Free Speech Union Council Chair Stephen Franks and Tauranga lawyer Kirsten Murfitt compare notes on being investigated by the New Zealand Law Society. Both faced complaints over letters they wrote for clients. Both say the complaints system was turned against them.

Stephen's case began with a letter sent for a client to clinics offering gender-affirming care to minors, setting out the legal risks after the Cass Review. A Standards Committee censured and fined him. The Legal Complaints Review Officer reversed that finding. Kirsten's case followed an open letter she published for her client, Lobby for Good, seeking information about a Tauranga City Council property purchase.

They cover the cost of defending a complaint, rules that treat causing distress as misconduct, and what that means for clients who need a lawyer to speak for them. Professional regulators are an election campaign issue for the Free Speech Union. This special episode looks at the public and private cost of processes that seem more interested in groupthink than in protecting consumers.

Free to Speak is the official podcast of the New Zealand Free Speech Union. Uncensored conversations on free speech, civil liberties, and the people defending them. Hosted by Dane Giraud.

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Karl Mokaraka earned the nickname "the man over the fence" the day he borrowed a wheelchair for height and climbed the fence at a Pakuranga press event. From there he put his questions straight to the politicians inside.

In this episode Dane Giraud sits down with the Ōtara-raised activist to talk about the South Auckland he grew up in, a community that once judged you by your street rather than your race. They trace what changed as the freezing works and factories closed, the shared spaces vanished and the humour that held people together went with them.

Mokaraka argues the real divide is about money and class rather than race, and that the common thread behind much of the hardship is the absent father. He makes the case that South Auckland's stories rarely reach the rest of the country, and asks who actually speaks for the families being left behind.

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Free Speech Union Executive Director Jillaine Heather joins Dane Giraud on Free to Speak to set out the Union's priorities heading into the 2026 general election. Together they work through the three campaigns the FSU is running before election day.

The first is opposing the return of blasphemy and religious hate speech laws. Heather argues the state can protect people from threats and harassment, but it cannot wall off beliefs and faiths from criticism.

The second is professional regulation. She argues licensing bodies are straying beyond consumer safety into people's lawful private views. A mandatory course becomes compelled belief, she says, when someone has to give the approved answers to keep their licence.

The third is the Government's new Online Safety Bill, introduced in August 2026, which would establish a regulator inside the Department of Internal Affairs. Heather's concern reaches past the under-16 age limit. She argues the real question is whether a government body should sit between adults and their access to lawful online communication. The Union is planning a symposium on the online space for early 2027.

Free to Speak is the official podcast of the New Zealand Free Speech Union. Uncensored conversations on free speech, civil liberties, and the people defending them. Hosted by Dane Giraud.

Join the Free Speech Union: https://www.fsu.nz/join
Support our work: https://www.fsu.nz/donate
Newsletter: https://www.fsu.nz/subscribe
Website: https://www.fsu.nz
Got feedback or a guest suggestion? podcast@fsu.nz

Promoted by Free Speech Union, PO Box 10423, The Terrace, Wellington 6143

Support the show

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https://x.com/NZFreeSpeech
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