'Dangerous' to appoint judge on race basis, says Bar Association

3.00pm

The New Zealand Bar Association has condemned as "dangerous" the possibility of appointing a New Zealand Supreme Court member on the basis of race.

Parliament's justice and electoral committee is considering a government proposal to replace the Privy Council with a New Zealand Supreme Court.

Bar Association president Robert Dobson said in a submission to the committee an advisory group on the proposal had noted the importance of reflecting the Treaty of Waitangi and Tikanga Maori in the appointment process.

The group proposed a convention to ensure that at least one member of the court was well versed in Tikanga Maori.

"The report observed that 'the likelihood is that that will be a person of Maori ancestry'," Mr Dobson said.

"With great respect, without more clarity, the association considers the notion of such a convention to be dangerous."

Appointing a "Maori member" of the court was unlikely to achieve the confidence of all New Zealanders in the court, he said.

"There is no precedent for one member of a court to be an expert adviser on issues arising in one area," Mr Dobson said.

"It would be unhealthy for a final appellate court to be structured on terms that the appointment of one of its number, on account of specialist expertise in an area, requires other members of the court to defer to that judge on such issues."

As well, there was no one authoritative Maori view on many difficult issues which were likely to be litigated, he said.

"Adherence by the perceived Tikanga Maori expert appointee to a particular view is just as likely to bring the court into discredit as to instill respect.

"Even more invidious for the standing of the court and any judge acknowledged to have been appointed because of expertise in Tikanga Maori is the unfortunate inference that that judge might not otherwise have been appointed on merit, were it not for expertise in Tikanga Maori."

The association believed it would be better if the court as a whole was required to have sufficient understanding of Tikanga Maori to allow them to deal expertly with all such issues, Mr Dobson said.

- NZPA