Tauranga's Shaun Cole is the first of five new community magistrates to be sworn in this month.
A swearing-in ceremony was held for Cole at Tauranga District Court yesterday , while the others will be sworn in at Auckland District Court on October 25 and Christchurch District Court on October 26.
Cole will sit in Tauranga, while Terence Bourke will sit in Hamilton, Lucy Daniels Whineray in Auckland, and Simon Heale and Sally O'Brien will both sit in Christchurch.
Cole was welcomed into the district court with a powhiri. "It is a real pleasure to be part of this community," she said.
Inside the courtroom, Judge Louis Bidois welcomed Cole and her family to Mount Maunganui and congratulated her on her new appointment as Tauranga's newest community magistrate.