28 August 2026 Media Statement: Chief Justice welcomes judicial appointment

The Chief Justice welcomes the Attorney-General’s announcement today of the appointment of Auckland Barrister Sarah Wroe as an Associate Judge of the High Court.

Associate Judge Wroe will take up her appointment on 14 September 2026, and will sit in Auckland. She will be sworn in on Wednesday 16 September 2026 at the Auckland High Court.

Biography
Associate Judge Wroe graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1997 as a Bachelor Scholar of Christ’s College, achieving First Class Honours in Law in her final year. In 1998 she completed the Bar Vocational Course with the Inns of Court School of Law in London.

She practised as a Barrister in Bristol from 1998 to 2005 specialising in criminal and personal injury law, and trained as a mediator at Regent’s College School of Psychotherapy and Counselling in London.

In 2006 Associate Judge Wroe emigrated to New Zealand with her family, initially spending three years raising her children and then working for a boutique law firm assisting leaky homeowners. She gained admission as a Barrister and Solicitor in New Zealand in August 2011. She was a Senior Solicitor/Senior Associate with Martelli McKegg until September 2015, then a Senior Associate in a specialist litigation firm until 2017.

In June 2017 Associate Judge Wroe resumed practice as a barrister sole at Eldon Chambers in Auckland, with a specialist commercial and civil litigation practice focussing on property disputes (including trusts and estates) and sports law.

For several years she taught Advocacy, Civil Litigation and Property Law at the College of Law. She was appointed an Appeals Commissioner for the New Zealand Olympic Committee in 2025.