Tuariki Delamare | Former Minister of Immigration: Challenging the Crown in the High Court for failing to uphold tikanga Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi in immigration policy, invoking the landmark Ellis v The King ruling that affirmed tikanga as part of New Zealand’s common law.
The Supreme Court’s decision in the Peter Ellis case marked a watershed moment in the recognition of tikanga Māori within New Zealand’s highest courts. Ellis, who was convicted in the 1990s of child sex offences at Christchurch’s Civic Creche, maintained his innocence until his death in 2019. His posthumous appeal was unprecedented; and it was tikanga that played a decisive role in allowing the case to proceed even after his passing.
Traditionally, appeals lapse when an appellant dies. But Ellis’ legal team argued that tikanga Māori; the customs and values underpinning Māori law; should guide the court’s decision. Tikanga recognises that a person’s mana (dignity, authority) and whakapapa (genealogy) endure beyond death. Clearing Ellis’ name was not just about him, but about restoring the mana of his whānau and those connected to him.
The Supreme Court accepted this reasoning, ruling that tikanga Māori is part of the values of the common law of Aotearoa. In doing so, the Court allowed Ellis’ appeal to continue after his death, a landmark recognition that tikanga has a rightful place in shaping legal outcomes in New Zealand.
For Māori legal scholars and iwi leaders, the case represents a step towards embedding tikanga as a living source of law, not just a cultural reference point. It affirms that Māori concepts of justice, dignity, and responsibility can and should influence how the legal system operates.
The case also sets a precedent: future appeals and legal decisions may increasingly need to consider tikanga, particularly where questions of mana and whānau are central. This could reshape how courts engage with issues of succession, burial disputes, and the rights of whānau and hapū in matters of justice.
While the Ellis case was highly controversial, its significance lies less in the facts of the original trial and more in the legal principle established. Tikanga was given recognition not as a token gesture but as a substantive legal influence.
As Justice Joe Williams, the first Māori Supreme Court judge, has often argued, tikanga is not an add-on to law but part of the foundation of Aotearoa’s unique legal system. The Ellis decision reflects this vision and signals a growing maturity in the way courts engage with Te Ao Māori.
The Ellis case was not just about one man’s convictions; it was about whether Māori values are acknowledged as part of the fabric of justice in Aotearoa. By recognising tikanga, the Supreme Court confirmed that Māori law is not confined to marae or iwi matters but has a role at the highest levels of national decision-making.
