The art of partnership

Everyone has heard (and is quick to recount) stories of partners who consistently make their staff cry, the ones who harassed or belittled their juniors, or expected 24-7 availability regardless of the staff member’s personal commitments. The focus on toxic legal workplaces is generally exaggerated and can border on fiction. But at…

What makes a good partner?

Business Mentors New Zealand mentor and Duncan Cotterill partner Bruno Bordignon Good interpersonal skills. A good commercial grounding. Spark, passion and love for the job. The ability to form meaningful relationships with clients. A commitment to mentoring others in the profession (in and outside the firm). …

From the Law Society

“I love creating partnerships; I love not having to bear the entire burden of the creative storytelling, and when I have unions like with George Lucas and Peter Jackson, it’s really great; not only do I benefit, but the project is better for it” (Steven Spielberg). Building relationships and strong partnerships…

The 'terrifying' move to the bench

Moving from being a lawyer in a large commercial law firm straight onto the bench was “exceedingly terrifying, as you can imagine,” says Supreme Court Judge, Dame Susan Glazebrook. Justice Glazebrook joined the High Court bench in June 2000, serving as a temporary judge until her permanent appointment to that Court…

Change needed at the top of law firms

People at the top of law firms have to actively lead change that permeates their whole institution if we are to see strides made in advancing women in the higher levels of the profession, Supreme Court Judge Justice Susan Glazebrook says. “What I’ve decided recently is that there’s too much energy…

People in the Law

Rotorua-based commercial lawyer Mark Copeland has been appointed a member of the five-member Legal and Ethics Committee of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) headquartered in Bonn, Germany. With over 160 member countries and international sporting federations, the IPC is the governing body for para-sport worldwide, with administrative responsibility for the…

Our Profession, Our People

Law students’ experiences being researched The first ever longitudinal study of law students has been launched by the School of Law Socio-Legal Research Group at Canterbury University. Law schools at Auckland and Waikato universities have also joined the study, which is investigating the profile of students entering law programmes, their progress through…

A distinguished legal career

The judiciary notes with considerable sadness the passing of one of its stalwart members and a former champion of the Canterbury Bar in the late Sir Alan Holland, says the Chief Justice, Dame Sian Elias. “Sir Alan was a judge of the then Supreme Court (now the High Court) from his…

I swore I'd never practise law

I finished law school and swore I would never practise law. Full stop. I did not enjoy the law school “rat race”, and the thought of competing for those scarce few graduate positions made me nauseous. I convinced myself that I lacked the temperament required to succeed at law, at least…

Why are so many lawyers so unhappy?

It is estimated that approximately one out of every 10 people in Washington, DC is a lawyer. Not surprisingly, I’ve seen quite a few lawyers in my practice over the years. I’m sometimes reminded of what one of my graduate school professors said about the profession. “As long as there are…

Your clients can help you enhance your practice

Around three weeks ago I picked up my new spectacles, having had an eye test around two weeks earlier. When I looked in my emails that evening, the optometrists had sent me a feedback form which they asked me to fill in. That set me thinking about the value of businesses seeking…

In-house lawyers and conveyancing

The Law Society was recently asked to comment on the practice of conveyancing by in-house lawyers. An in-house lawyer may provide conveyancing services directly to their employer. However, the practice of an in-house lawyer providing conveyancing services to members of the public directly is not permitted by the Lawyers and Conveyancers…

The system formally known as ADR

I am not sure if you have all caught up with the fact that it is no longer vogue to refer to Alternative Dispute Resolution as “ADR”. It is not the acronym that offends, rather the use of the word “Alternative” as a precursor to Dispute Resolution. Simply “Dispute Resolution” is…

What you say on social media is not just social

Social media is not just social. It can be used for and against your business. What you say on social media about a competitor can have wide reaching effects, as Leah Madden found out. In September 2010, Ms Madden made comments and posted photos on her personal Facebook page about the…

Amending EM bail

When an application is made to vary the conditions for Electronically Monitored Bail the proposed new address must be provided along with details of the occupants and consent for the Department of Corrections to obtain further information from agencies, the Ministry of Justice says. The Application form Notice to Vary Bail…

Law Society proposes register of legislative instruments

The Law Society has proposed establishing a single register of all regulations, rules and other legislative instruments, to provide the public with greater certainty and better access to the laws that affect them. A register would also make it easier for the public and the over-stretched Regulations Review Committee (RRC) to…

The Financial Markets Conduct Act and contributory mortgage lending

This article is in response to recent inquiries. Financial Markets Conduct Act The Financial Markets Conduct Bill was introduced into Parliament on 12 October 2011. It was split into two bills: the Financial Markets Conduct Bill 2013 and the Financial Markets Repeals and Amendments Bill 2013. The new pieces of legislation passed…

Regulatory reform book earns high praise

I believe the Law Foundation’s regulatory reform project offers huge potential to positively influence public policy. But don’t just take my word for it. There was backing for that view recently from one of New Zealand’s leading law reformers, Professor John Burrows. Professor Burrows is a long-standing leading commentator on the New…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Suspended for Securities Act offence

Auckland barrister Anthony David Banbrook has been suspended for seven months from 15 July 2014. Mr Banbrook had been convicted of a Securities Act offence punishable by imprisonment. This resulted in him being charged with having been convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment, and that the conviction tends to bring…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Tribunal fines lawyer for trust account breaches

Auckland lawyer John Walter Appleby has been censured and fined $10,000 for a series of breaches of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Trust Account) Regulations 2008. In [2014] NZLCDT 34, the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal found Mr Appleby guilty of misconduct. The Tribunal described its decision as a “beneficent…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Strike off follows convictions, including perverting course of justice

Shaan Winiata Stevens has been struck off following his conviction on 20 charges of using a document to obtain pecuniary advantage, one charge of perverting the course of justice and one charge of filing a false tax return. The New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal, in [2014] NZLCDT 30, noted…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Suspended for certifying agreement he knew was false

Heval Hylan of Auckland has been suspended for nine months from 27 June 2014 after the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal found him guilty of misconduct. Mr Hylan had certified a separation agreement knowing it was false. The decision in [2014] NZLCDT 31 was unanimous as to the fact…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Applying funds held in trust should follow instructions given

A lawyers standards committee has found that the conduct of a lawyer, B, was unsatisfactory, when his firm took funds held on trust for two entities to pay outstanding invoices in the name of a separate but related client. B’s firm had acted for Mr C in various of his capacities…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Censure and fine for trust account breaches

A lawyer, D, has been censured and fined $5,000 by a lawyers standards committee after it found she had failed to keep accurate trust account records, had allowed client ledgers to become overdrawn and had provided the Law Society monthly certificates that her trust account was in order when it…