Christchurch employment advocate Ashleigh Fechney has been remembered as a compassionate champion for workers’ rights following her sudden death while on holiday in Lithuania.

Ashleigh, known widely as “Ashleigh the Advocate,” passed away on New Years Day while travelling with her husband Andy.

Friends and colleagues said her death has left a profound sense of shock and sadness among the many people whose lives she supported through her work.

Ashleigh rose to prominence in New Zealand as an outspoken advocate for fairness in the workplace, regularly assisting people facing disputes with employers and helping guide them through complex employment processes.

Friend Andrew Amesbury said she combined legal knowledge with compassion, earning a reputation as someone people trusted during some of the most difficult moments of their working lives.

Lithuania held special significance for Ashleigh and Andy. They were in the process of adopting children from the country and were spending time there as part of their plans to build a family and future together, a friend said.

Ashleigh was open about living with ADHD and autism, and she used her own experiences to encourage the legal profession to better understand and support neurodivergent people.

After initially working in a traditional law firm, Fechney moved into self employment as an advocate, where she found a way of working that better suited her strengths and allowed her practice to thrive.

In September, Ashleigh Fechney said she believed neurodivergence could be a source of strength rather than limitation.

“I don’t find it disabling, because I have accommodations in place in working from home. In fact, I feel neurodivergence is more my ability than it is my disability, but it can so easily turn the other way if I’m in an environment not accommodating for me.”

Reflecting on the importance of honesty about difference, Ashleigh Fechney said, “There is not a lot of guidance on what to do… no one wants to stick a flag up and say, ‘I’m a bit different’. But we all probably know someone with autism or ADHD, and the judges want to have that information.”

A Givealittle page has since been created to support Andy with memorial costs and logistics while he remains overseas.