Neil McKegg

By Philip Wells - 8 Nov 2011

Neil McKegg was a man of many parts, golfer, lawyer, Island trader, diplomat, businessman, husband and father.  His was not an ordinary life.

Neil's father, Robert McKegg (or Boss as he was universally called), had purchased the Cook Islands Trading Company (CITC) in 1916.  Boss met Neil's mother, Irene Pearson, in 1920 on board ship.  The ship was  bringing Boss back to Rarotonga from San Francisco where he had just purchased the schooner SS Tagua and Irene (known as Bessie) was returning to New Zealand after an overseas holiday.  They married within a year.  Neil's mother was credited as the source of Neil's sporting prowess, particularly his golf.  Boss and Irene had their first son, Henley, in 1921 and in 1931 Neil was born.  As brother Henley had been sent off to boarding school in NZ at age five the young Neil spent an idyllic childhood in Rarotonga trailing his father around and enjoying life on the plantation as an only child.  Neil did get some schooling at Nikau Side School but the difficult economic times of the 30s compelled the McKeggs to put CITC under management.  In 1939 the McKeggs moved back, initially to Auckland and then to Christchurch where Robert was employed as General Manager of AM Satterthwaite.  Neil's real schooling started with a stint at Kings Prep then boarding at Scots College and finally as a day pupil at St Andrews College in Christchurch.

After finishing his schooling in 1948 Neil went on to university at Auckland studying law where in 1952 he was fortunate to have Sandra (Craig) Wigglesworth introduce him to fellow student Diane Henderson, who was studying French, German and Latin.  Diane was the only daughter of Hubert Henderson, a noted educationalist, and a French woman, Louise Henderson.  Louise, later Dame Louise Henderson, was one of New Zealand's most influential artists. Within six months Neil and Diane were married.  Both were still students, though Neil had a job as a law clerk at Hesketh & Richmond. In 1954 their first daughter, Adriane, was born followed a year later by Ashleigh.  Neil was admitted to the bar on 11 February 1955.

In December 1955, Neil and Diane moved to Rarotonga with their two young daughters to spend a couple of years learning what the CITC was all about just in case, as Boss had told Neil, he had to run the company one day.  In those days, Rarotonga could only be accessed by sea and cargo had to be loaded into lighters and brought in over the reef.  There would have been few facilities compared to New Zealand, tourism was unknown and medical facilities were relatively primitive. It was a challenging place to move to with two young babies.

On his return to Auckland, Neil acquired the law practice of EM Powell in approximately 1957 or 1958 and commenced business as a lawyer on his own account.  The couple's third daughter Simone was born in 1959 and a year later Neil was joined in practice by Robert Alexander Adams-Smith, another Christchurch lad, and the firm became known as McKegg and Adams-Smith. 

This would have been a difficult period in Neil's life.  His father Robert had died in 1958 and only three years later Neil's brother Henley, a director of CITC and expected to take over the running of the family business, died suddenly at the age of 39.  With the deaths of Neil's father and brother CITC was again put under management.

The law practice of McKegg & Adams-Smith flourished during the early 60s and by 1963 the firm was already well known around the city.  Neil in his inimitable way had got to know people as far apart as Bob Law then the Auckland Manager of National Mutual and Bill Crozier who was the building janitor.  The firm of course did work for both.  Bob Adams-Smith, meanwhile, who specialised in personal injury and other insurance work was doing a huge amount of work for NZI. 

The 1960s was a time of sweeping change.  In 1965 the Cook Islands became independent with Albert Henry becoming its first premier. 

With the coming of independence to the Cooks, Neil could foresee that there would be many opportunities for a company like CITC.  An international airport had already been mooted and in 1968 Neil with then Minister of Finance Rob Muldoon flew to Rarotonga in an Air New Zealand DC6 to discuss the building of an international airport.  1968 also sparked a change in Neil's law practice.  With all that was happening in the world of commerce, Neil had determined that he needed to spend a lot more of his time in the Cook Islands if he was to take advantage of the opportunities then arising.  CITC also needed a firm hand following a period of local management. 

That gave Noel Anderson, now a member of the Supreme Court, and me our opportunity and we were both admitted to partnership on 1 April 1968.  Neil from that date stepped back quite significantly from his legal commitments. 

It was also a time of significant change within the legal profession.  In 1965 McKegg & Adams-Smith had moved to the 8^th Floor of the new ANZ Bank building on the corner of Queen and Victoria Streets.  We shared that floor with two other businesses, APA Discount Corporation, a company run by Hugh Wilkinson, and the partnership of Price Waterhouse & Co.  It is amazing to think that in 1965 there were only four local partners for Price Waterhouse & Co, Mac Luke, Geoff Todd, Dinass Dass and Lloyd Edwards.  But merger was in the wind with Russell McVeagh merging with McKenzie & Bartleet in 1969 to create a specialised commercial law and company department. Then on 1 April 1970, McKegg & Adams-Smith merged with Martelli & Martelli to become Martelli McKegg & Adams-Smith.  On that date, Neil's interest in the partnership was bought out and his legal career effectively ended, although he generously remained as a consultant for many years after and was always a strong supporter of the firm where he retained an office. Neil was also instrumental in arranging for Dame Louise Henderson to hang a collection of her works in our law firm offices and he continued to refer friends and acquaintances to the firm. A collection of Dame Louise's works are still here today.

So started a new episode in the McKegg household.  The much loved family bach at Leigh was sold; Neil spent the next three years in Rarotonga running CITC on his own while Diane stayed in NZ caring for their three girls and their schooling.

The forced separation put a lot of pressure on Neil who had taken on wider responsibilities within his beloved Cook Islands.  When, in 1969, Neil went to the UK to raise money to purchase a competitor he also took with him the contract to build the new international airport to see if a contractor could be found.  Neil met William Keswick (known as Tony) taipan of Jardine Mathieson, a governer of the Bank of England and a director of BP.  Jardine Mathieson agreed not only to provide the money but to buy a 25% interest in the expanded CITC.  Neil's skills were also instrumental in persuading Jardines to agree to construct the airport through their Hong Kong company Gammon.  The airport contract eventually let to a joint venture Gammon - Milne Construction, and was signed by Ralph Hanan, Minister of Maori and Island affairs, and Albert Henry in February 1969.  The airport, with Neil as its first director, was officially opened on 29 January 1974 by Her Majesty the Queen who had flown direct from London to Rarotonga. 

Neil was a keen and talented golfer, first winning the Club Championship at the Auckland Golf Club in 1961.  In 1966 Neil won his second club championship at Middlemore, 36 holes on a wet and windy day - a magnificent effort for a man who had to take off and wipe his glasses before almost every shot.  He was club captain in 1970 and 1971 and president in 1979 and 1980.

The 20 year period from 1981 to 2001 was probably the most stable and happiest time in the lives of Neil and Diane.  Over that period they lived and worked in Rarotonga.  Diane became a buyer for CITC and then started Alliance Francaise there.  She was appointed the French Consul in 1989 while Neil acted as the British Consul.

Neil continued to oversee the Cook Islands Trading Corporation.  At the same time he passionately and single mindedly espoused projects which would benefit the Cook Islands or railed against policies which hindered them.  As a stalwart of the local golf course he encouraged local Cook Islanders to play and become members. Neil then guided the company through its centenary in 1991 and on 31 December 1991 Neil was awarded the Order of the British Empire for his services to Rarotonga.

During those 20 years, Neil and Diane also found time to mind the store in Aitutaki, spent time in France where Neil attended a French language school in Villefranche sur Mer, and Diane became a typical French housewife and voyaged around the Marquesas in a little cargo vessel which carried just a few passengers

Neil who had a heart attack at 45 and a bypass operation in 1989, had continual problems with his health from the mid 1980s. 

It never stopped him from extending the hospitality, for which the McKeggs were renowned, to a constant stream of visitors to Rarotonga.

Neil and Diane returned to New Zealand in 2001 to live a life which by their standards must have been quite ordinary.

I have tried to give you a glimpse of Neil's extraordinary life.  He was a man of many parts and yet I have only given you a peek at Neil's public persona, his life as a lawyer, entrepreneur, island trader, and business man.  Neil was a man of immense charm, fair-minded, loyal, and constant.  He was intensely proud of his family and their achievements but his own achievements would not have been possible without the constant support of a close and loving family.

Neil is survived by his wife Diane, their three daughters, 11 grandchildren and one great grandson.

Philip Wells, November 2011