| Honorific-Prefix: | The Honourable |
| Sir Graham Panckhurst | |
| Order: | Judge of the High Court of New Zealand |
| Term Start: | 1996 |
| Term End: | 2014 |
| Birth Name: | Graham Ken Panckhurst |
| Birth Place: | Reefton, New Zealand |
| Spouse: | Jill Panckhurst |
Sir Graham Ken Panckhurst (born 1945) is a retired New Zealand High Court judge. He chaired the Royal Commission into the Pike River Mine disaster.
Born in Reefton in 1945,[1] [2] Panckhurst was educated at Reefton District High School[3] and Christchurch Boys' High School.[4] He went on to study law at the University of Canterbury, and was elected to the university's Student Representative Council.[5] He married his wife, Jill, a registered nurse, in the late 1960s.[6] [7]
Panckhurst was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in Christchurch on 20 February 1970.[8] In 1985, he was appointed as Crown Solicitor for Canterbury and the West Coast. Panckhurst took silk in 1994 and was appointed to the High Court bench in 1996.[9] He retired from the High Court bench in 2014.
In 2009, Panckhurst heard the retrial of David Bain. The trial was substantial with the prosecution calling 150 witnesses.[10] In 2010, Panckhurst was appointed to head the Royal Commission into the Pike River Mine disaster.[11]
In November 2014, Panckhurst was granted the retention of the title The Honourable, in recognition of his service as a High Court judge.[12] In the 2015 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the judiciary.[13]