Former judge Robert Hesketh is free to practise law again after a disciplinary tribunal ruled that, despite fraud convictions, he "is a person of real integrity, probity and trustworthiness."
The Law Practitioners' Disciplinary Tribunal yesterday unconditionally re-admitted Mr Hesketh to the roll of barristers and solicitors.
The decision comes almost two years
after he was struck off after pleading guilty to eight counts of falsifying travel expenses totalling $815 while a District Court judge in Northland.
In a rare move, the Auckland District Law Society had supported his application for readmission, while the Chief District Court Judge, Ron Young, wrote to the tribunal saying he did not object.
Delivering the decision yesterday, Anne Hinton said the tribunal believed Mr Hesketh would not reoffend but accepted that the public saw fraud involving a judge as serious.
"What has ultimately determined this case is our assessment, based on all of the evidence, that Mr Hesketh is a person of real integrity, probity and trustworthiness, who was guilty of a grave error of judgment.
"His honesty prior to the offences in 1996 is unquestioned. More importantly, Mr Hesketh was honest in the way he went about dealing with both the criminal and disciplinary charges.
"We have respect for the way he has conducted himself generally since then. He has gone about such work as he could with good grace and humility."
Since being struck off, Mr Hesketh has been employed as a lecturer at Massey University and the Real Estate Institute, and has worked as an arbitrator and mediator.
The tribunal considered about 27 letters of support, some from District Court judges.
The only objection came from the six partners of a Hastings law firm, Bannister and von Dadelszen, who argued that allowing a convicted fraudster to practise law would be "reprehensible" and "would severely affect the reputation and standing of all other hard-working and law-abiding solicitors."
Both Mr Hesketh and the lawyer who appeared for him at yesterday's hearing, Paul Trehey, refused to comment on the decision.
The president of the Auckland District Law Society, Bruce Davidson, said he hoped the public would accept the tribunal's ruling.
Another Northland judge, Martin Beattie, successfully defended 45 similar fraud charges totalling about $10,000.
