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Mark Calderwood

Mark Calderwood

Senior Associate Pouarataki Pāhake

Ngāti Taoka te hapū
Ruapuke te whenua
Te Ara o Kiwa te moana
Tūhawaiki te tangata

Mark specialises in public and regulatory law and helps organisations navigate the interface between their commercial objectives, the law and public policy. He advises companies, government agencies, Crown entities, local authorities and iwi. His practice spans advisory work as well as contentious matters including prosecutions and civil litigation.

Clients often engage Mark when decisions are likely to attract regulatory, political, public or media scrutiny, or where they are involved in litigation or making decisions with significant legal and reputational consequences. His background includes time in the Cabinet Office, where he advised the Governor-General, the Prime Minister and Ministers on constitutional and machinery of government matters. This gives him a strong understanding of how high-profile public sector decisions are made and scrutinised.

Mark helps organisations navigate complex public law issues including statutory interpretation, decision-making, official information and privacy. He has advised on major reform and infrastructure projects, Ombudsman investigations and governance matters, often where decisions are subject to challenge or close scrutiny.

Mark has experience in health and safety litigation and regulatory enforcement, including appearing for clients in health and safety prosecutions and successfully challenging regulatory decisions. He also advises on health and safety compliance, incident response and investigations.

Mark also advises on Māori legal issues and matters involving Te Tiriti o Waitangi, incorporating Te Ao Māori perspectives into governance and decision-making frameworks, and supporting iwi and organisations engaging with central and local government. He helps clients work through these issues in a practical and considered way that reflects both legal obligations and organisational objectives.

His experience working within government, alongside his litigation and regulatory experience, gives him a strong understanding of the environment in which public organisations operate. Combined with earlier experience at the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security and in private practice, he brings a perspective that spans legal, policy and government considerations. Clients value his pragmatic approach and his ability to provide commercially aware advice.

Mark is proud of his whakapapa and champions Te Ao Māori within the firm.

Career highlights

Part of the team that acted for the Trustees of the Toi Foundation (which owns TSB Bank) in successfully defending injunction proceedings relating to the proposed sale of TSB Bank to Heartland Bank. This included advising the client in relation to complex litigation with significant commercial implications.

Advised a government department on the redrafting of major secondary legislation to reflect legislative developments, court decisions and Crown obligations to Māori, helping ensure the resulting framework was clear, effective and legally robust.

Appeared for KiwiRail Limited in sentencing under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 following the grounding of the Aratere in 2024. This included successfully negotiating the withdrawal of a charge by the prosecutor and obtaining a favourable outcome at sentencing.

Appeared for Pharmalink Extracts Limited in an appeal against the issuance of an improvement notice regarding alleged non-compliance with provisions in the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations. This involved distilling a complex process into clear submissions that enabled Court to readily understand the key issues, resulting in the notice being set aside.

Advised government agencies on significant reform and infrastructure programmes, including the Resource Management Reform Project, Three Waters reform and the Cook Strait Ferry Replacement Programme, helping clients navigate complex public law, governance and statutory decision-making issues.

Advised a post-settlement governance entity on implementing its Treaty settlement and engaging with the Crown on legislative reforms affecting settlement outcomes, helping navigate complex legal, governance and relationship considerations.

Advised a Crown entity in relation to the Royal Commission's COVID-19 Lessons Learned Inquiry, including matters involving legal privilege, expanded terms of reference and responding to significant information requests.

Affiliations
  • Te Hunga Rōia Māori o Aotearoa
  • Ngāi Tahu
Achievements and recognition
  • Band 1 team, Public Law, Chambers Asia-Pacific
  • Tier 1 team, Dispute Resolution, The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific