The High Court reinstated Mariameno Kapa-Kingi as a member of Te Pāti Māori (“TPM”), finding she had been unlawfully expelled from TPM. The Court found that the meetings used to suspend, then expel, Kapa-Kingi from TPM were not properly held under TPM’s Constitution (“Constitution”) and breached TPM’s tikanga.

Professions need an internal diversity of perspectives for healthy debate and professional growth. For lawyers this is vital for the rule of law itself; if lawyers are condemned for representing clients with unpopular views, access to justice is placed at risk.

In a recent episode of the New Zealand Taxpayers' Union's Taxpayer Talk podcast, Franks Ogilvie Director Stephen Franks and Senior Solicitor Aly Miller joined the conversation on a critical but underappreciated issue: the right of elected local government representatives to access the information they need to do their jobs.