The Aotearoa New Zealand Legal System: Structures and Processes is an introductory text for first-year law students at Aotearoa New Zealand’s universities. Written in a clear, straightforward manner that is accessible and easy to follow, The Aotearoa New Zealand Legal System looks at the structures and processes that define and shape our law: the New Zealand constitution, Te Titiri o Waitangi, New Zealand’s court system, and the legal profession. It also provides a framework for understanding, interpreting, and applying legal rules for those coming to the topic of law for the first time.
This edition has been revised and updated to incorporate changes to legislation and statute law, and includes an expanded discussion of tikanga Māori, Māori and the constitution, and the New Zealand Bill of Rights. It retains appendices containing practical tools and techniques to help students with their writing and research.
Related Titles
• Cowan The New Lawyer Companion: Essays on Law, Life, and Humanity, 2021
• Thomas & Merrick Kia Kākano Rua te Ture: A te reo Māori Handbook for the Law, 2019
• Russell (editor) Legal Research in New Zealand, 2015
• Scragg (editor) Legal Writing: A Complete Guide for a Career in Law, 2014
Part I An introduction to law
Chapter 1: The nature of law
Chapter 2: Classifications and sources of law Part II The Aotearoa New Zealand legal system
Chapter 3: Aotearoa New Zealand’s constitution
Chapter 4: Aotearoa New Zealand’s constitution – Modern developments
Chapter 5: Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi
Chapter 6: Aotearoa New Zealand’s court system
Chapter 7: The legal profession Part III Studying the law
Chapter 8: Statutory interpretation
Chapter 9: Case law
Chapter 10: Legal argument and reasoning Appendices Legal method
Appendix 1: Legal writing
Appendix 2: Legal materials
Appendix 3: Reading cases
Duncan Webb is the member of Parliament for Christchurch Central. Formerly a partner and litigator at Lane Neave and a prior to that a professor of law at the University of Canterbury. He is a leading expert in lawyers’ ethics and legal responsibility and insurance law.
Jacinta Ruru MNZM, FRSNZ is a professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Otago. Her area of interest is indigenous peoples’ legal rights to own, manage and govern lands and waters, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and tikanga Māori in the legal system.
Paul Scott is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Law at Victoria University of Wellington. His area of interest is competition law, and he presents regularly on this topic as well as supervising students in this area.