Petra Butler

Petra's research focuses on human rights and international commercial law. She has published widely in her area of expertise, including with Andrew Butler, The New Zealand Bill of Rights Act: a commentary (LexisNexis, 3rd ed forthcoming). Petra has particular expertise in law reform, including leading the Commonwealth Secretariat studies into judicial diversity in small Commonwealth states and into international commercial arbitration in the Commonwealth. Petra is a fully qualified German and New Zealand lawyer and is a barrister at Kate Sheppard Chambers.
In recognition of her work, she was made a senior research fellow at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law and a fellow of Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand. She also represents New Zealand at UNCITRAL and UNIDROIT. She is a member of the NCP Liaison Group at MBIE.
Petra is the Director of the Institute of Small and Micro States (ISMS). ISMS’ aim is to provide a platform for small states’ research and law reform. Together with Dr Caroline Morris she is the series editor of The World of Small States published by Springer.