Return Canterbury regional government to full democracy, says Law Society

Continued partial suspension of regional democracy in Canterbury is inconsistent with core constitutional values, the New Zealand Law Society says. The Law Society says extending the term of unelected Commissioners on the Canterbury Regional Council (Environment Canterbury) for a further three years to 2019 is not justified. And it is significantly concerning that there may still not…

Douglas James Taffs censured

The New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal has censured Westport barrister Douglas James Taffs after finding him guilty of unsatisfactory conduct. In addition to the censuring, the Tribunal made a supervision order against him for a period of 12 months and to reimburse the New Zealand Law Society costs to…

Profession needs to be part of access to justice debate

New Zealand's lawyers should care about the fact that there are major issues with people being able to understand, enter and use the justice system within which they play an integral part, New Zealand Law Society President-Elect Kathryn Beck says. Writing the editorial in the latest issue of the Law Society's…

Anthony John Dean Bamford censured

The New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal has censured Nelson barrister and solicitor Anthony John Dean Bamford after finding him guilty of two charges of unsatisfactory conduct. As well as the censure, the Tribunal fined Mr Bamford $5000, ordered him to pay the Law Society costs and to take advice…

Law Society applauds Coroner gender parity

The New Zealand Law Society says the swearing in of Brigitte Windley as a Coroner on 23 November will mean a majority of New Zealand's coronial bench are women.  "From 23 November nine of New Zealand's coroners – including the Chief Coroner – will be women and eight will be men," Law Society President Chris…

Cellphone incident involving Crown Prosecutor a serious issue

An incident involving a Crown Prosecutor in the main Nelson courtroom was a very serious breach of courtroom security, the New Zealand Law Society says. A Crown Prosecutor reportedly received concussion when a member of the public gallery allegedly threw a cellphone at her head during a bail hearing. The phone broke on impact and the…

Anthony Bernard Joseph Morahan suspended

Auckland barrister Anthony Bernard Joseph Morahan has been suspended from legal practice for three months from 2 November 2015 following three misconduct findings against him by the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal. One misconduct finding was for misleading the Court, opposing counsel and the New Zealand Law Society's standards committee that Mr A was…

Law Society has serious reservations about emergency response inquiry feasibility

In response to the Christchurch Earthquakes and the Pike River Coal Mine tragedy, the New Zealand Law Society has serious reservations about the feasibility of an inquiry into Parliament's legislative response to future national emergencies. The inquiry, which is being carried out by the Regulations Review Committee, aims "to provide a framework to legislate the powers…

Law firm email fraud uses lawyer names: Warning

The New Zealand Law Society is warning law firms to watch out for an attempted email fraud which uses a fake internal email purporting to be from one of the lawyers in a firm. While details vary slightly, the fraud sends an email using the name and email address of a…