Sir Michael Hardie Boys, (born 6 October 1931) is a New Zealand retired lawyer, judge, and jurist who served as the 17th Governor-General of New Zealand, in office from 1996 to 2001.

Early life and family

Hardie Boys was born in 1931 in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

. His father was the Hon Reginald Hardie Boys (1903–1970), a judge of the Supreme Court. After his schooling at Hataitai School and

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

, Hardie Boys gained a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

and

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

from Victoria University College. Hardie Boys married Mary Zohrab in 1957. They have two sons, two daughters and eight grandchildren.

Judge of the High Court

A lawyer by profession, Hardie Boys became a Judge of the High Court of New Zealand in 1980 (prior to 1980, the name was Supreme Court, i.e. he sat in the same court that his father had). In 1989 he was elevated to the Court of Appeal, and was appointed as a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...

. In 1994 he was elected as an Honorary Bencher at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

, and in 1995 became an Honorary

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates. The college also admits "mature" undergraduates (aged 21 and above), with around ...

. He is also a visiting fellow at Wolfson. In the 1996 New Year Honours, Hardie Boys was appointed as a

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

Governor-General of New Zealand

On 21 March 1996, Hardie Boys was appointed by Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

Queen of New Zealand The monarchy of New Zealand is the constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of New Zealand. The current monarch, King Charles III, ascended the throne following the death of his mot ...

on the advice of Prime Minister

Jim Bolger James Brendan Bolger ( ; born 31 May 1935) is a New Zealand retired politician of the National Party who was the 35th prime minister of New Zealand, serving from 1990 to 1997. Bolger was born to an Irish immigrant family in Ōpunake, Taran ...

, as the Governor-General of New Zealand. As the

1996 New Zealand general election The 1996 New Zealand general election was held on 12 October 1996 to determine the composition of the 45th New Zealand Parliament. It was notable for being the first election to be held under the new mixed-member proportional (MMP) electoral sys ...

would be the first MMP election, the appointment of a lawyer was desirable. In the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours, Hardie Boys was the first person appointed as a Knight Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. He was also appointed a Knight of the Order of St John of Jerusalem in April 1996. Upon the completion of his term on 21 March 2001, Sir Michael and Lady Hardie Boys were both appointed as additional Companions of the

Queen's Service Order The Queen's Service Order, established by royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the pu ...

Controversies

In 1996, Hardie Boys caused controversy by stating his opposition to Minister of Youth Affairs Deborah Morris's suggestion that young people have access to contraceptives. Later, in 2001, he created further controversy by making an implied attack on the Clark Labour Government's scrapping of the air defence wing of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Retirement

After his retirement as Governor-General of New Zealand, Hardie Boys served as a judge of the Kiribati Court of Appeal. He now lives in retirement at

Waikanae Waikanae (, ) is a town on the Kapiti Coast, 60 kilometres north of the Wellington CBD. The name is a Māori word meaning "waters" (''wai'') "of the grey mullet". The town lies between Paraparaumu, eight kilometres to the southwest, and Ōt ...

. In 2004, Hardie Boys stated his opposition to New Zealand becoming a republic, stating in an interview: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Arms

References

External links

Official biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardie Boys, Michael 1931 births Living people Court of Appeal of New Zealand judges Fellows of Wolfson College, Cambridge People educated at Wellington College (New Zealand) Governors-General of New Zealand High Court of New Zealand judges New Zealand judges on the courts of Kiribati New Zealand Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George People from Waikanae Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council New Zealand monarchists Victoria University of Wellington alumni Knights Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Companions of the Queen's Service Order Knights of Justice of the Order of St John New Zealand members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People from Wellington City 20th-century New Zealand lawyers 20th-century New Zealand judges 21st-century New Zealand judges