New District Court Judge

Attorney-General Margaret Wilson today announced the appointment of Karina Williams as a District Court Judge. She will be sworn in on 4 September and will sit in Manukau.

Karina Williams was admitted to the Bar in 1989 and has been practising as a barrister sole in Manukau since 1993. The core areas of her practice are criminal law, Youth Court work and mental health. She was appointed District Inspector of Mental Health in 1999. She also served as a Tenancy Adjudicator in the period 1990-2003.

Raised in the Maori community of Ruatoki, Karina Williams affiliates to Tuhoe, Te Whakatohea, Tainui, Te Aupouri and Ngaitai Iwi. She maintains strong links to her whanau and local community through sport and cultural activities, including coaching and composing for kapa haka groups.

A former representative netball player for Auckland, she has been a coach of South Auckland teenage and school teams for many years.

Karina Williams serves on the Board of Trustees of the Mangere Bridge Primary School and until recently was a member of the Advisory Board of the George Parkyn Centre for Gifted Children. She has also been involved in mentoring Mâori law students joining the workforce.

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