Russell McVeagh

Russell McVeagh
Headquarters Auckland, New Zealand
No. of offices 2
No. of lawyers 250+
No. of employees 400+
Major practice areas Competition, Corporate, Employment, Finance, Litigation, Property, Resource Management, Public Law and Tax
Key people Pip Greenwood (Chairman), Gary McDiarmid (CEO)
Date founded 1863
Founder John Benjamin Russell
Slogan New Zealand's Premier Law Firm
Website www.russellmcveagh.com

Russell McVeagh is a New Zealand law firm with offices in Auckland and Wellington.

History

Russell McVeagh was established as a one-man practice by John Benjamin Russell (1834-1894) in 1863. He was joined by various partners until he was succeeded at the firm by his son Edward Robert Nolan Russell (1869-1939) in 1893.

In 1904, Robert McVeagh joined the partnership and remained involved in the firm until his death in 1944. In 1969 the firm merged with McKenzie & Bartleet to become Russell McVeagh McKenzie Bartleet & Co, the name it held until 2000, when it became known simply as Russell McVeagh.

In 1988, the firm established its Wellington office with four founding partners.[1]

The first job of politician Winston Peters after graduating in 1974 was with Russell McVeagh; he stayed for about three years, but became involved in politics.[2]

In 2018, the firm was criticised for its handling of allegations that law students had been sexual assaulted by two of its lawyers in the 2015/16 summer.[3]

Controversy

Russell McVeagh is facing allegations that senior male lawyers engaged in non-consensual and consensual sexual acts with female intern students.[4][5] These allegations have resulted in all the six law schools in New Zealand to cut ties with Russell McVeagh, including the University of Otago and Auckland University.[6]

The firm has ordered an external investigation into the allegations of sexual assault and harassment.

References

  1. ↑ Russell McVeagh (2013). "About Us - History". Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  2. ↑ Hames, Martin Winston First: The unauthorised account of Winston Peters’ career p7 (1995, Random House Auckland) ISBN 1 86941 257 5
  3. ↑ https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/02/21/90108/why-wasnt-the-law-society-told
  4. ↑ "Law firm slammed: 'It was like a frat house'". NewsComAu. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  5. ↑ "Law interns' sexual assault complaints come to light". Radio New Zealand. 2018-02-15. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  6. ↑ "Six NZ universities cut ties with law firm Russell McVeagh in wake of sexual harassment claims". NZ Herald. 2018-03-01. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.