Optimal law firm management – a moving target

A law firm is optimally managed when the organisational and leadership needs of that firm are consistently well aligned with the resources the firm has to meet those needs. Full stop. In all law firms, management needs and resources are in constant flux. A law firm never fully “arrives”, nor is…

How technology can make you more successful

Lawyers with an eye to the future will be looking for where new opportunities are going to arise. They will be looking at how technology can help realise those opportunities. An excellent article on business process re-engineering is Michael Hammer’s Re-engineering Work: Don’t Automate, Obliterate. Although this article was written in…

From the Law Society

We are blessed to be practising law during a time of unprecedented technological advancement, change and opportunity. Firms, in-house teams and individual lawyers across New Zealand are shaking off the tired stereotype of law as an archaic profession. They are embracing new technologies and using these to transform how they…

Our Profession, Our People

Retired Court of Appeal Judge has been reappointed chair of the Financial Advisors Disciplinary Committee for a further five-year term. The committee conducts disciplinary proceedings arising out of complaints against authorised financial advisers referred to it by the Financial Markets Authority. The head of public policy at Simpson Grierson, will be…

Lawyer with a passion for medical research

Although health and medical law is not one of Auckland lawyer Christine Ding’s specialties, medical research is one of her strong passions. The DG Law director follows that passion as a trustee of the Auckland Medical Research Foundation (AMRF). AMRF (www.medicalresearch.org.nz) was founded in 1955 to provide financial support for medical research. In…

Rex Mason Award winner

Community Law Wellington and Hutt Valley lawyer Sarah Croskery-Hewitt is the latest winner of the Rex Mason Prize for excellence in legal writing. Ms Croskery-Hewitt won for her entry Rethinking sexual consent: Voluntary intoxication and affirmative consent to sex which appeared in NZULR Vol 26 (3) in June 2015. The judges described…

Pathways in the Law

Ebborn Law Ltd, Addington, ChristchurchWith 10 female practitioners – seven lawyers and three case managers – Ebborn Law in Christchurch is one of the biggest all-women New Zealand law firms. “Family Law is our Speciality”, the firm’s busy and extremely informative website states (along with some comprehensive information about the value billing…

Litigators – what to do on the day?

To properly assist their clients during a mediation, litigators need to mentally shift gears and adopt different strategies and skills more usually associated with being an advisor than an advocate. The key requirement for any advisor in a mediation is to remain objective and calm. “Calmness of mind is one of the…

New books

Interpreting Evidence: Evaluating Forensic Science in the Courtroom, 2nd editionBy Bernard Robertson, GA Vignaux and Charles EH Berger The first edition was published in 1995. The authors – two of whom are Wellington-based – say that while the original edition was written in such a way that neither changes in the…

Legal system hostile to Māori, academic says

The New Zealand state legal system has for the most part been hostile to Māori, according to Otago University Law Professor Jacinta Ruru. “This is why the learning of law for Māori students can be hard, and the practice of law for Māori can be tough,” Professor Ruru said in her…

Fight online fraudsters with old technology

Online fraudsters have been targeting lawyers and firms for some time and an IT security expert says one of the best ways of fighting it is to use a good old fashioned piece of technology – a telephone. While the more common and easily detectable scams still exist – such as…

Putting a sexual violence court to the test

It has become increasingly clear in recent years that the New Zealand public expects the justice system to improve the way it responds to people who rely on it to resolve sexual violence allegations. The court process lies at the heart of that system, and mostly it is in District Courts…

Destroying paper in your office

You should get rid of most paper in your office. In this day and age, that should go without saying. Everything is or should be electronic. Here are some ways you might (legally) justify getting rid of the paper that you still have. New paperIf you want to change your paper-habits:…

Appointment of interim liquidators

The court may appoint an interim liquidator in order to maintain the value of a company’s assets during the period following the filing of a liquidation application. This is a powerful safeguard in regard to the assets of a company and it is often overlooked by those seeking to liquidate a…

The toll on the ‘revolving door’

Two immediate evidence-based steps need to be implemented so the New Zealand justice system can appropriately respond to people with mental health needs. These two steps are: positioning psychiatric nurses within all police stations as Police Liaison Nurses (PLN) not just selectively, aiding earliest identification of mental health issues; and multi-sourced, legislated…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Suspended for running a banking service

Greg Roderick Stewart has been suspended for 18 months for failings in the operation of his trust account and operating a business that provides services to clients, which are unconnected with regulated services. Mr Stewart ran a banking service. Mr Stewart’s suspension began on 6 September 2016. In [2016] NZLCDT 28, the…

Lawyers Complaints Service: Suspension follows drug convictions

Following his conviction for possession of drugs and drug utensils, Wellington lawyer Keith Ian Jefferies has been suspended for six months by the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal. Mr Jefferies’ suspension began on 10 October 2016. In [2016] NZLCDT 29, Mr Jefferies admitted having been convicted of offences punishable by…