The owner of “Tahi”, the first JANZ society cap, Judge Heemi Taumaunu, swore an oath as the newly appointed Chief District Court Judge at his seaside marae. It was indeed a historic day for the special sitting of the District Court at Whāngārā near Gisborne. In her address to the court, the Chief Justice stressed the significance of the District Court and the role of its leader in affecting the lives of New Zealanders, remarking that the job could be said to be about as “big as a whale”, and that it was lucky a descendant of Paikea was taking it on. “This court is the face of justice for many New Zealanders. The judgments its judges issue will change lives,” the Chief Justice, Dame Helen Winkelmann, said.
Dame Helen spoke of an awareness that those who need the courts’ help to settle disputes or who seek its protection find it too hard to get that help and protection; that taking a case to court is too expensive and too complex. Too many defendants were Māori, she said, and too many defendants reoffended because they left the courts and prisons with the underlying causes of offending — poverty, drugs, alcohol and homelessness — not addressed. Referring to the winds of change, she said there was an awareness that change was needed so that courts could deliver justice fit for Aotearoa and fit for this time.
“Judges know that the nature of the communities that make up New Zealand society are changing and that they must understand that change if their court is to remain connected to the people it serves. These are challenges for the court and for its leader, but they also provide opportunities to deliver better justice.” Describing Chief Judge Taumaunu as a skilled, humane and effective judge, she told him: “You have the humility which is the hallmark of the wise. You have the patience and humanity to ensure that all who come before your court receive a fair hearing.”
Chief Judge Taumaunu had already shown visionary leadership through his role in establishing the healing Rangatahi Courts. “You have taught us how to bring the community into the courtroom,” the Chief Justice said. “You have shown how the involvement of the community can help repair and make whole again lives and whānau torn apart by poverty, addiction and violence.”
Wearing the korowai of the late Sir Henare Ngāta — the son of Sir Apirana Ngāta who was his inspiration to enter the law — Chief Judge Taumaunu paid special tribute to his parents Maire and Hone Taumaunu and the kaupapa “of doing the right thing”. His father rests in the adjoining urupā.
“The focus will be … on delivering and improving the way we deliver equitable treatment to all people who are affected by the business of our court and improving the way we deliver procedural and substantive fairness,” he told the 250 people who attended and a bench of more than 60 judges.
“It means that when any of our fellow citizens — ordinary New Zealanders — who are affected by the business of the District Court, … leave their court with a feeling that they have been heard and understood; they feel that they have had a fair trial or a fair hearing.
“It’s important to recognise that the process or the way that people are treated by the court is just as, if not more important than the actual outcome that is reached by court.
“If people felt they had a fair hearing this would enhance the legitimacy of the court within communities and enhance the rule of law. “And ultimately we will be residing in safer communities if that is the result.”