Legal fight to summons children’s minister will continue, with appeal lodged

Thursday, 25 April 2024

• High profile Treaty lawyer Annette Sykes has confirmed the legal fight to summons the children’s minister will continue.

• The High Court overturned the Waitangi Tribunal’s subpoena to Children’s Minister Karen Chhour.

• Chhour plans to remove Treaty obligations for the Oranga Tamariki Act.

A late evening judgement from the High Court overturned the Waitangi Tribunal’s subpoena to Children’s Minister Karen Chhour, but that didn’t spell an end to the remarkable rift between the courts and executive.

Annette Sykes, a high profile Treaty rights activist and lawyer, has confirmed to Stuff that she will be appealing the High Court’s Wednesday night ruling.

But time is ticking for the Tribunal, as Crown Law has indicated Chhour plans to introduce her bill to repeal Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act in mid-May. Once Parliament has the bill, the Tribunal must cease its investigation into the issue.

The issue concerns Māori children who Oranga Tamariki take into state care. Section 7AA imposes Treaty obligations onto the ministry, which in practice compels it to ensure tamariki Māori in its care remain connected to their whakapapa.

The Government’s plan to remove that obligation has caused widespread concern amongst iwi Māori, who launched an urgent inquiry at the Tribunal and on Monday argued in the High Court that Chhour should be compelled to explain herself.

The Tribunal will deliver is findings regardless of whether it can hear Chhour’s explanation for her bill.

That fact is a core reason why High Court Judge Andru Isac overturned the Tribunal’s summons, as said it could proceed effectively without her.

However, he said the Tribunal was entitled to expect a response from the minister on this matter.

“The Tribunal cannot be criticised for resorting to a summons in these circumstances, given its repeated and measured requests for the Minister’s response. As a member of the executive Government, she might be expected to demonstrate the same respect,” he said.

Sykes had filed an appeal, representing Ngāti Te Rangiunuora, a hapū of Ngāti Pikiao.

She said she was seeking a urgent hearing at the Court of Appeal.

At the High Court, Ngāti Pikiao lawyer Matthew Smith said the Section 7AA repeal was motivated by personal belief and political ideology which only Chhour could explain. He said officials, who had given evidence at the Tribunal, could not be expected to explain her thinking given their advice was to keep the Treaty obligations.

Other claimants, including Waikato-Tainui and Ngāti Hine, had not decided whether to appeal as of early Thursday morning.