WARD, CHARLES DUDLEY ROBERT (1827-1913) was born at Gilston Park, Hertfordshire, the eldest son of Sir Henry George Ward, who became governor of Madras. He was educated at Rugby and at Wadham College, Oxford, called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1853, and in 1854 emigrated to New Zealand. In the following year he was elected member for the Wellington County district in the House of Representatives (retired 1858), and in 1857 was appointed chairman of the courts of sessions of the peace for Wellington, and presiding judge of the magistrate's courts for Hawkes Bay, Wairarapa and Wanganui. Subsequently he was appointed resident magistrate for Wellington (1864); district judge for Wellington, Wanganui, Marlborough and Hawkes Bay (1866); acting Supreme Court judge at Dunedin (1868); district judge for Westland, Southland and Otago (1869), and acting Supreme Court judge at Auckland (1886), Christchurch (1887), and Dunedin (1894). Ward declined a permanent appointment on the Supreme Court bench in 1896. He retired in 1906, and served for a time as chairman of the railway board of appeal. His death occurred on 30 Aug 1913.

Cycl. N.Z., iv (p); Who's Who N.Z., 1908; Otago Daily Times, 1 Sep 1913, 2 May 1914.

Reference: Volume 2, page 232

🌳 Further sources