McKenzie Friend
/məˈkɛnzi frɛnd
/noun Law, British
A person who attends a trial as a non-professional helper or adviser to a litigant who does not have legal representation in court: clients must know what their options are, including McKenzie friends, mediation, barristers, and solicitors...
- Certainly neither Mr Boyle nor his "McKenzie friend" made any attempt to address the formidable difficulties presented by s.285.
- Provided that the McKenzie friend acts with restraint, he is often a useful assistant to the conduct of litigation.
- The second issue, your Honour, is as to whether he is properly a person who may assist the Court either by way of McKenzie friend or amicus.
Origin
1970s: from the names of Leveine McKenzie and Maizie McKenzie, litigants in the case of McKenzie v. McKenzie (1970), in which the Court of Appeal ruled that any party in a trial is entitled to non-professional assistance in court.