Alfred North (jurist)

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The Right Honourable
Sir Alfred North
KBE QC
North as a young man
President of the Court of Appeal
In office
1963–1972
Preceded byKenneth Gresson
Succeeded byAlexander Turner
Personal details
Born
Alfred Kingsley North

(1900-12-17)17 December 1900
Christchurch, New Zealand
Died22 June 1981(1981-06-22) (aged 80)
Auckland, New Zealand
Parent

Sir Alfred Kingsley North KBE PC QC (17 December 1900 – 22 June 1981), also known as Alf North, was a New Zealand lawyer and judge. He was President of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand from 1963 until his retirement in 1972.

Biography[edit]

North was born in Christchurch in 1900, the son of Baptist minister John North.[1][2] As a teenager, North contracted polio and had a limp for the rest of his life.[3] He received his education at West Christchurch District High School, Christchurch Boys' High School, and then attended Canterbury University College, graduating LLM in 1927.[1][4]

He first practiced in Ashburton from 1921. After obtaining his Master of Laws, he was in partnership in Hāwera. From 1935, he was a barrister and a partner in the legal firm Earl, Kent, Stanton, Massey, North and Palmer in Auckland, replacing Erima Northcroft who had been appointed judge.[3][5] In 1951, North was appointed judge of the Supreme Court.[1] When the Court of Appeal was reconstituted in Wellington in 1957, North was one of its founding members and relocated to the capital city, where he lived in Wadestown.[3][6] North was the president of the Court of Appeal from 1963 to 1972.[3]

Between 1976 and 1978, North conducted a commission of inquiry into an alleged breach of confidentiality of the police file on Colin Moyle.[7][8]

For the respective Auckland branches, North was president for Rotary and chairman of the New Zealand Crippled Children's Society.[9]

Family[edit]

On 31 December 1924, North married Thelma Areta Dawson (1902–1991) at Oxford Terrace Baptist Church in Christchurch, with his father officiating the ceremony.[10] North died on 22 June 1981 in Auckland.[3][11] His wife survived him by ten years. Both were cremated at Purewa Cemetery and Crematorium.[12][13]

Honours[edit]

Alongside Ossie Mazengarb, North was appointed King's Counsel on 18 April 1947.[14][5][15] He was made a Knight Bachelor in the 1959 Queen's Birthday Honours.[16] In the 1964 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.[17] He was made a Privy Counsellor in 1966.[18]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Traue, James Edward (1978). Who's Who in New Zealand, 1978 (11th ed.). Wellington: Reed Publishing. p. 209.
  2. ^ MacLeod, Angus. "John James North". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Four different directions in the law". New Zealand Law Society. 16 March 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  4. ^ "NZ university graduates 1870–1961: Mu–O". Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  5. ^ a b "Two appointments to King's Counsel". The Northern Advocate. 19 April 1947. p. 7. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  6. ^ Petersen, George Conrad (1964). Who's Who in New Zealand, 1964 (8th ed.). Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed. p. 223.
  7. ^ "Commissions of inquiry". Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  8. ^ "Strains and tensions in the NZ Opposition". The Canberra Times. 3 January 1977. p. 2. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  9. ^ Scholefield, Guy (1951). Who's Who in New Zealand, 1951 (5th ed.). Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed. p. 174.
  10. ^ "Late social news". The Star. No. 17425. 31 December 1924. p. 7. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  11. ^ Lambert, Max (1991). Who's Who in New Zealand, 1991 (12th ed.). Auckland: Octopus. p. 727. ISBN 9780790001302.
  12. ^ "Burial & Cremation Details". Purewa Cemetery and Crematorium. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Burial & Cremation Details". Purewa Cemetery and Crematorium. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  14. ^ "King's Counsel". Otago Daily Times. No. 26440. 19 April 1947. p. 6. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  15. ^ "Queen's Counsel appointments since 1907 as at July 2014" (PDF). Crown Law Office. July 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 January 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  16. ^ "No. 41729". The London Gazette (3rd supplement). 13 June 1959. p. 3739.
  17. ^ "No. 43202". The London Gazette (3rd supplement). 1 January 1964. p. 40.
  18. ^ "Privy Counsellors 1915–1968". 22 December 2014. Archived from the original on 7 June 2008. Retrieved 8 February 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

External links[edit]

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