Te Kaunihera Kaumātua o Tūhoe is activating a historic Supreme Court ruling by bringing a new application against the trustees of Te Uru Taumatua (TUT) to the Māori Land Court, regarding the 2024 "elections" or appointment process of trustees.

Parearau Nikora, on behalf of the kaunihera, has applied to the Māori Land Court for an urgent hearing that aims to overturn the current appointment process of TUT trustees in Rūātoki.

The original applicant, her late husband, Paki Nikora, fought for five years to have various orders on the issue heard through the Māori Land Court, the Māori Appellate Court and the Court of Appeal. Mrs Nikora is now seeking to join this new application with the existing applications of her late husband, which were stayed pending the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling.

On October 3, the Supreme Court reinstated the Māori Land Court order that TUT hold fresh elections for two Rūātoki trustees and confirmed that the Māori Land Court has jurisdiction over entities such as TUT, the Tūhoe post-settlement governance entity.

The kaunihera, a collective of Tūhoe kaumātua, believed the leadership of TUT had failed the iwi and central to this was how the deed of trust had been interpreted and applied.

"The current appointment of TUT trustees is already underway but in my opinion this ought to be paused and new elections held, preferably on a one-vote basis for eligible and registered iwi members," Kaunihera lead counsel Paul Harman said.