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History
History
Edward Tennyson-Connolly (1822-1908)
The firm's history began with one man, Edward Tennyson-Connolly (1822-1908). Connolly was the first president of the Marlborough District Law Society and he arrived in New Zealand at a time when "law and order" was only just becoming established.
Connolly had been practising as a barrister in England for 13 years by the time he, his wife Emily and their seven children embarked on the arduous voyage to New Zealand. The family arrived in Picton in 1865 and Connolly promptly set up a legal practice that became widely respected. Pre-eminent in his distinguished career, he became a member of the Legislative Council for New Zealand, was Attorney-General for New Zealand and was appointed Supreme Court Judge, Auckland. Connolly moved to Auckland in 1889, leaving his practice in the hands of his son, John Connolly.
John had entered the practice in 1881 and by the time he took over from his father, the firm had established an office in Blenheim.
John Connolly
In the early 1920's the firm's Partners made plans for the construction of a suitable building in High Street and the new building, Temple Chambers, was completed in 1925. By the time the firm moved into the smart new premises, it was known as Burden, Churchwood, and Reid.
During the Second World War years the firm was signatory to a "Basis of a Federation of Agreements" with other legal practices around town. This was the only way to try and maintain a fully functioning operation when key staff members were away on active service. It detailed the manner in which clients would be shared and income divided in order for the participating practices to survive. Ultimately clients were lost as the firm had a significant number of partners absent and it took years to rebuild the practice to its prominent position within the province.
The firm grew considerably over the latter part of the 20th century and this necessitated major changes to Temple Chambers. One design feature not easily remedied was the overall height of the Temple Chambers building from the road - in the 1920's a fear of flood meant many new buildings of the day were built with floors above flood height - so it remains today.
In 1983 the first major rebuild occurred when the firm, then called Lundon Radich Dew, bought the magnificent old ANZ building next door to Temple Chambers. Ian Athfield of Athfield Architects was contracted to incorporate architectural elements of this condemned building into an expansion of the Temple Chambers premises. The result is a lasting reminder of another of Blenheim's fine old buildings.
By 2003, as the firm continued to grow, other major renovations and extensions were required and local architect Tim Barton, made further complementary changes to the building, as it stands today.
Partners 1865-2019
Edward Tennyson-Connolly
Albert Pitt
John Connolly
Henry Sharp
Henry Edward Burden
William Thompson Churchward
Frank Felix Reid
Frank Wilmot Horton
Paul Molineaux
Michael David Hill
John Meyers Lundon
Peter Joseph Radich
David William Richard Dew
John Roger Parkes
Craig James Thompson
Michael Hardy-Jones
Christopher Thomas Clark
Brian Patrick Dwyer
Andrew Paul Finch
Murray James Hunt
Stephanie Anne Ginders
Jodi Maree Harris
Contact Info
76 High St, Blenheim 7201, New Zealand
+64 3 578 5339
reception@hjc.co.nz