An Auckland barrister, Mina Wharepouri will be sworn in tomorrow as Acting District Court Judge, and will be based in Manukau, New Zealand.

He is believed to be the first person of Tongan descent to be appointed a judge in New Zealand.

Judge Wharepouri is a former student of Otahuhu College, South Auckland, and graduated with a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Auckland. He later completed a Masters degree at Cambridge University, England and practiced law in a London based firm choosing criminal law as his chosen pathway.

He moved back to New Zealand to practice law at Kensington Swan and then went on to Russell McVeagh where he was counsel for several Maori claimants in proceedings in the High Court and Court of Appeal.

Judge Wharepouri also worked for the Crown prosecution, Meredith Connell leading District Court and High Court jury trials, and trained police in matters relating to evidence and prosecution between 2003 and 2011. He then became a barrister sole appearing regularly in District Court and High Court trials.

Judge Wharepouri is the first person of Tongan descent to be appointed a judge in New Zealand, believes Auckland barrister Kahungunu Barron-Afeaki, who will attend tomorrow's ceremony.

"Judge Wharepouri’s mother is Melenaite Vaka, the daughter of Tēvita Vaka and Vinola Cook of Helemonga, Kolomotuʻa in Tongatapu, Tonga," he said.