Four New Judicial Appointments Announced for Supreme, Appeal, and High Courts

Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced four judicial appointments to the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, and the High Court.

The Honourable Justice Francis Cooke has been appointed as a Supreme Court Judge, the Honourable Justice Rebecca Edwards as a Court of Appeal Judge, and Barrister and Solicitor Michael Arthur and Barrister Amokura Kawharu become High Court Judges.

Justice Francis Cooke Justice Cooke graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from Victoria University of Wellington in 1989, and a Master of Laws from Cambridge University in 1990. He worked as a solicitor with Ashurst Morris Crisp in London before returning to New Zealand in 1992, where he worked for Chapman Tripp until 1994.

He went to the independent bar in 1994 and acted as junior counsel assisting the Winebox Inquiry between 1994 and 1997. He was subsequently involved in a range of public law and commercial litigation and was appointed a Queen’s Counsel in 2004.

Justice Cooke was appointed a High Court Judge in 2018, and a Court of Appeal Judge in 2024. His appointment as a Supreme Court Judge will take effect on 9 February 2026.

Justice Rebecca Edwards Justice Edwards graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Auckland in 1993 and commenced work as a solicitor with Russell McVeagh in Auckland. In 1996 she graduated with a Master of Laws from the University of Virginia.

In 1997 Justice Edwards took a position with Herbert Smith in London, before returning to Russell McVeagh as a senior solicitor in 1998. She left Russell McVeagh in 2003 to practice as a barrister sole, specialising in commercial civil litigation with a particular focus on contract, shareholder and insolvency related disputes.

Justice Edwards was admitted to the permanent bar in the Cook Islands in 2010 and subsequently represented the respondents in the first two Cook Islands appeals to the Privy Council.

Justice Edwards was appointed a High Court Judge in June 2015. Her appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect from 9 February 2026.

Justice Amokura Kawharu Justice Kawharu (Ngāti Whātua and Ngāpuhi) graduated from the University of Auckland in 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours). She was a clerk and then a solicitor with Chapman Tripp in Auckland, before joining law firm Gilbert & Tobin in Sydney as a solicitor in 2000.

During 2003 and 2004 she was Corporate Counsel with Vodafone NZ Ltd. In 2004, she graduated with a Master of Laws (First Class) from the University of Cambridge in England.

From 2005-2020 she progressed from Lecturer to Associate Professor at the University of Auckland. She has published widely in arbitration law, and is co-author with Sir David Williams KC of the leading text on arbitration law in New Zealand, Williams & Kawharu on Arbitration.

Justice Kawharu obtained a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Victoria University of Wellington in 2023, and completed a five year term as President of the Law Commission in September 2025.

Justice Kawharu’s appointment as a High Court Judge will take effect on 9 February 2026, and she will sit in Auckland.

Justice Michael Arthur Justice Arthur graduated from Victoria University of Wellington in 1989 with a Bachelor of Laws, and joined Whanganui law firm Jack Riddett Tripe as a solicitor in 1990.

From 1994-1996 he worked at London law firm Cameron Markby Hewitt in the defence of large professional indemnity claims. He was admitted to the English Bar in 1995.

Justice Arthur joined Chapman Tripp in 1997 and has been a partner in the Auckland litigation team since 2006, specialising in corporate restructuring and insolvency and maintaining a general commercial litigation practice. In 2009 he graduated from Auckland University with a Master of Laws in Commercial Law.

Justice Arthur’s appointment as a High Court Judge will take effect on 1 December 2025, and he will sit in Auckland.