NZLS Constitution

The New Zealand Law Society operates under a constitution, as set out in the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers) Constitution 2008. Part B of that consitution came into effect on 1 February 2009, setting in place a new organisation model. The Society now has 13 branches around the country, based generally on the former districts (Canterbury and Westland having amalgamated). The constitution provides for the Society to be governed by a council and a board, and the appointment of an executive director. It also sets out:

• how the president and other officers are elected
• how voting is conducted
• the mechanism for amending the constitution itself.

The Society's council comprises up to 25 members, including the president, four vice-presidents, a representative from each branch, and representatives from each of the Society's sections, the NZ Bar Association and a group representing the large law firms.

Register of lawyers

The NZLS is required to establish and maintain a public register of lawyers that can be accessed through its website. The register must show:

• the lawyer’s full name and contact details including work address, telephone number and fax number
• the kind of practising certificate held and when it was issued
• date and place of admission
• if the lawyer is in practice on his or her own account, whether he or she is in sole practice, partnership, a shareholder or director of an incorporated law firm
• if the lawyer is an employee
• if the lawyer is an in-house lawyer
• whether he or she is providing or intends to provide real estate services
• whether the lawyer’s practising certificate is currently suspended and, if so, when the suspension took effect and when it will be lifted (if known).

While the rules allow for it, it is not envisaged that a lawyer’s home address, home and other contact phone number or work email address will be published.

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