District Court Judge Appointed

The Attorney-General, Rt Hon Sir Douglas Graham, has announced the appointment of Auckland barrister and solicitor Mark Eversfield Perkins as a District Court Judge.

Judge Perkins will be sworn in at Auckland District Court on August 31 and will sit in Napier from October, 1999.

Judge Perkins graduated from the University of Auckland with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1970 and gained a Master of Laws degree at Victoria University in 1984. He was admitted to the Bar in 1970. He has been a partner in the firm of Hesketh Henry in Auckland since 1993.

Judge Perkins has been involved in civil law practice, with an emphasis on insurance and maritime cases as well as some employment law. His early experience included criminal and matrimonial law.

Judge Perkins was a foundation member of the New Zealand branch of the Maritime Law Association of Australia and New Zealand and is a former federal treasurer of the Maritime Law Association of Australia and New Zealand. He has served on Legal Aid and Legal Services Committees for 25 years and is currently Presiding Member of the Auckland District Legal Services Committee. He is an associate of the Arbitrators' and Mediators' Institute of New Zealand.

Judge Perkins is aged 51, married with one child.