A love of surfing may have prompted Auckland-based barrister Robert Makgill (LLB, LLM) to specialise in environmental law, but it’s the opportunity to work on a variety of domestic and international matters that has kept him engaged for more than 20 years.
As a barrister specialising in environmental, natural resources and public law, Makgill has successfully led a number of natural resource and property-development projects through the planning and approval process. He is also actively involved in hearing committees, appointed as a commissioner for the Environmental Protection Authority and the Exclusive Economic Zone.
You’ve recently joined the College of Law New Zealand as an adjunct instructor. What are you looking forward to the most?
It’s a real honour to be appointed as an adjunct instructor. I enjoy teaching and I’ve taught at university level in the past. I like being around young minds, young people who are all brimming with the yearning to learn.
So for you, teaching is an exchange?
It’s an exchange of ideas. I’ve mentored quite a few post-graduate students in the past – students who have got their degrees and are doing master’s study or even doing doctoral research. So I’ve mentored those students either in their studies or if they transitioned from study into private practice, and it’s something that I just think is a good opportunity to give back.
You’ve been a barrister for almost 20 years. What have been some of your career highlights?
I would say when I got a doctoral scholarship to work at the Ghent Maritime Institute in Belgium. And later, appearing as counsel before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Hamburg.
When did you decide to specialise in environmental law?
I pretty much specialised from day one. I started life undertaking environmental law research for a barrister on Waitangi Tribunal claims. I got this job while installing his kitchen during a gap year – which involved lots of surfing – following my undergraduate degree. I then went on to complete a master’s in environmental law and joined an environmental team in a corporate law firm.
What drew you to environmental law?
I guess its interdisciplinary nature. You’re dealing with legal issues as well as practical issues. It provides lots of opportunities to get outside the office. I specialise in law of the sea and coastal matters, which gets me – and my surfboards – to lots of coastal locations. Also I think it has a lot of interesting jurisprudence associated with the area of law, so it’s good intellectual, grunty stuff.
What are the major areas of interest in environmental law at the moment?
I would say exploration and development within the deep-sea environment, and practical applications of the precautionary approach.
What are the challenges in practising international law, as opposed to domestic law?
The principles are similar, but the context is different. International law is the law that manages relations between states, at least in a public law setting or an environmental setting, which is a branch of public law. Whereas domestic law governs relationships between individuals and the state, or individuals and individuals.
Robert Makgill joins the College of Law New Zealand team as an adjunct instructor in the Professional Legal Studies Course.