Ted Thomas (judge)

Sir Edmund Walter Thomas KNZM QC (born 1934),[1] widely known as Ted Thomas,[2] is a New Zealand jurist. He is a retired judge of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand and a former acting judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand.[3]

Biography

Thomas was educated at Feilding Agricultural High School and Victoria University College graduating with a BA and LLB in 1956, and the higher doctorate LLD in 2009. He was admitted to the bar as a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court (later the High Court) of New Zealand.

Following many years as a partner at New Zealand law firm Russell McVeagh, he became a barrister sole and was appointed a QC in 1981.[4]

In 1989 and 1990, he was President of the New Zealand Bar Association, and in 1990 he was appointed to the bench of the High Court of New Zealand. In 1995 he was elevated to the Court of Appeal. He retired from the appellate bench in 2001. As a judge some saw him as a proponent of judicial activism. He was also noted for his frequent dissenting judgements, particularly after 1996.

In 2002 Thomas was Visiting Fellow at the Research School of Social Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra. From August 2004 he has been serving as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow, The University of Auckland.[5]

He was appointed a director of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in 2003, for a five-year term.[6]

Justice Thomas was brought out of retirement to become an acting Judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand from 2005.

He is a noted author, his works including The Judicial Process: Realism, Pragmatism, Practical Reasoning and Principles (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2005).[3]

Honours and awards

In 1990, Thomas was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[7] He was made a member of the Privy Council in 1996. In the 2002 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services as a judge of the Court of Appeal.[8] Following the re-introduction of titular honours by the New Zealand government, he accepted redesignation as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2009.[9]

Notable judgments

Re Taylor (1992) 4 NZBLC 102,875.

References
  1. "Recognising and protecting dignity / by E.W. Thomas". National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  2. Taylor, Phil (10 April 2010). "A matter of judgment". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 May 2012. Sir Edmund (who is widely known as Ted Thomas)
  3. "Retired Judge awarded Higher Doctorate". Victoria News. 6 November 2009. Archived from the original on 20 December 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  4. "Queen's Counsel appointments since 1907 as at July 2013" (PDF). Crown Law Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "RBNZ 2006–2007 Annual Report" (PDF). Reserve Bank of New Zealand. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2008. Retrieved 19 May 2008.
  7. Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 364. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
  8. "New Year honours list 2002". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  9. "Special honours list 1 August 2009". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 1 August 2009. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
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