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Thomas George Goddard CNZM (born Tomasz Goldwag, 20 May 1937 – 14 March 2019) was a New Zealand jurist. He served as chief judge of the Employment Court of New Zealand from 1989 to 2005.
Thomas Goddard | |
|---|---|
| 1st Chief Employment Court Judge | |
| In office September 1989 – 19 May 2005 | |
| Succeeded by | Graeme Colgan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Tomasz Goldwag 20 May 1937 Warsaw, Poland |
| Died | (aged 81) Wellington, New Zealand |
| Citizenship | New Zealander |
| Alma mater | Victoria University College |
| Profession | Barrister and solicitor |
Goddard was born Tomasz Goldwag in Warsaw, Poland, on 20 May 1937, the son of Naum Goldwag and Estera Goldwag (née Kryńska).[1][2] They survived The Holocaust and came to New Zealand in 1947, changing their surname to Goddard.[1][2] Thomas Goddard became a naturalised New Zealand citizen in 1952.[3] He was educated at Wellington College, and went on to study at Victoria University College, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in French and Latin in 1958, a Master of Arts in French the following year, and a Bachelor of Laws in 1962.[1][4]
Goddard was called to the bar as a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court in 1962, and specialised in employment law, equity law, administrative law, the law of torts, contract law, and jurisprudence.[1] He practised either in partnership or in sole practice until 1989, and in 1982 acted as counsel for the successful plaintiff in a cited case regarding exemplary damages in tort, Taylor v Beere.[1] In 1989, he was appointed chief judge of the Labour Court, and when that court became the Employment Court in 1991, he continued as chief judge, retiring from that role in 2005.[1][5]
Not long after his retirement, Goddard was appointed by the Tongan government in August 2005 to review the pay claims of Tongan public servants who were on strike.[6] When the District Court judge Ian Borrin died in 2016, he left a $30 million legacy for the establishment of a charitable trust, the Michael and Suzanne Borrin Foundation, in memory of his parents, and Goddard was appointed as a member of its grants and scholarship committee.[7]
Goddard died at his home in Wellington on 14 March 2019.[8]
In 1990, Goddard was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[1] He was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the Employment Court, in the 2006 New Year Honours.[9]
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