“I have practised law for 40 years, and what has been impressed upon me is that the happiest clients are the ones who "do it right". If it’s important, there should be no shortcuts. Like the foundations of a house, planning for the future should be soundly based. If it’s wrong from the start, you may not get the opportunity to rebuild.”
John earned his Law Degree from Auckland University and shortly thereafter moved to Hawke’s Bay where he started the Havelock North branch of Bate Hallett. He practised on his own account, started and managed a Financial Planning firm franchised from Spicers and then returned to a legal consultancy with Bate Hallett. His legal practice has been focused towards trusts, wills and personal asset planning as well as property transactions.
This diverse experience has given him an approach to managing business on behalf of clients; an approach that few other lawyers will have. His own view is that asset planning, wills and trusts are inextricably linked to a client’s future planning and the investment and management required in meeting the client’s desired goals. The ‘holistic’ Perpetual approach matches his own philosophy. His association with Perpetual enables him to specialise in the related legal aspects of the Perpetual plan and yet know that other aspects of the client’s planning are well cared for too.
John, who lives in Havelock North with his wife, Betty, has served on school boards and as a Rotarian leader in the region he has led a Group Study Exchange team to Germany and was Chairman of the Hastings Rotary Pathways Trust, which constructed cycle/walking pathways throughout the Hastings District. John enjoys visiting his daughter in Wellington, and son and his family in Sydney. His current sporting passion is cycling.