judge president Supreme Court of New Zealand
Young was educated at Christ"s College (secondary school) in Christchurch, University of Canterbury (Bachelor of Laws (Honours)) and University of Cambridge (Doctor of Philosophy) in the United Kingdom. After obtaining his Doctor of Philosophy, Young worked in the Christchurch law firm R A Young Hunter & Company, before moving to the independent bar to become a barrister sole in 1988.
He was appointed to the Supreme Court by Attorney-General Chris Finlayson in June 2010, taking effect from 1 July. Young was made a Queen"s Counsel in 1991 and acted in several high-profile cases, including the Winebox Inquiry of the 1990s. Young was appointed a High Court in Christchurch in 1997, a Court of Appeal when the Supreme Court was created in 2004, and to the position of President in January 2006.
Young was appointed a of the Supreme Court with effect from 1 July 2010.
Young in R v Wanhalla described model jury directions in a criminal trial on the standard of proof required. While a barrister, Young was involved with the New Zealand Law Society educational programme and, since appointment to the bench, with the Institute of Judicial Studies, being the primary author of its Criminal Jury Trials Bench Book.
He wrote "Summing Up to Juries - What Jury Research says about Current Rules and Practice" Crim LR 665 and co-authored a chapter in Witness Testimony: Psychological, Investigative and Evidential Perspectives (Oxford University Press 26 October 2006). Formal
Doctor William Young (1978–1991)
Doctor William Young Queen's Counsel (1991–1997)
The Honorary
Justice William Young Queen's Counsel (1997–2007)
The Honorary
Justice William Young DCNZM Queen's Counsel (2007–2009)
The Honorary Justice Sir William Young KNZM Queen's Counsel (2009–present).
Quotations: "Summing Up to Juries - What Jury Research says about Current Rules and Practice".
