You may be eligible for appointment as an associate member if you are:

• a retired lawyer
• an experienced legal executive, legal office manager or the like employed in any field of law
• a New Zealand lawyer practising overseas not holding a New Zealand practising certificate
• an overseas lawyer with significant association with the New Zealand profession
• a present or former member of the judiciary in New Zealand or elsewhere
• a lecturer in law
• anybody else claiming a significant association with the legal profession

Note: Lawyers who have been suspended or struck off the roll are ineligible.

Read the Rules for Associate Membership to confirm your eligibility. 

There are two routes to associate membership.

• Registered Legal Executives - Fellow, Associate or Affiliate members of Legal Executives New Zealand (LENZ) - are eligible to join the Law Society as associate members. They are exempt from the requirements of rule 3 of the Rules for Associate Membership. Apply online here.
• For others, applications for associate membership should be made on the Application for Associate Membership form

The Law Society Board must be satisfied that the applicant is eligible according to the Rules and has a significant association with the legal profession.

Please note that if you are providing legal services to the public outside the confines of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006 (eg tax consultants, insolvency practitioners, employment advocates) you may not be eligible for membership. While there is nothing wrong with non-lawyers providing legal services outside the reserved areas of work, associate membership could blur the line between lawyer/non-lawyer and cause confusion.

The Board will retain an absolute discretion over appointments.

The Law Society Board has set a fee of $106.00 for the 2024/25 membership year (1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025).

Participation

Associate membership allows people who have given service to, or been closely connected with, the legal profession to participate in its work.

While they will not be eligible for appointment or election as NZLS officers or Council or Board members, associate members are eligible for appointment to special committees as the Board may decide.

Communication and information

Associate members receive the Law Society’s weekly email newsletter, LawPoints. They can access a digital copy of LawTalk on our website. This is the Law Society’s flagship publication – its official magazine, published quarterly. LawTalk contains news of Law Society regulatory activities and information of direct and immediate benefit to members and associate members.

Continuing education

Associate members receive member rates for NZLS CLE Limited courses. NZLS CLE runs an extensive continuing education programme. Webinars, seminars and specialist workshops on a wide range of topics are presented online and at various venues throughout the country.

Library services

Access to Law Society library services is available at a cost of $632.50 per year. Conditions apply. For information about the conditions of access, please contact associatemembership@lawsociety.org.nz.

Associate members, like lawyers, are charged for any research, photocopying and delivery costs.

Associate members of the Law Society may join one or both of the Property Law Section and the Family Law Section.