- Hon Judith Collins
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Whanganui Crown Solicitor Michele Marina Wilkinson-Smith as a High Court Judge.
Justice Wilkinson-Smith graduated with an LLB (Hons) from Auckland University School of Law in 1993 and commenced practice as a staff solicitor with Brewer Mazengarb in New Plymouth. She became a partner of Auld Brewer Mazengarb and McEwen in 1998.
In 2004 Justice Wilkinson-Smith joined the independent bar, practising as both a defence barrister in Auckland and Crown panel prosecutor in Palmerston North until 2016. She was a member of the Legal Aid Review Panel from 2008 to 2011 and a Visiting Justice at Whanganui Prison from 2011 to 2016.
Justice Wilkinson-Smith has been a member of the Legal Aid Performance Review Committee assessing the performance of legal aid providers since 2015.
She was appointed Crown Solicitor for Whanganui in 2016.
Justice Wilkinson-Smith's appointment as a judge of the High Court will take effect on 1 February 2024.
