Thomas Joynt

Thomas Joynt KC
Sketch of Thomas Joynt
Born	December 1830 Dunmore, County Galway, Ireland
Died	5 September 1907 (aged 77) Christchurch, New Zealand
Occupation	barrister and solicitor
Known for	senior member of the New Zealand bar

Thomas Ingham Joynt KC (December 1830 – 5 September 1907) was a senior member of the New Zealand legal profession from Christchurch. Born in Ireland, he emigrated to Canterbury with his wife and child in 1856. He had commenced legal training in Dublin and was admitted to the bar in 1863 in Christchurch; at the same time, he set up his own legal firm. Over the years, he formed various partnerships with other solicitors. Joynt became known as a defence lawyer and had many high-profile cases, but he was equally successful in civil cases. In 1907, when the first ten King's Counsel were appointed in New Zealand, Joynt was acknowledged as the senior member of the bar. He practised until shortly before his death.

He represented Kaiapoi on the Canterbury Provincial Council from 1871 until the abolition of provincial government some five years later. He served on the Canterbury Executive Council as Provincial Solicitor for 15 months under William Montgomery. He unsuccessfully stood for Parliament in 1884 election and this marked the end of his political ambitions.

Joynt was born in 1830 in Dunmore, County Galway, Ireland. His parents were Thomas and Sarah Joynt (née Kennedy). He went to school in Tuam and then Dublin. He trained as a lawyer in Dublin, where he met Justice Gresson, who would later admit him as a barrister to the Supreme Court.

He married Edith Abbott, the daughter of John Abbott, on 11 June 1856 in Glasnevin. On the suggestion of Gresson, they emigrated on the Mariner to New Zealand, arriving in Wellington on 25 November 1856 after an eventful journey that resulted in several deaths. They continued on the Canterbury to Lyttelton, which was reached on 1 December.