Charles Bruce Morison (1861 – 6 January 1920), known by his first name and referred to as C. B. Morison in contemporary sources, was a New Zealand barrister. He stood in two elections around the turn of the century in the Otaki electorate and was later active with the Reform Party.

Early life and political ambitions

Morison was born in 1861 in Elgin, Scotland. His family emigrated to New Zealand when he was a boy. He received his education at

Nelson College Nelson College is the oldest state secondary school in New Zealand. It is an all-boys school in the City of Nelson that teaches from years 9 to 13. In addition, it runs a private preparatory school for year 7 and 8 boys. The school also has ...

. Morison twice contested the electorate for conservative interests. In the 6 December , he was defeated by the incumbent, Henry Augustus Field. Upon Field's death within days of the election, he contested the resulting by-election on 6 January and was beaten by Field's brother

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

. In later years, Morison was one of the principal organisers of the Reform Party 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 ...

Legal career

Morison received his legal apprenticeship with Arthur Rigby Bunny, the second son of Henry Bunny. After his admission to the bar, he practised at Woodville for a short time from 1885, before moving to Wellington. Arthur Atkinson joined him as a partner in 1892. When that partnership dissolved, he partnered with C. A. Loughnan, a brother of Robert Loughnan. In 1896, they took over the practice of Worley Edwards upon his appointment to the Supreme Court. Loughnan left the firm to become the city solicitor for

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

and was replaced by his brother F. O. B. Loughnan. That partnership lasted until 1904, and for the following two years, Morison practised on his own. In 1906, he took G. McLean as a partner, and upon his partner's death in 1908, W. S. Smith joined him. From 1912, David Smith worked for him as an assistant; Smith would later become a judge. Morison was appointed a King's Counsel in November 1912. He specialised in company law and

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

land issues. He wrote several books on legal matters, of which ''The Law of Limited Liability Companies in New Zealand'' (1904) and ''Rescission of Contracts'' (1916) are regarded as standard works.

Family and death

On 22 September 1887, Morison married Caroline Annie Haultain, the youngest daughter of

Theodore Haultain Theodore Minet Haultain (27 May 1817 – 18 October 1902) was a 19th-century New Zealand politician and Minister of Colonial Defence (1865–69). He came to New Zealand as a soldier and farmed in south Auckland. Personal life Theodore Minet Ha ...

. They had two sons and two daughters. Morison died on 6 January 1920 at his home at Aurora Terrace in Kelburn, Wellington. His son Bruce died in Uganda in 1924. His wife died in April 1939 in Wellington. Charles and Caroline Annie Morison are buried at

Karori Cemetery Karori Cemetery is New Zealand's second largest cemetery, located in the Wellington suburb of Karori. History Karori Cemetery opened in 1891 to address overcrowding at Bolton Street Cemetery. In 1909, it received New Zealand's first crema ...

Bibliography

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Notes

References

* :* :* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morison, Charles Bruce 1861 births 1920 deaths People educated at Nelson College New Zealand King's Counsel Unsuccessful candidates in the 1899 New Zealand general election Burials at Karori Cemetery 19th-century New Zealand politicians