Court system[edit]

Further information: Judiciary of New Zealand

Auckland High Court, built in 1865–1868 for the Supreme Court in New Zealand

A Supreme Court was first established in 1841 (it was renamed the High Court in 1980, and
is different to the current Supreme Court), and various lower courts subsequently
established. Its establishment followed the arrival in New Zealand of the first chief
justice, William Martin, and it heard its first case in January 1842.[12] The magistrates'
courts came into being in 1846[13] (replaced by district courts in 1980). The Court of
Appeal was set up in 1862 and originally consisted of panels of judges from the Supreme
Court.[14] The Court of Appeal was the highest court in New Zealand, although appeals
could be taken from this to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London. In 1957
the Court of Appeal was reconstituted to become separate from the Supreme Court, having
its own judges.[14] In 2004 a new Supreme Court was established, becoming New
Zealand's court of last resort following the simultaneous abolition of the right to appeal to
the Privy Council.[15]
In 1865 a Native Land Court was established to "define the land rights of Māori people
under Māori custom and to translate those rights or customary titles into land titles
recognisable under European law".[16] It has since been heavily criticised for acting as a
device for removing Māori from their land. Some of the problems were with the court itself –
holding proceedings in English and in cities far from Māori settlements, judges with
inadequate knowledge of Māori custom – while others were more to do with the laws it
enforced. For example, for many decades land law did not recognise that an
entire hapu owned its land, and land ownership was put in the hands of a few people. In
1954 it was renamed the Māori Land Court, and has been substantially reformed since the
nineteenth century. Until the mid-twentieth century it also dealt with Māori adoptions.
The New Zealand judiciary have generally been seen as independent and non-corrupt,
although not always non-biased. Until recent years they have played a very minor role in
developing the law, and as late as 1966 it was said that they "usually follow English
decisions scrupulously".[17] In the 1980s the judiciary played a major role in redefining the
constitutional position of the Treaty of Waitangi.

New Zealand Bill of Rights Act[edit]

Further information: New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990

The New Zealand Bill of Rights Act was enacted in 1990 to affirm fundamental rights and
freedoms set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.[18] While the Bill
of Rights Act is not a superior law to which all other laws are subject, judges are required to
interpret other statutes to be consistent with it if at all possible. If there is an inconsistency,
the attorney-general must inform Parliament.[19]
Legal tradition[edit]
The New Zealand legal system is heavily based on the English law, and remains similar in
many respects. As with all common law countries, English law is organised around the
doctrines of precedent (like cases should be decided alike) and stare decisis.[20][21] These
principals dictate that lower courts must follow the decisions of the more senior courts in
the judicial hierarchy. This encourages consistency of decision-making. [20]

Contract law[edit]
New Zealand contract law was initially derived from the English model. Since 1969,
however, a series of Acts of Parliament altered this, and New Zealand contract law is now
'largely... distinct from other jurisdictions'. [22] The main distinction of New Zealand contract
law is the wide discretionary power given to courts in granting relief. Although these
changes were initially opposed due to fears that they would make the remedy of contractual
disputes unpredictable and increase levels of litigation, it is generally agreed that this has
not happened, and that the laws are working satisfactorily. [23]