Hon Christopher Finlayson
Attorney-General
10 November 2016
Media Statement
Appointment of Crown Solicitor for Whanganui
Michele Marina Wilkinson-Smith has been appointed Crown Solicitor for Whanganui, Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson
announced today.
She takes over the role from Lance Rowe following his appointment to the District Court Bench in April 2016.
Ms Wilkinson-Smith graduated from the University of Auckland with a LLB (Hons) in 1993 and joined the independent bar in
2005. She has extensive criminal law experience, including 12 years as a Crown prosecutor and 11 years as a criminal
defence barrister. She has also been a member of the Crown Prosecution Panel in Palmerston North since 2012.
She has acted in a number of high profile criminal trials and has appeared in all of New Zealand’s appellate courts. She
is also a faculty member of the New Zealand Law Society Litigation Skills Programme.
Wilkinson-Smith Lawyers will support the delivery of Crown prosecution services to the Whanganui region.
The appointment will take effect from 1 December 2016.
ends