District inquiries

Much of the Waitangi Tribunal’s focus over the past two decades has been on completing the district inquiry programme. The programme is designed to hear the range of claims (mostly historical) brought by Māori from particular areas in a single inquiry. There are 37 inquiry districts in total. The Tribunal has now completed its inquiries into the majority of districts. Some districts, however, have not had an inquiry due to the claimants choosing to negotiate a Treaty settlement directly with the Crown. The progress of district inquiries can be seen in this map.

Waitangi Tribunal district inquiry progress Dec 2020

Waitangi Tribunal district inquiry progress December 2020

In 2001, the Waitangi Tribunal adopted a procedure for district inquiries known as the New Approach, which aimed to achieve the fastest possible progress, while making sure the process is fair:

  • All issues are researched
  • Interlocutory phase is held where the issues are identified and refined
  • Hearing of the identified issues and grievances
  • Tribunal report released to assist negotiation and settlement

Find out more about the New Approach inquiry process [PDF, 586 KB]

The following district inquiries are currently active:

District inquiries currently at the report writing stage are:

Search for district inquiry reports(external link)

See the documents for current inquiries(external link)

Contact us to ask about the status of a claim

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