CPD Points: 4
Starts: 11:30am Thursday, 3 Sep 2026
Ends: 7:00pm Thursday, 3 Sep 2026
Location: The Northern Club, 19 Princes Street, Auckland
View MapNon Member: $350.00
NZBA Members: $275.00
A focused half‑day programme on one of the defining questions facing the profession: how the rule of law operates in a justice system under pressure to deliver more, faster.
Bringing together leading voices from across the bar and bench, this symposium examines the growing tension between fairness and efficiency — and what that means in practice for both criminal and civil advocacy.
Courts are being asked to resolve disputes more quickly and cost‑effectively, while still upholding core principles: procedural fairness, meaningful participation, and the proper testing of evidence. This programme looks squarely at how those pressures are reshaping advocacy.
What we’ll cover
- The balance between fairness and efficiency in the modern justice system.
- The increasing demands on appellate advocacy and how oral submissions are evolving.
- The changing nature of cross‑examination, including remote evidence, protections for vulnerable witnesses, and non‑traditional hearing formats.
- The impact of these developments on evidence in chief and re‑examination — and whether traditional techniques remain fit for purpose.
These shifts promise greater accessibility and efficiency — but they also raise important questions about the quality of evidence, the assessment of credibility, and how advocates adapt in practice.
Cost:
NZBA Members: $275 inc GST
Non Members: $350 inc GST
Registration and light lunch from 11.30am | Symposium starts at 12.30pm
Programme will include:
- The Rule of Law
- Fairness vs Efficiency: The Modern Justice System
- Oral Submissions
- Cross examination
- Evidence in Chief and Re examination
- Presentation of Access to Justice Award and Cocktail function
Full programme details and speakers to come.
This event is open to members and non-members, so get in quick, places are limited.
Event Speakers
The Honourable Justice Rebecca Edwards
COURT OF APPEAL | Justice Edwards graduated with a BA and LLB (Hons) from the University of Auckland and an LLM from the University of Virginia. After practising with Russell McVeagh in Auckland and Herbert Smith in London, she became a barrister sole specialising in commercial litigation, particularly contract, shareholder, and insolvency disputes. Admitted to the Cook Islands permanent bar in 2010, she appeared in the first two Cook Islands appeals to the Privy Council. Appointed to the High Court in 2015, she joined the Court of Appeal in February 2026.
COURT OF APPEAL | Justice Edwards graduated with a BA and LLB (Hons) from the University of Auckland and an LLM from the University of Virginia. After practising with Russell McVeagh in Auckland and Herbert Smith in London, she became a barrister sole specialising in commercial litigation, particularly contract, shareholder, and insolvency disputes. Admitted to the Cook Islands permanent bar in 2010, she appeared in the first two Cook Islands appeals to the Privy Council. Appointed to the High Court in 2015, she joined the Court of Appeal in February 2026.
Roddy Dunlop KC
AXIOM ADVOCATES, SCOTLAND | Dean of Faculty at Scotland’s Faculty of Advocates Roddy Dunlop KC has a wide and varied practice. He is the only Scottish silk to be ranked in seven separate practice areas by Chambers UK, who place him as a “Star Individual” for commercial dispute resolution, and a Band 1 Silk in the areas of professional discipline, professional negligence, media law, product liability, clinical negligence and administrative and public law. He was admitted to the Bar of England and Wales (Gray’s Inn) in 2019, and is a tenant at 4 Pump Court.
AXIOM ADVOCATES, SCOTLAND | Dean of Faculty at Scotland’s Faculty of Advocates Roddy Dunlop KC has a wide and varied practice. He is the only Scottish silk to be ranked in seven separate practice areas by Chambers UK, who place him as a “Star Individual” for commercial dispute resolution, and a Band 1 Silk in the areas of professional discipline, professional negligence, media law, product liability, clinical negligence and administrative and public law. He was admitted to the Bar of England and Wales (Gray’s Inn) in 2019, and is a tenant at 4 Pump Court.
Christopher Stevenson KC
PIPITEA CHAMBERS, WELLINGTON | Christopher is a leading criminal defence barrister with more than 25 years’ experience. He has appeared in many of New Zealand’s most significant criminal trials and appeals, including major homicide cases and landmark miscarriage of justice proceedings. Christopher has successfully challenged numerous wrongful convictions and regularly appears before appellate courts, including the Supreme Court. A co-founder of Te Matakahi | New Zealand Defence Lawyers Association, he is widely recognised for his expertise in criminal advocacy and appellate litigation.
PIPITEA CHAMBERS, WELLINGTON | Christopher is a leading criminal defence barrister with more than 25 years’ experience. He has appeared in many of New Zealand’s most significant criminal trials and appeals, including major homicide cases and landmark miscarriage of justice proceedings. Christopher has successfully challenged numerous wrongful convictions and regularly appears before appellate courts, including the Supreme Court. A co-founder of Te Matakahi | New Zealand Defence Lawyers Association, he is widely recognised for his expertise in criminal advocacy and appellate litigation.
Sarah Wroe
ELDON CHAMBERS, AUCKLAND | Sarah Wroe is a barrister at Eldon Chambers in Auckland with over 25 years’ experience as a civil and commercial litigator in New Zealand and England & Wales. She has a general common law practice with a particular focus on matters touching on property law including trusts and estates. She is an approved provider for Civil Legal Aid and a member of the Legal Assistance Panel for the Sports Tribunal. She was admitted to the Bar here in 2011 and joined the Independent Bar in 2017.
ELDON CHAMBERS, AUCKLAND | Sarah Wroe is a barrister at Eldon Chambers in Auckland with over 25 years’ experience as a civil and commercial litigator in New Zealand and England & Wales. She has a general common law practice with a particular focus on matters touching on property law including trusts and estates. She is an approved provider for Civil Legal Aid and a member of the Legal Assistance Panel for the Sports Tribunal. She was admitted to the Bar here in 2011 and joined the Independent Bar in 2017.