Māori Status in New Zealand Law · Modern Status Audit · Part 27 · 1975–1985
What changed when Parliament created the Waitangi Tribunal?
The Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 did not make the Treaty supreme law. It created a statutory forum, defined “Māori” for the Act, authorised Treaty-principles claims and later extended jurisdiction retrospectively to Crown acts from 6 February 1840.
The Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 changed the domestic legal machinery without turning the Treaty into a supreme constitution overriding Parliament.
The Act established the Waitangi Tribunal and authorised claims by a Māori person, or a group of Māori of which that person is a member, concerning prejudicial Crown legislation, policies, practices, acts or omissions inconsistent with Treaty principles.
For the Act, “Maori” is defined as a person of the Māori race of New Zealand and includes descendants. The statute therefore uses an individual descent-based gateway to permit claims that may be made on behalf of groups.
The original 1975 jurisdiction was prospective. In 1985 Parliament extended the Tribunal's reach back to 6 February 1840, allowing the Crown's historical legislation and conduct to be examined within a statutory accountability framework.
What changed
Treaty principles became legally operative within a dedicated statutory jurisdiction and historical Crown conduct became reviewable by the Tribunal after the 1985 amendment.
What did not change automatically
The Tribunal was not converted into a court of general sovereign jurisdiction, and the Treaty itself was not made supreme law capable of invalidating any Act of Parliament.
The mechanism is incorporation and statutory jurisdiction: Parliament created a legal route through which earlier rangatira/Crown commitments could be tested against later Crown conduct.
Primary statuteTreaty of Waitangi Act 1975.
Official Tribunal timelineWaitangi Tribunal — 1975 establishment and 1985 retrospective jurisdiction.