They will serve in Whangarei, Hamilton, Rotorua, Palmerston North, Wellington, and Christchurch
Attorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of seven Family Court associates, who will assume their roles between February and late March 2025.
The newly appointed associates bring extensive experience in family law, mental health law, and advocacy. Their backgrounds include private practice, legal aid, tribunal appointments, and specialized work with children and families.
The appointees are Amanda Courtney, Mānia Hope, Carlyle Gibson, Tracey Gunn, Sandra Heney, Claire Mullord and Lana Paul.
Courtney is a Northland-based barrister and has worked as a sole practitioner in multiple locations, including Whangarei, Napier, Wellington, and Rawene. She was a partner at Burnard Bull and Co. in Gisborne and held roles as a senior supervising solicitor with the Public Defence Service and a district inspector for Mental Health in Wellington and Northland.
Hope has operated her family law practice from Puna Chambers in Hamilton since 2009. She previously worked as a staff solicitor with Till Henderson and has served as a district inspector for Mental Health since 2017. In 2018, she was appointed as counsel for child, representing children's interests in court.
Gibson has been a partner at Cunningham Taylor Law in Christchurch since 2001. She was previously a staff solicitor at Kennedy Mee and Co in Ashburton. She has served on the Canterbury Westland Family Law Committee, the Standards Committee, and as the Canterbury Westland regional representative of the New Zealand Family Law Section.
Gunn has worked as a barrister sole in Hamilton since 1999, focusing on all aspects of family law. She previously held roles as a staff solicitor at Hemara Weir Dawe and Rennie and as an associate solicitor at Harkness Henry and Co. She has been a member of the Lawyer for Child Review Panel and was appointed to manage Hague Convention cases by the New Zealand Central Authority.
Heney is currently the managing partner at Fletcher Vautier Moore in Nelson. She has practised law in Auckland, Wellington, the UK, and Nelson. She has served as a member of the Nelson Standards Committee and as president of the Nelson Branch of the New Zealand Law Society.
Mullord has been a barrister sole since 2006, practising in Auckland before relocating to Christchurch in 2022. She specialises in family law, particularly representing children. She has also served as an instructor at the Institute of Professional Legal Studies and was a member of the legal assistance panel for the Royal Inquiry into Historical Abuse in Care.
Paul is a Rangiora-based barrister sole specialising in youth advocacy, complex relationship property, and estate claims. She began her legal career with Williams and Co/Wynn Williams in Christchurch and served on the Mental Health Tribunal from 2002 to 2014.
The appointees will serve in Whangarei, Hamilton, Rotorua, Palmerston North, Wellington, and Christchurch.
