Te Kooti Whenua Māori – Māori Land Court
Most Māori land records are under the kaitiaki of the Māori Land Court. This is New Zealand’s oldest specialist court, and is the only indigenous land court in the world.
The Māori Land Court has information on the ownership of Māori land since the first Crown grants were made in 1862. It holds:
- information on blocks and where they are
- ownership records (including shareholding information)
- memorials (documents with information affecting the land and ownership of the land)
- court orders made by judges and registrars
- minute books from Māori Land Court hearings
- block order files (including block ownership lists, memorial schedules, and titles)
- Māori Trustee information (such as if land is administered by a Māori Trustee (see below) or an incorporation or private trust, if there is any unclaimed money, and whether accounts are in credit for people named in a trust)
- Māori freehold land title notices.
Nowadays, the Māori Land Court must approve:
- any sale of Māori land
- any alienation of Māori land by lease or licence
- any transfer of shares in Māori land between owners or to new shareholders
- any partition or subdivision of Māori land
- any change of Māori freehold land into general land, or general land into Māori freehold land.
The Māori Land Court also administers succession – who land is passed to when someone dies. These decisions are published in a succession order.
Māori Land Court proceedings are recorded in minute books which are held by Archives New Zealand (see below). The court’s decisions are recorded in court orders.
Pātaka Whenua online portal
Pātaka Whenua is the Māori Land Court database of Māori land information.
Pātaka Whenua – the Māori Land Court online portal
Some Māori Land Court records have not been digitised or are too fragile to copy. If you can’t find a record in Pātaka Whenua, contact the Māori Land Court.
Māori Land Court – find district offices
Māori Land Court – contact information
Knowledge Basket database of minute books
You can also search the Knowledge Basket database of minute books from the Māori Land Court. This has minute books from 1865 to 1910.
The Knowledge Basket Māori Land Court Minute Book Index
Te Tume Paeroa Office of the Māori Trustee
Te Tumu Paeroa:
- administers Māori land that is held under an agency or trust for the owners
- collects and distributes rent and other income from the land it administers
- invests trust money.
Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga Archives New Zealand
Archives New Zealand has a database of Māori Land Court minute books. These have been published online by the University of Auckland.
Māori Land Court minutes book index
At Archives New Zealand you can find:
- records of Māori Land Court hearings
- plans and maps of Māori Land Court dealings
- historic land records.
Archives New Zealand also has records and reference guides for researching. Two of the most useful ones are:
- Reference guide No. 6 – Researching whakapapa
- Reference guide No.16 – Some strategies for searching Māori names and land blocks.
You can view records and books at the Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin offices. You’ll need a photo ID like a passport or driver’s license.
Archives New Zealand – visit our reading rooms
Waitangi Tribunal
The Waitangi Tribunal hears claims brought by Māori about the application of the Treaty of Waitangi.
The tribunal determines whether the matters are consistent with the treaty, and makes recommendations to the government.
The government does not have to follow most of these recommendations, but many of them are accepted and implemented.
The tribunal can only make a binding recommendation when private land had previously been owned by a state-owned enterprise. In this situation, the tribunal may be able to instruct the Crown to purchase the land and return it to Māori ownership.
Tribunal reports often include a lot of information on Māori histories and land.
Te Tari Whakatau – The Office of Treaty Settlements and Takutai Moana
Te Arawhiti has 3 main functions:
- It negotiates the settlement of historical grievances under the Treaty of Waitangi.
- It implements treaty settlements.
- It administers the Māori Protection Mechanism – this means that when the Crown wants to sell land it no longer needs, it needs to consult with Māori.
Te Puni Kōkiri – Ministry of Māori Development
Te Puni Kōkiri provides policy advice to the government on:
- the Crown's relationship with iwi, hapū and Māori
- the government's objectives, interests and obligations relating to Māori.
Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand
Toitū Te Whenua has a ‘record of title’ for most privately owned land in Aotearoa. The record of title includes:
- a legal description of the land
- information on the owners (including historical ownership)
- legal documents like mortgages or leases that are registered against the land.
The Māori Land Court can order land to be entered into Toitū Te Whenua’s land title system, which is when a record of title will be created.
Some Māori land records can be found in Toitū Te Whenua’s Land Record Search. This includes:
- Crown purchase deeds
- Crown grants
- provisional registers
- titles
- survey plans
- documents about land, such as mortgages, leases or covenants (which are officially called ‘instruments’).
The New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa, which is part of Toitū Te Whenua, is responsible for place names in New Zealand. It has a lot of information on place names and geographic features which may help you identify land.
New Zealand Gazetteer – search for place names
New Zealand Geographic Features search
National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa
The National Library of New Zealand has a large collection of material about New Zealand history. It houses the Alexander Turnbull Library and the Turnbull Library collections, which include historical books, manuscripts, maps and photographs, and the National Newspaper Collection.
Public libraries
Local libraries often have historical information about the area, and may be able to give you advice on how to research.
Crown Forestry Rental Trust Ngā Kaitiaki Rēti Ngahere Karauna
The Crown Forestry Rental Trust has records of Crown land which has a Crown Forest Licence.