Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Item

Book Review: The Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand’s law and constitution

Abstract
The Treaty of Waitangi occupies an unsettled place in New Zealand’s constitution, law and life. Although there is almost universal agreement that it is a foundation document, this is not reflected in the legal status of the Treaty, or necessarily in its treatment by government. The Treaty engenders strong emotions on both sides of the political divide. Many New Zealanders are ambivalent about it. For some, it is a private issue; for others, it is very public, and very political. Both the legal and constitutional status of the Treaty is uncertain and unsettled, and so is the question of who exercises public power in relation to it. Harris has described the Treaty as one ingredient of a ‘cauldron of quietly simmering constitutional issues’. In this well-researched book, Matthew Palmer confronts these issues head on, and argues his vision for settling the legal and constitutional position of the Treaty.
Type
Journal Article
Type of thesis
Series
Citation
Olivier, M. (2009). Book Review: The Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand’s law and constitution. Waikato Law Review, 17, 126-130.
Date
2006
Publisher
Degree
Supervisors
Rights
This article has been published in the journal: Waikato Law Review. Used with permission.