Thursday, 12 March 2026
Description
Attend and earn 1 CPD hour
Te Wai me te Pūngao: Māori Claims to Water and Geothermal Resources
As pressure grows on Aotearoa’s freshwater and geothermal resources, long-standing Māori claims to ownership, guardianship and equitable access are coming to the forefront.
Examine recent developments in litigation, policy and iwi-Crown negotiations, exploring how tikanga Māori, the Treaty partnership, and resource management reforms are reshaping the legal landscape for water and geothermal rights.
Presented by Karen Feint KC, Thorndon Chambers
Learning Objectives:
- Understand recent legal, policy and negotiation developments concerning Māori claims to freshwater and geothermal resources in Aotearoa New Zealand
- Analyse how tikanga Māori, Treaty principles and resource management reforms are influencing the recognition, allocation and governance of water and geothermal rights
Presenters
Karen Feint KC, Thordon ChambersKaren is a highly experienced advocate who takes a principled but pragmatic approach to securing the right outcome for her clients. She has a wide-ranging civil litigation and public law practice, with particular expertise at the interface of Crown and Māori relations - constitutional law, judicial review, equity, indigenous rights, and Treaty of Waitangi law. Karen has appeared as counsel before all levels of the New Zealand courts and in specialist jurisdictions such as the Waitangi Tribunal. Karen was appointed a Queen’s Counsel in 2019. She has been a barrister at Thorndon Chambers for over ten years, having previously worked at two national law firms. She has a BA/ LLB (First Class Honours) from the University of Otago, and a LLM from the University of Toronto, Canada.
