Key Wins
We can assist you on a full range of resource management, business development and climate and environmental matters.
On this page you will find some examples of our areas of experience, interest areas and key wins.
Māori Law
At Magdalene Chambers, we seek to embed the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi into our practice and act as partners in our relationships. In our work with Māori, this means taking a whanau hapū and iwi-centred approach in litigation and strategy that is forward-looking, respectful of Tikanga and relationships and collective aims.
We are able to provide advice in:
- Advocating for the protection of Māori rights and interests;
- Ensuring Māori interests are not undermined through development and resource consent applications;
- Navigating the public sector and regulatory environment;
- Balancing corporate and cultural issues; and
- Granting of resource consents to pursue Māori interests.
Some examples of our work in this area include:
- Advocacy and advising on behalf of Maori tribal groups in relation to approx. $130 million wastewater project. Negotiated settlement involving payment of biosolids levy to Governance Trust, ownership of $27 million Island vesting in Maori Trustees with perpetual lease in favour of Auckland Council.
- Acted for Matata Lot 6A Komiti in a 3 week Environment Court fixture. Whakatane District Council tried to establish a wastewater treatment plant on Maori Land (Te Ture Whenua Maori). It failed. The Court agreed that the Council had acted arbitrarily in its site selection process.
- Obtaining resource consents for the establishment of Papakainga and other māori development of land and resources.
- Acted for the NZ Māori Rugby Board in 2021 and 2022 to preserve and enhance its cultural and commercial interests during ground-breaking negotiations for the partial acquisition of the commercial assets of NZ Rugby by the international private equity investor Silver Lake LLC.
- Negotiating collective and individual Treaty settlements on behalf of the Ngāti Paoa Iwi.
- Advised on policy, asset and business development opportunities for multiple Iwi.
Climate Adaptation and Resilience
We are seeing an unprecedented change in our environment with a wide range of new challenges to infrastructure, community resilience, adaptation and regulatory and policy responses.
Examples of areas for legal advice include:
- Corporate responsibility for emissions;
- Review of government policy and decision-making of emissions targets and climate adaptation;
- Climate-related impact reporting; and
- Building appropriate climate adaptation and resilience in district and regional plans.
Marine Protection
We have extensive experience in working in this area including in precedent setting caselaw which has enabled a new mechanism for marine management and protection under the Resource Management Act.
- We have advocated for hapū in Tauranga and Northland in drafting a rules framework embedded in tikanga for management of specific areas within their rohe, including identification of no-take fishing areas.
– See for Northland and specifically the Mimiwhangata peninsula: https://www.nrc.govt.nz/news/2022/december/environment-court-establishes-new-no-take-fishing-areas-in-northland/
– The Motiti protection Area rules and maps:
https://www.boprc.govt.nz/our-projects/motiti-protection-area - Acted for Environmental Defence Society on successful hearing in NZ’s Supreme Court. This is now NZ’s leading decision on the meaning of sustainable management and environmental bottom lines. Environmental Defence v NZ King Salmon [2014] NZSC 38 (found at https://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/cases/environmental-defence-society-incorporated-v-the-new-zealand-king-salmon-company-limited-ors)
- Acted for Environmental Defence Society, KASM and Greenpeace against sea-bed mining applications by Trans-Tasman Resources (iron sand mining in South Taranaki Bight) and Chatham Rock Phosphate (phosphorus mining in Chatham Rise). None of these applications have been successful.
- Advocacy for an NGO in a successful judicial review against Minister of Conservation for proposed marine reserve at Akaroa Harbour. Read more here.
Fresh Water Resources
Water is life. The use, access to and ownership of this precious resource is an ongoing debate in Aotearoa.
Previous work in this area has included:
- Successful representation of Environmental Defence Society in Tukituki Catchment hearings at the National Board of Inquiry and successful appeal to the High Court. Issues included the balance between water use for dairy farming and other uses, allocative entitlements to water and implementation of national water quality standards under Plan Change 6A.
- Advocacy before Waitangi Tribunal in relation to Maori ownership and native title to water and geothermal resources.
- Acting for Ngāti Pikiao in Environment Court, High Court and Court of Appeal proceedings concerning an application to expand an existing water bottling operation and to export water overseas.
Energy And Mining
Ongoing advice and advocacy for NZ’s largest petroleum and avgas tankfarm and critical infrastructure, responsible for 95% of Auckland region’s diesel, petrol and 100% of Auckland’s aviation fuel requirements. Work has included obtaining Ministerial approvals, designations, resource consent process and corporate and compliance advisory. Read more here.
Advocacy and advice to environmental NGOs in opposition to major gold mining projects at Waihi (Newmont Mining Corporation) and policy issues in Coromandel. Read more here.
Ongoing advocacy and advice to the energy watchdog in Taranaki regarding the location of oil and gas facilities to residential areas and other sensitive receivers.
Public Infrastructure
Our work includes:
- Acted for Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei regarding the East West Link in Tāmaki Mākaurau/ Auckland.
- Acted for Campaign for Better Transport at Board of Inquiry for Puhoi – Wellsford Road of National Significance.
- Advisor in relation to proposed designation for television network, protection of corridor for transmission stations.
- Advisor to Dunedin City Council in relation to ownership, co-governance and co-management models for public open space areas.