Yes, Minister by Chris Finlayson

Author:Chris Finlayson [Christopher Finlayson]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Published: 2022-06-28T00:00:00+00:00

There is a more consistent practice of appearances by attorneys-general as counsel in international proceedings. In addition to the Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v Japan: New Zealand intervening) case in 2013, in which the Australian attorney‐general and I appeared, Martyn Finlay QC represented New Zealand in the country’s first appearance before the International Court of Justice in Nuclear Tests (New Zealand v France) (1974), while Paul East QC appeared in New Zealand’s request for re‐examination of that claim following the resumption of French underground nuclear testing in 1995. Paul East QC also appeared in the International Court of Justice’s advisory case Advisory Opinion on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons (1996).

Much of what I have written here on the varied tasks of the attorney‐general may appear to be very lawyerly and dry; that is because much of it is. But what I have endeavoured to show is that New Zealand is a country governed by the rule of law. This means that everyone, including the greatest and most powerful, are the servants of the law and have to comply with it. There can be no exceptions, which is particularly the case insofar as the Crown, the most powerful body in the land, is concerned. It is important that the Crown and its servants understand that, in everything they do, they are subject to the law. The person responsible for ensuring both compliance with, and understanding of, those fundamental principles is the attorney‐general.

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