Susan Glazebrook
New Zealand lawyer and jurist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dame Susan Gwynfa Mary Glazebrook DNZM (born 8 February 1956) is a former judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand.
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Dame Susan Glazebrook | |
|---|---|
Glazebrook in 2022 | |
| Justice of the Supreme Court | |
| In office 6 August 2012 – 8 February 2026 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Peter Blanchard |
| Justice of the Court of Appeal | |
| In office 24 May 2002 – 6 August 2012 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 February 1956 |
| Spouse | |
| Alma mater | University of Auckland University of Oxford |
Early life, family and education
Born in Bowdon, Cheshire, England, on 8 February 1956, Glazebrook emigrated to New Zealand with her family in 1962,[1] and she became a naturalised New Zealand citizen in 1978.[2] She was educated at Tauranga Girls' College, before going on to study at the University of Auckland, where she gained a Bachelor of Arts in 1975, a Master of Arts with first-class honours in history in 1978, and an LLB(Hons) in 1980.[1] She later completed a DipBus (Finance) at the same institution in 1994.[1] In 1988, Glazebrook obtained a DPhil from the University of Oxford in French legal history;[1][3] her doctoral thesis was titled Justice in transition: crime, criminals and criminal justice in revolutionary Rouen, 1790–1800.[4]
In 1992, Glazebrook married former New Zealand rugby union representative Greg Kane, and the couple went on to have two children together.[1]
Career
Glazebrook worked as a junior lecturer in history at the University of Auckland in 1976, 1978 and 1979.[1] Between 1981 and 1983, she was based in Rouen, France, where she worked with a government-funded body responsible for the resettlement of refugees in France.[1] In 1984, she was a research assistant under Sir Keith Sinclair and a tutor in history at the University of Auckland.[1] She was a part-time lecturer in commercial law at Auckland from 1991 to 1994.[1]
Glazebrook joined legal firm Simpson Grierson in 1986, and became a partner in 1988.[1][3] She was a member of various commercial boards and government advisory committees, and served as president of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association, in 1998.[1]
Glazebrook was appointed a judge of the High Court of New Zealand on 14 December 2000, having served until that time as temporary judge of that court.[5] She was appointed to the Court of Appeal on 24 May 2002.[6]
On 6 August 2012, Glazebrook was appointed to the Supreme Court.[7] She retired as a judge on 8 February 2026.
Glazebrook acted as administrator of the government on several occasions,[8] including while the governor-general, Dame Cindy Kiro, was in Britain attending the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.[9]
Honours and awards
In the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours, Glazebrook was appointed a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the judiciary.[10] On 11 December 2025, she was granted retention of the title The Honourable, in recognition of her service as a judge of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, and High Court.[11]