Judges acting as mediators
Kaiwhakawā Wilson Isaac
Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Kahungunu
Judge Wilson Isaac was appointed to the MāoriLand Court in March 1994. He was appointed as Deputy Chief Judge of the MāoriLand Court in 1999 and the Chief Judge of the MāoriLand Court, and Chair of the Waitangi Tribunal in August 2009.
Former Chief MāoriLand Court Judge, who then became a
Justice of the High Court, ET Durie provided the following analyses of the nature of Māori rights to land;
Maori see themselves not as masters of the environment but as
members of it.
Use this form when exchanging some or all of your interests in MāoriLand by sale or gift with some or all of the MāoriLand interests of a different owner in a different block of MāoriLand.
Any owner or interested person may use this form to apply to the Court to call or direct the Registrar to call a meeting
of assembled owners for any Māori Freehold land or General Land owned by Māori to consider 1 or more resolutions for
those matters set out in section 172 of Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 (attached as a schedule to this form)
Office use:
Application: ACCEPTED / REFUSED
Dated: ...........................................................
1
MāoriLand Update –
Ngā Āhuatanga o te whenua
June 2025 | Hune 2025
This update is issued by the Office of the Chief Registrar, MāoriLand Court | Te Kooti Whenua Māori
to provide key statistics on Māoriland, including the number and total area of Māori Customary Land
(MCL) and Māori Freehold Land (MFL) blocks, and how many of these are managed by trusts or
incorporations versus those that are not....
Good governance is the key From the experiences of MāoriLand Court Judges, good governance is the key to effective utilisation of Māoriland held in multiple ownership.
You will also need to be clear what the plan is for building on
the land, including who the housing is for.
Contact a MāoriLand Court offices for further information
about building on Māoriland.
This form may be used to apply to the Court to confirm one or more resolutions passed by owners in Māori Freehold
Land or General Land owned by Māori who together are members of the same family and who have taken the
opportunity to meet together following a family gathering (such as tangi, wedding or reunion).
SIGNATURE OF APPLICANT Dated: / /
For more information visit www.māorilandcourt.govt.nz
MĀORILAND COURT CONTACT DETAILS
This application may be lodged with the Registrar at any office of the MāoriLand Court.
