Loughlin O'Brien (23 November 1821 – 17 April 1901), often spelled Laughlin O'Brien, was a New Zealand politician and judge.

Early life

O'Brien was born in 1821 in Dublin, Ireland, and arrived in New Zealand in 1842. His father was Andrew O'Brien, who represented the City of Auckland electorate in the

Auckland Provincial Council The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Area The province covered roughly half of the North Island of New Zealand. It was the largest of the six initial provinces, both ...

. He married Hélène Leopoldine Francoise Isabelle De Witte at

St Patrick's Cathedral, Auckland The Cathedral of St Patrick and St Joseph (usually known as St Patrick's Cathedral) is a Catholic church in Auckland CBD, situated on the corner of Federal Street and Wyndham St. It is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Auckland a ...

, on 4 February 1856, with the wedding ceremony carried out by

Bishop Pompallier Jean-Baptiste François Pompallier (11 December 1801 – 21 December 1871) was the first Roman Catholic bishop in New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two m ...

. His Belgian-born wife was from

Waiheke Island Waiheke Island (; Māori: ) is the second-largest island (after Great Barrier Island) in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand. Its ferry terminal in Matiatia Bay at the western end is from the central-city terminal in Auckland. It is the most pop ...

, and her father Charles Antoine Joseph De Witte was the Belgian consul to New Zealand.

Professional career

He trained as a solicitor, first under Mr Conroy and then under Frederick Merriman. He was one of the first two solicitors to be submitted to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

in 1851 after having trained in New Zealand. In 1856, he was appointed sheriff for the Auckland district. He was registrar of the Supreme Court from 1865 to 1870, when he retired with a pension. In 1880, he was appointed judge at the

Native Land Court Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and enterta ...

. He retired from the bench in circa 1899.

Politics

O'Brien represented the

City of Auckland Auckland City was a territorial authority with city status covering the central isthmus of the urban area of Auckland, New Zealand. It was governed by the Auckland City Council from 1989 to 2010, and as a territory within the wider Auckland R ...

electorate in the

1st New Zealand Parliament The 1st New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. It opened on 24 May 1854, following New Zealand's first general election (held the previous year). It was dissolved on 15 September 1855 in preparation for that year's ...

from 1853 to 1855, when he retired. He did not serve in any subsequent Parliaments. He was

returning officer In various parliamentary systems, a returning officer is responsible for overseeing elections in one or more constituencies. Australia In Australia a returning officer is an employee of the Australian Electoral Commission or a state electoral c ...

for the for the City of Auckland, , and electorates. He also acted as returning officer for elections to the

, including elections of the

Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

Death

O'Brien resided at St Georges Bay Road, Parnell, and later, at Putiki Bay,

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

. He died at Woodside Private Hospital in Burleigh Street, Auckland, on 17 April 1901 following a long illness. He was buried in Waikaraka Cemetery, Onehunga, Auckland. He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Loughlin 1821 births 1901 deaths Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Māori Land Court judges People from Waiheke Island New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates Irish emigrants to New Zealand Colony of New Zealand judges 19th-century New Zealand politicians Sheriffs of New Zealand