Thomas Eichelbaum


Sir Johann Thomas Eichelbaum was a New Zealand jurist who served as the 11th Chief Justice of New Zealand.

Early life and family

Eichelbaum was born in Königsberg, Germany, and his family emigrated to Wellington, New Zealand, in 1938 to escape the persecution of Jews. He became a naturalised New Zealander in 1946. Eichelbaum was educated at Hutt Valley High School, then attended Victoria University College, graduating LLB in 1954. In 1956, Eichelbaum married Vida Beryl Franz, and the couple went on to have three sons.
Eichelbaum's father Walter was first cousin with Siegfried Eichelbaum, the husband of the artist Vera Chapman.

Legal career

In 1978, Eichelbaum was appointed a Queen's Counsel, and from 1980 to 1982 he was President of the New Zealand Law Society. In 1982, Eichelbaum was appointed a judge of the High Court of New Zealand. The highest judicial position Eichelbaum held was in 1989 when he was appointed the Chief Justice of New Zealand; he retired from the Bench in 1999.

Retirement

Following his retirement from the bench, Eichelbaum conducted investigations on a number of controversial topics. He chaired the 2000–2001 Report of the Royal Commission on Genetic Modification. He also investigated the reasons for New Zealand losing co-hosting rights to the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Following his report, the chairman and the CEO of the New Zealand Rugby Union both resigned.
In 2001, he conducted a ministerial inquiry reviewing children's evidence in the controversial Peter Ellis case. His report, which has been widely criticised, upheld the guilty verdicts and stands in contrast to an earlier report by retired High Court judge, Sir Thomas Thorp. A New Zealand Law Journal editorial has stated that Eichelbaum had either not read all the children's statements or that, "with respect, his judgment is at fault."
On 6 February 1989, Eichelbaum was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of British Empire in the 1989 Special Honours, and later that same year was appointed to the Privy Council. Eichelbaum was a non-permanent judge of the Hong Kong SAR Court of Final Appeal and a part-time justice of the Supreme Court of Fiji and the Court of Appeal of Fiji.
Eichelbaum died in Wellington on 31 October 2018, having been predeceased by his wife, Vida, Lady Eichelbaum, in 2013.