Descendants of David Te Au were removed from the record as part of owners of land in Southland and related mutton-bird customary rights after identifying errors on the Maori Land Court record from 1965; as a whangai adoption, son Thomas had no right to inherit and his adoptive father’s will specifically restricted his inheritance to lifetime use of a family holiday home at Colac Bay.
By Maori custom, land held in customary ownership passes to blood descendants. The Maori Land Court holds records for ownership shares in Maori land. On death of each part-owner, descendants apply to the Court for recognition as added part owners on proof of their whakapapa links.
A Maori Land Court hearing in February 1965, on death of David Te Au, was told he left five children: four his natural children; the other, Thomas, a son adopted in an informal whangai adoption.
As the law then stood, whangai adoptions were not recognised for land succession. Despite this rule, Thomas was added to the record as a part-owner, with apparent consent of the other four children.
Sixty years on, this process was challenged.
The Maori Land Court removed Thomas as part-owner.
Confusion in 1965 apparently flowed from wording in their father’s will describing Thomas as ‘adopted.’ The word was used in a colloquial sense; it was an informal whangai adoption, not a formal Adoption Act adoption.
Chief Judge Fox amended the land records using powers in the Te Ture Whenua Maori Act.
The only customary rights inherited by Thomas was a life interest in the Colac Bay dwelling.
Bevin v. Winders – Maori Land Court (8.04.26)
26.131