The new appointments will replace sitting judges who have reached retirement age
Attorney-General David Parker has announced the appointment of seven new District Court judges.
In a statement, Parker said the appointees replace sitting Judges who have reached retirement age and will take up their roles in March.
The announcement follows the appointment of five judges in December to help deal with the impact of the COVID-19 lock down period on the court system, which is under significant caseload pressure.
The seven new judges are: Ian Carter, barrister of Lower Hutt who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Whanganui; Anna Fitzgibbon, barrister of Auckland who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in the North Shore; William Lawson, lawyer of Rotorua who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Tauranga; Michael Mika, lawyer of Invercargill who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Lower Hutt; David Robinson, Coroner of Dunedin who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Dunedin; Gene Tomlinson, lawyer of Whakatane who has been appointed as a District Court judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Whangarei; and Yelena Yelavich, lawyer of Auckland who has been appointed as a District Court Judge with jury jurisdiction to be based in Manukau.
