Wellington : New Zealand Law Society 2014
KN20.2.L1 NEW
Mews’ digest of English case law containing the reported decisions of the
superior courts, and a selection from those of the Scottish and Irish courts
to the end of 1924, London : Sweet and Maxwell 2nd ed 1925
Reports of law cases affecting friendly societies containing most important
decisions, with copious index of practical points, table of cases, abbreviations and explanations, references to acts of parliament together with
Friendly Societies Act, 1896, ext, Manchester: Ben Johnson & Co 1897
Reports of the Decisions of Committees of the House of Commons in the
trial of converted elections during the fifteenth parliament of the United
Kingdom, London: Stevens 1853
Rural law : the big issues, Wellington : New Zealand Law Society 2014
KN98.L1 NEW
Surrogacy in New Zealand : the current legal landscape, Wellington : New
Zealand Law Society 2014 KN172.85.L1 NEW
Tax conference 4 September 2014, Wellington : New Zealand Law Society
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The Evidence Act 2006 : act and analysis, Wellington : Brookers 3rd ed 2014
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The digest of English case law containing the reported decisions of the
superior courts, and a selection from those of the Irish courts to the end of
1897 London : Sweet and Maxwell 1898
The law of affidavits, Sydney : Federation Press 2013
Youth justice in Aotearoa New Zealand : law, policy and critique, Wellington
: LexisNexis NZ 2014 KN176.L1 CLE
Book early for Law Society events!
manifesto as though they were going to have a free hand to implement these policies whatever the
outcome of the election. The Conservative Party, for example, has
committed itself to the repeal of the
Human Rights Act and withdrawal
from the European Convention on
Human Rights, and to offering to
hold a referendum on withdrawal
from the European Union. That will
undoubtedly appeal to the leader of
UKIP, but I cannot see leaders of
the other parties, whoever they
might be, wanting any part of it.
Some of the lessons of history –
even quite recent history – seem not
to have been learnt. At the last election, for example, the Liberal Democrats campaigned hard on a policy
of not raising tertiary tuition fees –
it was a central plank of their manifesto, and it would have been a policy that appealed to and attracted a
significant number of voters. Within weeks of joining the coalition,
the Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg was
forced to renege on the promises
and undertakings. He and his party
suffered a drop in popularity from
which they have never recovered.
In one sense, the lesson to be learnt
from all this is a rather unpalatable
one, so far as the voter is concerned. It is altogether safer for politicians not to nail their political
colours to the mast.
Young Lawyers
bus for Toast
Martinborough
YOUNG lawyers and friends are
invited to travel to Toast
Martinborough in the comfort of
an air-conditioned bus. Pick up
and drop off from central
Wellington at a time to be
confirmed. Sunday16 November
2014. Tickets and details:
https://bookwhen.com/ylc
Deadline
November
Council Brief
Tuesday 28
October
Will
Notices
see page 12
in this issue
Page 10 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
COMMUNITY LAW CENTRE
Keep an eye out for new Te Ture Whenua Maori
Bill
By Kahureremoa Aki
Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley
COMMUNITY Law Wellington
and Hutt Valley (CLWHV)
advocates strongly for law reform.
We also support our communities
to get involved, by informing,
educating and supporting them to
submit on law changes.
The Law Centre’s Services to
Maori
team is an integral part of
it’s overall services and whanau.
The Law Centre advises and assists
many clients about numerous
Maori
land issues including succession, creating various Maori
land trusts, and trustee governance
obligations.
Our July 2013 Council Brief article outlined the main points of
our submission on the
- review of Te
Ture Whenua Maori
Act 1993
(“the Act”).
- Whenua Maori Bill
New Te Ture
In April 2014, Associate Minister of Maori
Affairs Christopher
Finlayson released the report of the
review panel and announced that
the government intends to reform
the governance and management
of Maori
land through drafting a
new Te Ture Whenua Maori
Bill.
The Bill will be based on the recommendations of the expert panel.
Law Centre staff attended one of
nineteen hui held around the motu
where the panel reported on the
progress.
The law Centre supports the
shift of emphasis in the recommendations from compliance to enablement – where Maori
land owners
are empowered to retain and utilise
their whenua for economic, environmental, cultural and any other
use the land owners choose.
A simplified succession process
Our community commonly approaches us for help with succession and whanau
trusts. Currently
all successions require a court hearing where a court order is made.
Law Centre staff often meet with
clients to help them through the application process.
If the deceased has a will they
can gift their Maori
land shares
through the provisions of their will.
If the deceased dies intestate, section 109 of the Act determines the
order of priority for succession –
the deceased’s Maori
land shares
are divided individually amongst
successors unless the successors
agree that a whanau
trust is formed.
In the changes it is proposed that
most successions will be processed
administratively and a court hearing won’t be needed unless there
are other issues that require the
court’s involvement, such as
whanau
disputes about the inclusion or exclusion of whangai.
Many clients enjoy the court
- Land Court is a
hearing. The Maori
unique structure that allows land
owners to engage positively in the
justice system. However, changing
succcession from a court based system to an administrative process
will result in an easier, faster and
cheaper process for Maori
land
owners. If a court hearing is not
required, the application fee should
reflect that.
Defaulting to whanau
succession
not individual succession
Where the deceased has a will,
their shares can be gifted to specific
people inside the wider preferred
class of alienees1. This allows the
deceased a degree of control over
who may or may not succeed to
- land shares.
their Maori
One of the biggest problems we
see is that many people who own
- land do not have a will. This
Maori
often seems to be due to the perceived cost, or the lack of Maori
lawyers providing this service, or
because the client does not see
Maori
land as a lucrative asset so
does not see the importance of a
will. This means that the default
option applies, and (most of the
time) children succeed individually
- land shares.
to their parents’ Maori
This perpetuates the issue of fur- land.
ther fragmentation of Maori
The Law Centre supports the
proposed shift to a preference for
succession as a group. The recom-
2014 New Zealand Law Foundation Distinguished Visiting Fellow:
From Hypatia to Victor Hugo to Larry & Sergey:“All the world’s knowledge”
and Universal Authors’ Rights
mendation is that where a Maori
land owner dies intestate the
whanau
would succeed as a group
rather than as individuals. The detail of how this will practically
work is yet to be seen, but the hope
would be to achieve essentially
what a whanau
trust type structure
would achieve in terms of reducing
- land
further fragmentation of Maori
interests.
The Law Centre will always advocate for a whanau
who is going
through the process of succeeding
to a deceased whanau
member’s estate to consider creating a whanau
trust. Many of the whanau we work
with consider this, and will create a
whnau trust while succeeding to an
intestate estate. The whanau
trust
structure allows whanau members
to combine their shares. This will
preserve tipuna lands by preventing
individual whanau
members from
dealing with their shares separately.
When a whanau
trust is created,
further succession applictions are
no longer necessary.
The whanau
trust structure is retained in the new proposal and it
can be created without needing a
court order. Beneficiaries can go on
a register, are entitled to grants and
are able to participate in hui.
Engaged or participating?
The Law Centre’s first submission focused heavily on the term
“engaged owner”, as did our previous Council Brief article. There has
been a shift in using the term “engaged owner” rather than “participating owners”. However, the
substantive effect remains unknown, as with all the recommendations, at least until the new Bill is
drafted.
The devil remains to be seen in
the detail of the Bill, and the Law
Centre hopes that the proposed
changes, once turned into law, will
have a positive and practical impact
- land owners.
for all Maori
Footnote
1
Te Ture Whenua Maori
Act
1993, s4.
Wellington Branch law graduate CV scheme
THE scheme to assist law
graduates into work is still being
operated by the Wellington
Branch.
Law graduates seeking work
leave their CVs at the Society.
These are available to potential
employers needing staff who
can refer to the CVs and choose
appropriate graduates.
The work offered need not be
permanent. Any work in a law office will give graduates valuable
experience that may be helpful to
them next time they make job applications.
Informal drinks at the Wellesley
MEET on the third Friday of each
month, 5.30ish at the Wellesley
Boutique Hotel, Maginity Street,
for a chat and a drink with
colleagues and friends.
Public lecture presented by
Jane C. Ginsburg, Columbia University School of Law
Access to “all the world’s knowledge” is an ancient aspiration; a less venerable, but equally
vigorous, universalism strives for the borderless protection of authors’ rights. Late 19thcentury
law and politics implemented copyright universalism; 21st century technology may bring us the
universal digital library, and with it a clash of utopian yearnings – if culture freely accessed
comes to mean culture unremunerated. Does the universal digital library of the near future
threaten copyright holders, particularly book publishers? Lest we sound too soon the dirge for
traditional publishers and newer commercial distribution intermediaries, we should remember
that digital media may enhance “access to culture,” but culture freed from its former masters may yet not be “free”.
Access-triumphalism may bring us not the universal digital library but the universal digital bookstore. In this talk, I will
first evoke two utopian goals: universal access to knowledge, and universal authors’ rights. The former implied a
curator-custodian, a public institution that would gather, systematize and make available the world’s knowledge. The
latter enforced private prerogative through the international recognition of authors’ property rights that arise from
their creativity or are justified by the public benefits those creations bestow. Creators and custodians of knowledge
long pursued complementary aims, despite occasional skirmishes between copyright owners and libraries. That now
may be changing. In the last part of this talk, I will address the clash of utopias epitomized by the Google bookscanning programme and the legal responses it has inspired, including the recent decision by the SDNY upholding
Google’s fair use defence. Finally, as we query whether, through mass digitization, libraries will replace publishers, or
vice-versa, we should not lose sight of the authors, who are both copyright’s raison d’être and the necessary
forebears of libraries, for without works of authorship to stock the collection, there is nothing to curate.
Thursday 16 October 2014, 5.30pm – 6.30pm
(Lecture Theatre 1 (GBLT1) Rear Courtyard, Old Government Buildings,
55 Lambton Quay, Wellington
Followed by refreshments in the foyer
Please RSVP to [email protected] to confirm your attendance
COUNCIL BRIEF
The monthly newspaper of the
Wellington Branch NZ Law Society
Advertising Rates: casual or contract rates on application. Telephone Robin
Reynolds, Reynolds Advertising, Kapiti Coast (04) 902 5544, e-mail:
[email protected]. Rates quoted exclude GST.
Advertising Deadline: for the November 2014 issue is Wednesday 29 October, 2014.
Circulation: 3150 copies every month except January. Goes to all barristers and
solicitors in the Wellington, Marlborough, Wairarapa, and Manawatu areas. Also
goes to many New Zealand law firms, to law societies, universities, judicial officers,
and others involved in the administration of justice.
Will Notices: $50.00 GST inclusive for each insertion.
Subscriptions: Annual subscription $60.00 incl. GST. Extra copies $5.00 each.
Subscription orders and inquiries to: The Branch Manager, New Zealand Law Society
Wellington Branch, P.O. Box 494, Wellington.
Editor: Chris Ryan, telephone 472 7837, (06) 378 7431 or 027 255 4027
E-mail: [email protected]
Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the NZ Law Society Wellington Branch or the Editor.
Council Brief is published for the NZ Law Society Wellington Branch
by Chris Ryan, and printed by APN Print, Wanganui.
COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014 – Page 11
HARRIETTE VINE CELEBRATED
DEVIL’S OWN
Semi-finalists Steve Winter (Palmerston North), Tim Power and John
McCarthy (Wellington), David Wilson (Auckland)
Contributors to the Special Issue of the VUW Law Review, from left to right: Wendy Aldred, Christine Grice,
Amelia Guy-Meakin, Monique van Alphen Fyfe, Holly Hill, Nessa Lynch, Anais Kedgley Laidlaw,
Elisabeth McDonald and Anthea Williams.
Journal issue celebrates first law graduate and women in the law
VICTORIA University of Wellington’s Faculty of Law recently celebrated
the centenary of its first woman law graduate, Harriette Vine. Harriette
practised law for 47 years in the one firm until her death in 1962 but was never
made a partner.
As part of the celebration a Special Issue of the Victoria University of
Wellington Law Review (VUWLR), containing articles relating to women in
law, has been published. Among articles appearing in this journal are two
winning entries in an essay competition organised by the Wellington Women
Lawyers Association, on the topic “Harriette’s challenges 100 years on:
Same or Different?”.
“My Life in Law” by Shirley Smith is reprinted in the publication from the
1993 Suffrage Issue. Victoria’s Faculty of Law was the first in New Zealand
to appoint a female – Shirley Smith– to its academic staff.
Other contributions include: “Girls Behaving Badly?:Young female violence in New Zealand,” by Dr Nessa Lynch; “Women Trailblazers in the
Law: The New Zealand Women Judges Oral Histories Project” by Elizabeth
Chan and “Disparity in Jack v. Jack: Judicial Overreach or a Just Result at
Long Last?” by Susannah Shaw.
Associate Professor Elisabeth McDonald, the editor of the issue, said the
journal publication both celebrates the achievements and scrutinises the continuing challenges and issues facing women in law from a feminist perspective, including the impact of gender in judicial decisions or legislation.
For more information contact Elisabeth McDonald on 04-463 6317 or
[email protected]
Council Brief
Advertising
[email protected]
MA
Juvenile Delinquency third placeMichael Sweeney Peter Quinn
Juvenile Delinquency runners upEion Morrison Julian Long
Juvenile Delinquency winners Tim Rainey Bob McDermott
Qualifying round competitions
Longest Drive – 17th hole
Closest to Pin – 4th hole
Sean Kelly
Pat Kennelly
Open Teams Match Runners up – Church of Ireland 302
Julian Long, Michael Dixon, John Horner, John McGlashan
Open Teams Match Winners – My Kitchen Rules 307
Alasdair McBeth, Paul Barris, Mark Kelly, Frederick Thorpe
District Teams Match Runners up – Waikato Chiefs 298
Michael Dixon, Anthony Nolan, Eion Morrison,Robert McDermott
District Teams Match Winners – Manawatu 296
Richard Howie, Terry Urquhart, Bruce Stewart, Stephen Winter
Highest Net Score – 129 Sinclair Prize
Lowest Net Score – 66 Ross Morpeth Trophy
Anton Blijlevens
John Dean
Highest Stableford Points Runner up – 40
Stephen Winter
Highest Stableford Pts winner – 40 LexisNexis Shield Sam Greenwood
Gatley fifth place
Gatley fourth place
Gatley third place
Gatley second place
Gatley winner Gatley Tankard
Chantelle Climo
Vtictoria Whitfield
Sarah Rawcliffe
Eion Morrison
Robert McDermott
Editor of the Special Issue of the
Victoria University of Wellington
Law Review Associate Professor
Elisabeth McDonald.
DESIGN
Mihai Pascariu (Auckland), Terry Urquhart (Feilding),
Will Downey (New Plymouth), Nat Dunning (Wellington).
m
Answers for puzzles from page 2
Chris Steenstra (Hamilton), David Smith (Palmerston North), Peter
Fogarty (Rotorua), Tim Cleary (Wellington).
1 4356 = 99 x 44
2 1 QxNg6+ hxQg6 (if 1…Ke7 then 2 Bc5#) 2 Bxg6+ Ke7 3
Bc5# [Salmond v Kuentiz Tangier 1907]
Devil’s Own golf
tournament results
Monday’s competition
Distress Foursomes third place Peter Quinn Michael Sweeney
Distress Foursomes runners up Tony Nolan Sean Kelly
Distress Foursomes winners Hadleigh Brown James Wollerman
John Dean (Wellington), Michael Cochrane (Palmerston North), David
Jones (Auckland), James Wollerman (Wellington).
Tally Ho Flight runner up
Tally Ho Flight winner
Tally Ho runner up
Tally Ho winner Tom Ennis Trophy
Crossword Solutions
From page 2
Cryptic Solutions
Ben Langdon
Stephen Ma Cheng
Anton Blijlevens
Brad Cuff
Mortgagors Relief Flight runner up Shan Maloney
Mortgagors Relief Flight winner David Bulloch
Mortgagors Relief runner up
John Cox
Mortgagors Relief winner
Tom Elvin
Treaty of Waitangi Flight runner up Toby Braun
Treaty of Waitangi Flight winner Stuart Dalzell
Treaty of Waitangi runner up
Nick Frith
Treaty of Waitangi winner
John Saunders
SOEs Flight runner up
SOEs Flight winner
SOEs runner up
SOEs winner
Richard Austin
Jake Casey
Nigil Stirling
Fraser Wood
Legal Aid Flight runner up
Legal Aid Winner
Ancient Lights winner
Brian Blackwood Trophy
Kevin Pearson
Paul Barris
Devil’s Own Flight winner
Dick Kearney Cup
Devil’s Own fourth
Devil’s Own third place
Devil’s Own runner up McBride Cup
Devil’s Own winner Devil’s Own Trophy
Michael Cochrane
David Wilson
Tom Power
John McCarthy
Steve Winter
Across: 7 Spine-chilling; 8 Trousers; 9 Duty; 10
Stayed; 12 Easter; 14 Edison; 16 Temple; 18 Spar;
20 Trailers; 22 Distinguished.
James Aitken, Jeremy Valentine and Peter Dengate Thrush
(all Wellington), Paul David (Auckland).
Down: 1 Spirited; 2 Injury; 3 Acre; 4 Misspent; 5
Blades; 6 Knot; 11 Donating; 13 Enlarged; 15
Struts; 17 Molest; 19 Pair; 21 Arum.
Quick Solutions
Across: 7 United Kingdom; 8 Reticent; 9 Able; 10
Gentle; 12 Action; 14 Street; 16 Tested; 18 Goad; 20
Entrance; 22 Salvation Army.
Down: 1 Interest; 2 Strict; 3 Idle; 4 Distract; 5
Aghast; 6 Toil; 11 Entreaty; 13 Overcome; 15 Endive;
17 Seaman; 19 Oral; 21 Trot.
THE WIZARD OF ID
Tim Cleary (Wellington), Ben Langdon (Auckland), Bob McDermott (Hamilton).
Page 12 – COUNCIL BRIEF, OCTOBER 2014
DEVIL’S OWN GOLF
SITUATIONS VACANT
WILL
Legal golfers enjoy superb
weekend at 80th Devil’s Own –
attendance best in a decade
VACANCY FOR PROPERTY, ESTATES AND TRUST LAWYER
ENQUIRIES
WITH the biggest turn-out in a decade, golfers came to the Devil’s Own
from as far as Whangarei and Christchurch and all points between.
Enthusiasm was infectious, the weather predictable, the company congenial
– the 80th Devil’s Own golf tournament was a resounding success.
A field of 115 players that included 15 first-timers enjoyed a great
sporting and social occasion at the Manawatu Golf Club course, Hokowhitu,
over a long weekend 26 to 29 September 2014.
Strong winds at times made play interesting. A gale on Sunday forced
limited holes on that day which disappointed at first, but concluded happily
as frustrated golfers could watch the All Blacks play Argentina.
Qualifying Round – Saturday Afternoon
John Dean from Wellington was the top qualifier on Saturday afternoon
with a net score of 66 to win the Ross Morpeth Trophy. Sam Greenwood
from Auckland won the Lexis Nexis Shield for highest stableford points.
Anton Blijlevens from Auckland was awarded the Sinclair prize for the
highest net score of 129.
The Manawatu team of Richard Howie, Terry Urquhart, Bruce Stewart
and Steve Winter won the Perpetual Guardian District Teams Match
competition, while the runner up was the Waikato Chiefs Team of Michael
Dixon, Tony Nolan, Eion Morrison and Bob McDermott
Its practice is predominantly in the areas
of property, estates and trusts.
We are looking for an intermediate or
senior lawyer who is motivated,
enterprising and has excellent
communication skills to join our busy
team.
If this sounds like you, please forward
your application and curriculum vitae to:
The Practice Manager
Symns Law
PO Box 534
NELSON 7040
or email: [email protected]
Lifeline Counselling has a team of qualified professional counsellors experienced
in working with clients across a broad range of issues.
Our high-quality confidential service can help with day-to-day issues such as:
stress, anxiety, burnout, depression, relationship issues, grief, trauma and
addiction.
All our Counsellors are qualified to Masters level and are members of the NZ
Association of Counsellors.
For New Zealand Law Society members and families we are offering a discounted rate:
$110 based on a normal 60min session
Devil’s Own Championship - Monday
Steve Winter from Palmerston North won the finals match with John
McCarthy to win the Devil’s Own Trophy; runner-up John McCarthy was
awarded the Jim McBride Cup.
The semi-finalists were Steve Winter, who won his match with Tim
Power; and John McCarthy who won his match with first-time entrant
David Wilson from Auckland
Currently this Face-to-Face service is only available in person in the Auckland region. Other regions will be introduced
in time.
Skype Face-to-Face counselling applies throughout New Zealand.
Please contact Lifeline Counselling on
[email protected] or phone 09 909 8750
Please contact the solicitors
concerned if you are holding a will
for any of the following:
HOLEY, David
Late of Unit 6, 7 Raroa Road,
Lower Hutt Central. Retired.
Died on 11 September 2014.
Gillespie Young Watson
(Robyn Harris)
PO Box 30 940, Lower Hutt 5040
Tel 04 891 2180 Fax 04 569 3933
[email protected]
PERRY, Donald Robert
Late of 210 Evans Bay Parade,
Wellington. Engineer. Died at
Wellington on 17 September 2014.
It appears the deceased made a will in
1995 with McNaught & Co (the
late Neil McNaught, Solicitor,
Wellington). Would anyone who
may have taken over any aspects of
Neil McNaught’s practice please
carefully check their records.
Gault Mitchell (Richard Martin)
PO Box 645, Wellington 6140
Tel 04 472 5074 Fax 04 471 0835
[email protected]
SIMMONDS, Porleen Catherine
Gladys
Late of Petone. Born 20 March 1948.
Died at Wellington Hospital on
28 September 2014. Would any
practitioner holding a will made after
20 June 2013 please contact:
Michelle Genet at
[email protected]
Other Trophy Winners
Michael Cochrane from Palmerston North was the winner of the Devil’s
Own Flight and the Dick Kearney Memorial Cup.
Paul Barris from Hamilton was the winner of the Ancient Lights division
and the Brian Blackwood Memorial Trophy.
Brad Cuff from Wellington won
the Tally Ho division and the Tom
Ennis Memorial Trophy.
Bob McDermott from Hamilton
was the winner of the Gatley division and the sixth recipient of the
Gatley Tankard.
More pictures on page 11
FOR URGENT ACTION
SYMNS LAW is a small firm in Nelson
with a well-established client base.
Devil’s Own Trophy winner Steve Winter from Palmerston North and
runner-up John McCarthy (Wellington).
STRANG, Nigel John Reed
Late of 37 Edgecombe Street,
Newlands, Wellington.
Died on 23 May 2014.
Wadham Partners (Mark Dobson)
PO Box 345, Palmerston North 4440
Tel 06 358 2076 Fax 06 356 1512
[email protected]
Paul David (Auckland), Michael Sweeney (Christchurch), Steve Winter
(Palmerston North), Judge Tom Broadmore.
The cost of a will notices is $50.00 (GST
inclusive). Please send payment with your
notice.
Will notices should be sent to the Branch
Manager, NZ Law Society Wellington
Branch, PO Box 494, Wellington.
Book early for Law
Society events!
Wellington lawyers are very
keen to attend events
presented by the Wellington
Branch office.
Robert Harris (Auckland), Paul Fisher (Tokoroa), Richard Howie (Feilding),
Julian Long (Auckland), Dan Parker, Bruce McNiece (Auckland).
Nigel Stirling and John McCardle (Wellington), John Cox (Auckland),
Richard Austin (Wanganui).
For several recent events
demand has outstripped the
number of places and long
waiting lists have resulted.
The answer is to please book
early or you risk being
disappointed.
Council Brief
Advertising
Steve Winter, Ben Vanderkolk, Noel Munford all of Palmerston North.
Bruce Stewart (Palmerston North), Brett Gould (Masterton),
Alasdair McBeth, Peter Fogarty (Rotorua).
[email protected]