Kellam Conover, 44, the Washington DC-based lawyer who tragedly died this week climbing Mount Cook in New Zealand’s South Island, was a talented appellate lawyer and held a desire to ultimately teach law. A graduate of Harvard Law School and Dartmouth College, Conover built a reputation as a formidable litigator in high-stakes commercial and product […]
Tragic Death in New Zealand of Talented DC Lawyer Read More »
Judges Gone Wild, Part IV The Judicial Conduct Panel has swatted away District Court Judge Ema Aitken’s latest bid to pin down a tidy legal threshold for what actually counts as “judicial misconduct” serious enough to remove a judge. The panel essentially replied: lovely question, but ask us again once we’ve heard the evidence. The
Judge’s ‘Sackable’ Test Goes Nowhere, And The Northern Club Ghost Still Looms Read More »
New Zealand’s Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons Learned is racing toward its February 2026 deadline with all the grace of a three-legged horse. Chair Grant Illingworth KC insists everything is “perfectly natural” as senior staff exit stage left with increasing regularity.
The rest of us are entitled to wonder whether this inquiry will deliver the accountability New Zealanders deserve, or simply a very expensive exercise in looking busy.
The turnover at the top reads like a particularly ruthless season of The Apprentice.
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NetDocuments sees 72% APAC growth as law firms embrace AI tools – IT Brief NetDocuments has reported 72% year-on-year growth in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, expanding its user base to more than 20,000 legal professionals across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Japan. The company attributes this expansion to strong uptake of its intelligent document management
Legal AI – Law Firm Use of AI Tools Sees Major Growth Read More »
The Problem With The ‘Independent’ KC Appointed to Review Police Conduct LawFuel Contributor The Independent Police Conduct Authority’s November 2025 report on the Jevon McSkimming scandal was brutal: senior leaders deliberately bypassed independent processes, showed “unquestioning acceptance” of the former Deputy Commissioner’s denials, and buried allegations ranging from sexual misconduct to possession of child exploitation
When Does Justice Become ‘True Crime’ Spectacle? John Bowie, LawFuel publisher Scandalous criiminal trials have long been the stuff of entertainment and intrigue, but the question of who holds the moral compass when it comes to making popcorn from popular crime is something that is an increasing issue, most recently highlighted with an Auckland Law
Our State Broadcasters Have Crossed the Line It’s time for a full, urgent, independent editorial inquiry into TVNZ and RNZ By Ashley Church, widely read and watched political and business commentator For years we believed that the BBC was the gold standard of public broadcasting. Trusted. Balanced. Above the fray. That myth is now in
The search to replace Solicitor-General Una Jagose KC, who steps down in February after a decade in New Zealand’s second-highest legal role, has commenced with the ‘dual role’ being advertised now. A Dual Role at the Constitutional Summit The dual position, which serves as both Junior Law Officer of the Crown and Chief Executive of
New Zealand Legal Career Move – The Role That Combines Power, Prestige and $600K+ Read More »
Britomart Chambers has captured its first Judge returning to the Bar with the Hon Justice Geoffrey Venning agreeing to join the Chambers in 2026 after 10 years as a High Court Judge, including five years as Chief High Court Judge. >> New legal role? Check LawFuel’s growing law jobs network The trend for retiring judges
Britomart Capture A High Court Judge – Signalling A Growing Trend For ‘Retirees’ Read More »
John Bowie, LawFuel Publisher The death of former Supreme Court judge Bill Wilson KC in September has been marked by a striking silence within New Zealand’s legal and media circles, a fact that itself seems more noteworthy than any tribute or obituary could be. The Press pubished a respectful piece from Martin Van Beynen, (who
The New Zealand Legal Profession’s Disgraceful Silence Over The Death of Bill Wilson Read More »
