Wednesday 16 February 2022 9:51am
A nationwide survey has revealed 94 per cent of legal professionals think having more knowledge of te reo Māori and tikanga would be helpful for their work.
The survey, conducted as part of a multiphase research project, funded by the Michael and Suzanne Borrin Foundation, was open to a range of participants including practicing lawyers, government agencies, law academics and students, and iwi.
Professor Jacinta Ruru.
Co-author and Otago Faculty of Law Professor Jacinta Ruru (Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui) describes the survey results as “heartening”.
“Most of the 201 respondents thought that having more knowledge about te reo Māori (94 per cent), Māori law (89 per cent) and tikanga Māori (94 per cent) would be helpful for their work.
“We are really excited to be thinking about these results as we start the new year of teaching the LLB law degree,” she says.
The national project, Inspiring National Indigenous Legal Education for Aotearoa New Zealand’s Bachelor of Laws Degree, is led by 18 Māori legal researchers associated with Ngā Pae o Te Māramatanga, New Zealand’s Māori Centre of Research Excellence.
“Back in 2020, we made a call for law schools to move towards becoming bijural, bicultural and bilingual. For the second phase of our project, we wanted to test our ideas and hear from others to determine if there was general support, or not, and find out what others see as the opportunities and risks with such a big move,” Professor Ruru says.
The survey covered five areas: te reo Māori, Māori law and biculturalism in university legal education; a bijural legal system; and respondents’ experiences with tertiary education, te reo Māori, tikanga, and Māori law.
“We expected some concerns to be voiced both by the general legal profession, who may not see Māori law as relevant to their practice, and by hapū about maintaining the integrity of tikanga Māori if Māori law was to be comprehensively taught in universities. While there were some concerns, particularly around burdening Māori legal academics, we also found some encouraging responses.”
Many acknowledged teaching te reo, tikanga and Māori law would better equip law students to practice law in Aotearoa and make the legal system more responsive and just.
Highlights:
- 71 per cent supported law students being required to pass introductory te reo Māori papers as part of their law degree.
- 88 per cent strongly supported law schools providing significant professional development to staff.
- 83 per cent agreed Māori law should be a required component of a law degree.
- 85 per cent agreed law schools should have an action plan detailing commitments to bicultural legal education.
- 90 per cent believed the legal system would be improved by judges and lawyers having a greater understanding of tikanga Māori.
- 86 per cent believed the legal system would be improved by judges and lawyers having a greater understanding of te reo Māori.
The next part of the research detailing findings from in-depth interviews with a range of experts is due out later this year. The group also hopes to pursue a third phase to model how Aotearoa could transition to teaching a bicultural, bilingual and bijural law degree.
“This project has the potential to transform legal education and the legal profession in Aotearoa New Zealand, and in turn influence how law impacts the lives of New Zealanders,” Professor Ruru says.
The lead writers were Professor Ruru and Otago Faculty of Law Research Fellow Metiria Stanton Turei, but all researchers (every Māori academic working in Aotearoa’s law schools) contributed to writing and reviewing the report. The researchers prioritised the value of kaupapa Māori research methodologies and Indigenous legal methods, alongside Western legal analysis.
Publication details
Inspiring National Indigenous Legal Education for Aotearoa New Zealand’s Bachelor of Laws Degree (Phase Two: Consultation 2021 Part I – Survey Report)
Professor Jacinta Ruru (Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui), Metiria Turei (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ati Hau nui a Pāpārangi), Associate Professor Carwyn Jones (Ngāti Kahungunu, Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki), Associate Professor Linda Te Aho (Ngāti Koroki Kahukura, Waikato-Tainui), Associate Professor Claire Charters (Ngāti Whakaue, Tūwharetoa, Ngāpuhi, Tainui), Associate Professor Khylee Quince (Te Roroa/Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou), Associate Professor Andrew Erueti (Ngā Ruahinerangi, Ngāti Ruanui, Ati Hau nui a Pāpārangi), Jayden Houghton (Rereahu Maniapoto), Associate Professor Robert Joseph (Tainui, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne, Ngāi Tahu), Maureen Malcolm (Te Arawa whānui, Ngāti Ruanui), Adrienne Paul (Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Tuhoe), Mihiata Pirini (Ngāti Tūwharetoa/Whakatōhea), Mylene Rakena (Ngāti Hine/Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahungunu), Associate Professor Māmari Stephens (Te Rarawa), Dr Fleur Te Aho (Ngāti Mutunga), Professor Valmaine Toki (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Wai, Ngāti Whātua), Tracey Whare (Raukawa, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), and Dr Megan Gollop.
For more information, contact:
Professor Jacinta Ruru
Faculty of Law
University of Otago
Email jacinta.ruru@otago.ac.nz
Ellie Rowley
Communications Adviser
University of Otago
Mob +64 21 278 8200
Email ellie.rowley@otago.ac.nz