Peter Blanchard

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Peter Blanchard
Justice of the Supreme Court
In office
1 January 2004 – 24 June 2012
Personal details
Born (1942-08-02) 2 August 1942 (age 81)
Auckland, New Zealand
Alma materUniversity of Auckland
Harvard University
ProfessionLawyer

Sir Peter Blanchard KNZM PC (born 2 August 1942) is a former judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand.[1]

Biography[edit]

Blanchard was born in the Auckland suburb of Epsom on 2 August 1942, the son of Cyril and Zora Blanchard.[2][3] His father served as a flying officer with the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II, and died during air operations over Germany on 26 May 1943.[4][5]

In 1968, Blanchard received a Master of Laws degree from the University of Auckland Law School. He was then awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and a Frank Knox Memorial Fellowship from Harvard Law School where he received a master's degree in law. He specialized in commercial, insolvency and property law as a partner at the Auckland law firms of Grierson Jackson & Partners (1968–1983) and Simpson Grierson (1983 to 1992).[6]

In 1992, Blanchard was appointed as a judge of the High Court of New Zealand[7] and in 1996, he was appointed as a judge of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand.[8]

In 1998 Blanchard was appointed as a New Zealand member of the Privy Council[9][10] and in 2004 was appointed to the Supreme Court of New Zealand.[6][11] Appointment to the Privy Council grants the right to use the style of The Right Honourable so Blanchard became The Right Honourable Justice Blanchard.

In the 2005 New Year Honours, Blanchard was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the judiciary,[12] and in 2009 he accepted redesignation as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit following the reintroduction of titular honours by the government.[13][14]

Blanchard has also served as an expatriate justice of the Supreme Court of Fiji and the Court of Appeal of Kiribati. On 4 August 2021 he was appointed as an acting judge of the Supreme Court of Samoa for a term of two years.[15]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The Judges of the Supreme Court". Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  2. ^ "The Supremes – who's who on NZ'S highest court". The New Zealand Herald. 30 March 2005. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  3. ^ "Births". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. 79, no. 24342. 3 August 1942. p. 1. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  4. ^ "Casualty Details: Cyril Francis Blanchard". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  5. ^ "Memorial shield for swimming competition". Franklin Times. Vol. 33, no. 121. 25 October 1944. p. 2. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Judge honoured by alma mater". University of Auckland. Archived from the original on 20 December 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  7. ^ "Appointment of Judge of High Court" (9 July 1992) 105 New Zealand Gazette 2371 at 2375.
  8. ^ "Appointment of Judge of Court of Appeal" (15 February 1996) 13 New Zealand Gazette 421 at 444.
  9. ^ "Appointments to the Privy Council" (28 May 1998) 74 New Zealand 1613 at 1644.
  10. ^ "The Privy Council". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. March 2023.
  11. ^ "Appointment of Judges of the Supreme Court" (20 November 2003) 157 New Zealand Gazette 4333 at 4357.
  12. ^ "New Year honours list 2005". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 2004. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  13. ^ Special Honours List (12 August 2009) 118 New Zealand Gazette 2691
  14. ^ "Special Honours List 1 August 2009". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 30 December 2006.
  15. ^ "Five NZ High Court Judges Sworn-In to Assist Samoa's Bench". Samoa Global News. 14 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.