High Court update | Removal of Crown as Trustee

On 24 July, a short final hearing was held in the Wellington High Court for the Judge to hear submissions on the outstanding legal matters in our case against the Crown.

As part of finalising her orders, the Judge formally removed the Crown as Trustee of the Tenths Trust and appointed the members of Te Here-ā-Nuku Working Group as replacement Trustees. The role of the Trustees is interim, as they work to complete proceedings against the Crown.

Throughout this litigation, over the past 16 years, the focus of our evidence has been on the Crown’s legal breaches and failure to act in the best interests of the beneficiaries.  The High Court and Crown accepted that there was no basis for the Crown to continue as Trustee and therefore ordered their removal.

The Judge’s order is a significant milestone and represents another step towards resolution.

The role and responsibilities of the replacement Trustees will now pass to those appointed by kaumātua Rore Stafford and ordered by the High Court to act collectively in the interests of all beneficiaries.

Read about the interim Trustees, in their capacity as members of Te Here-ā-Nuku Working Group

Thank you to whānau and supporters for the messages of support and aroha throughout the hearing and to all who joined in person and online – we will share the final decision as soon as it is issued by the High Court.