 He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1983 and is a former president of the New Zealand Law Commission.At the time of his appointment to the Court of Appeal, he was the second-longest-serving high court judge based at the High Court at Auckland, behind Hugh Williams.Baragwanath is also a New Zealand member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, and has also been a member of the Court of Appeal of Samoa.