The drafters of the Act clearly
understood the dynamics of Māoriland and Māoriland owners.
Accordingly, under the Act the engaged owners presently make decisions about their
land through the legal structures of trusts and incorporations.
This brought the MāoriLand Court record into the computer age with details of Māoriland blocks and their owners being accessible nationwide, without owners having to travel to the MāoriLand Court where the land was located to get information.
As a result, from time to time the MāoriLand Court receives applications to extend existing urupā, or to set aside Māori freehold land, or sometimes General land owned by Māori, as new urupā reservations.
The MāoriLand Court In 2003, the Minister of Māori Affairs applied to the MāoriLand Court for an inquiry pursuant to s 29 TTWMA as to successors to the four remaining SILNA blocks.
Other status types
As this update is specifically for Māori Customary Land and Māori Freehold Land it excludes the
following land status types that fall within the jurisdiction of the MāoriLand Court:
Crown Land
Crown Land Reserved for Māori
General Land (which maybe vested in a MāoriLand Trust)
General Land Owned by Māori (which maybe vested in a MāoriLand
Other status types
As this update is specifically for Māori Customary Land and Māori Freehold Land it excludes the
following land status types that fall within the jurisdiction of the MāoriLand Court:
Crown Land
Crown Land Reserved for Māori
General Land (which maybe vested in a MāoriLand Trust)
General Land Owned by Māori (which maybe vested in a MāoriLand
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.
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....