His work has covered criminal, regulatory, civil jurisdictions
Chris Bishop, attorney-general, has announced the appointment of Christopher Morris as a judge of the New Zealand District Court in Auckland, to be sworn in on 22 October 2026.
The government’s news release announcing the new judicial appointee provided more information regarding Morris’ professional background and legal experience.
Morris most recently served as a sole practitioner based in Auckland. From 2006 to 2024, he worked as a partner at Cook Morris Quinn.
His legal practice has encompassed the criminal, regulatory, and civil jurisdictions. Over the last several years, he has worked on lengthy and high-profile criminal and civil regulatory trials.
Before the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, Morris has appeared as Crown counsel and as defence counsel and has represented civil appellants and respondents numerous times. He has likewise appeared before the Supreme Court of New Zealand and before the Privy Council.
Earlier in his career, he worked at Bell Gully Buddle Weir and at Meredith Connell, both in Auckland. At the Crown Law Office in Wellington, he has served as Crown counsel.
Here are some other announcements regarding appointments of judges to the District Court of New Zealand.
On 12 June 2026, Bishop announced the appointments of the following new judges of the District Court: Maurice John Casey, Bryony Ann Millar, Tiffany Mary Cooper, and Erin Lee Woolley.
On 15 May 2026, Bishop announced the appointment of Kerryn Beaton – whose practice has focused on serious crime and public inquiries – as a judge of the District Court in Dunedin, to be sworn in on 2 July 2026 in Christchurch.
On 20 March 2026, Judith Collins, then attorney-general, announced the appointment of two judges of the District Court: Prudence McGuire in Palmerston North, to be sworn in on 21 April 2026, and Christopher Macklin in Nelson, to be sworn in on 15 May 2026.
On 6 March 2026, Collins announced the appointments of Rohan Cochrane, Lynn Hughes, and Derek Whitehead as three new judges of the District Court.
Enjoy this story? Read about the latest New Zealand legal appointments on the main page!
