Joint NZ Asian Lawyers and New Zealand Law Society Seminar
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The joint seminar between NZ Asian Lawyers and the New Zealand Law Society has now shifted to 9 November 2023 to allow Chief Justice Rt Hon Dame Helen Winkelmann and Frazer Barton, President of the Law Society to speak.
This event will run in 2 parts as follows:
Part 1: Asian Lawyers in the Legal Profession
3-3:10pm: Opening karakia, after which Mai Chen will report back on the key findings in both the Asian Lawyers stocktake survey (please complete if you are an Asian lawyer) and the Asian law students stocktake survey (please complete if you are an Asian law student). The initial analysis of surveys completed to date raise important issues for the profession, particularly given the fact that Asian lawyers now comprise 9% of the profession as of 2022 (and growing), and the increasing number of Asian clients, including in Auckland where 1 in 3 are Asian.
3:10-3:40pm: Discussion with the Chief Justice on Asian lawyers in the profession including the courts, and the results of the survey.
3:40-4:4:00pm: President of the Law Society will join the conversation (via zoom, as he will be overseas). Introduced by Takeshi Ito (Secretary of NZ Asian Lawyers).4:00-4:10pm: Q&A session.
Part 2: Asian Parties in Courts and Working with Asian Clients
Panel discussions with:
4:15pm: Karun Lakshman (Barrister at Karun Lakshman Barrister), on representing Indian clients.
4:25pm: Joon Yi (Barrister at Joon Yi Barristers), on representing Korean clients.
4:35pm: Kenneth Sun (Partner and founder of Capstone Law), on representing Chinese clients.
4:45pm: Tracey Hu (Barrister at City Chambers), on representing Chinese clients.
4:55pm: David Liu (Partner at Heritage Law), on representing Chinese and Taiwanese clients.
Expert witnesses on culturally and linguistically diverse issues –
5:05-5:35pm: Dr Leo Liao (Senior lecturer at the University of Waikato) speaking on his experiences as an expert witness in Chinese culture and law. Leo has been involved in many court cases, including R v Xu, Chen & Jiang [2018] NZHC 1971, and has published academic articles including “Decoding the Puzzle: Chinese Culture, Familial Transfers and Disputes in Western Courts” in the International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family. Introduced by Anjeet Singh (Board member of NZ Asian Lawyers).
5:35-6:05pm: Associate Professor Andrew Godwin (Associate Director at the Asian Law Centre at the University of Melbourne Law School) speaking on his experience acting for Asian parties in New Zealand and Australian courts, including Huang v Chen [2022] NZHC 1888. Introduced by Augustine Choi (Board member of NZ Asian Lawyers).
6:05-6:15pm: Summary and closing by Pam Davidson (Vice President of NZ Asian Lawyers), followed by drinks.
This event will take place at the Auckland Branch of the New Zealand Law Society, located at 12/51 Shortland Street, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010. There is also an option for remote attendance. It is 3 hours CPD.
It is free for NZ Asian Lawyers members, and $35 for non-members.
Links to RSVP: