Camilla Belich

Camilla Vera Feslier Belich[2] is a New Zealand lawyer and politician who became a Member of Parliament, representing the New Zealand Labour Party, in 2020.

Camilla Belich

Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Labour party list
Assumed office
17 October 2020
Personal details
Born1982/1983 (age 37–39)[1]
Political partyLabour
Spouse(s)Andrew Kirton
RelationsJim Belich (grandfather)
James Belich (uncle)
ChildrenTwo
ProfessionLawyer

Biography

Early life and career

As a law student Belich became involved in student politics and was co-president of the New Zealand University Students Association. Belich has worked as an employment lawyer, beginning her career at Oakley Moran, a Wellington law firm, before moving to London in 2009 where she worked for a law firm and later for Unison, the largest trade union in the United Kingdom between 2012 and 2016.[3] There, she won acclaim for her role in winning a high-profile case in the Court of Justice of the European Union about safe working hours.[4] She became an expert on employment discrimination cases and in January 2017 she joined the Wellington employment law firm Bartlett Law as a Senior Associate.[5] She also worked for unions in New Zealand as a barrister and solicitor, firstly on equal pay issues at the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions from 2016 to 2019, and subsequently for the Public Service Association in Auckland.[3]

Member of Parliament

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2020present 53rd List 30 Labour

Belich entered Parliament in the 2020 election. She ran for the electorate of Epsom, finishing second, but became an MP based on her ranking of 30th on the Labour party list.[6][7][8]

Personal life

Belich is the granddaughter of former Wellington mayor Sir James Belich and the niece of historian James Belich. She is married to former Labour Party secretary Andrew Kirton and has two primary-school age children.[4][9]

References

  1. "Compare the candidates for Epsom — NZ Election 2020". Your complete guide to NZ Election 2020 — Policy.
  2. "Event - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz.
  3. "The 40 diverse new MPs entering Parliament". Newstalk ZB. 18 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  4. Amelia, Wade (24 May 2020). "Labour Party's latest candidate to contest key Epsom seat". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  5. "Camilla Belich joins Bartlett Law". New Zealand Law Society. 7 March 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  6. Coughlan, Thomas (15 June 2020). "Ayesha Verrall leads fresh-faced Labour party list for 2020". Stuff. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  7. "Epsom - Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  8. "2020 General Election and Referendums - Official Result Successful Candidates". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  9. "Camilla Belich". NZ Labour Party. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
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