It has taken over twenty years to implement terms of Marion Putere’s will while her Te Kauwhata property has been rented out with poor accountability for rents received.
It was grandchild Sonia Adams who finally forced the issue, asking the High Court to order sale of the house. Justice Tahana ruled it is premature to order a sale. First: put the name of all beneficiaries on the title as owners; then let them decide, she said.
Ms Putere died in 1990, leaving a will requiring that her Te Roto Road property be transferred to her surviving children. She had eleven children. One pre-deceased her.
The land is registered as general land. It is not Maori land.
As is the norm, title was initially transferred to executor of her estate: Ms Putere’s solicitor.
The High Court was told discussions at a family hui held four years after her death led to creation of what her descendants called the Te Omiraka Trust. Agreement was reached to rent out the property, with rentals paid into a bank account controlled by Edward Adams, one of Ms Putere’s children.
Successive family hui held nearly a decade later, decided to appoint a board of trustees (which did not include Edward) and to formalise both renting arrangements and operation of the Omiraka Trust bank account. Title to Te Roto Road was transferred into names of three family members as trustees.
It became apparent to a lawyer newly appointed to assist the Te Omiraka Trust that there was no written trust deed and that Edward had failed to properly account for rentals received over the previous sixteen years.
Property Law Act rules require any trust relating to land to be in writing, signed by the person creating the trust. Te Omiraka Trust does not comply. It had been operating as an informal trust, hampered by what was growing disagreement between Ms Putere’s descendants.
As one of the trustees holding title to Te Roto Road, Sonia Adams asked the High Court to order sale of the property and distribution of sale proceeds according to terms of her grandmother’s will.
Justice Tahana spelt out in detail decisions made at each of the family hui. These hui represented Maori tikanga in practice, dealing with inheritance of land, she said.
Amongst Maori, land is seen as a cultural heritage. Current generations are custodians for the next. It is not a commodity to be sold. Having inherited the land at no cost, there is no complaint that it is to be retained for future generations, not sold.
Ms Putere’s children, as inheritors of her land, disagreed as to what should happen. Some wanted it kept within the family; others wanted it sold.
It was not appropriate for the court to override expressions of tikanga by acting on a trustee’s request for sale, Justice Tahana said.
Instead, title to Te Roto Road was transferred into the names of each family member entitled to inherit. It is for them as owners to make a final decision.
A further three of Ms Putere’s children have died. Their share passes to each of their estates.
Adams v. Adams – High Court (26.06.24)
24.164