David Smith

Sir David Stanley Smith (11 February 1888 – 29 December 1982) was a New Zealand lawyer, judge and educationalist.

Smith was born in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand in 1888. He worked for Charles Morison as an assistant from 1912. He Smith was appointed as a judge to the Supreme Court in 1928, a relatively early appointment based on his performance as counsel for Maori land claims. A few months later, he resigned as a judge and concentrated on public affairs.

Smith was a member of the Victoria University College Council (1939–1945) and in 1945 became chancellor of the University of New Zealand. His daughter, Shirley Smith, became a lawyer.