Tackling succession

How to prepare for the process

When a shareholder passes on, their descendants must go through the Māori Land Court to succeed to their loved one’s Ātihau-Whanganui Incorporation shares. The process – called succession – transfers shares in land from a person who has died to those whānau who are entitled to them.

Ātihau-Whanganui Inc’s Shareholder Engagement Officer, Jonelle Hiroti-Kinane, says succession can be an important factor in maintaining the connection between whānau and their whenua.

“Not only will they be able to receive the dividends they are entitled to, but it helps whānau to be part of a connected group of people, know the story of our ancestral land, and access grants and other opportunities such as shareholder hunts, information days and important events,” she adds.

Amiria Joseph-Wiari, Deputy Registrar at the Māori Land Court in Whanganui, says

before embarking on the succession process, whānau can prepare by considering the following:

• Is this the first succession application relating to your loved one?

• When did your loved one pass away?

• Did your loved one leave a Will?

• Were Letters of Administration or Probate granted?

• If you are succeeding to the Māori land interests of one of your parents, is your other parent still alive and what is their role in your application?

• Are there whāngai children?

• Do you know the Māori land interests that you are succeeding to?

• Are there incorporation interests?

• Do you understand that when you file an application to succeed to your loved one, the application will apply to ALL the people who are entitled to succeed and not just you alone?

1. Once these questions are answered, the following information will also be needed:

2. List of Māori land interests to be succeeded to.

3. An original or certified copy of the death certificate.

4. An original or certified copy of the Will.

5. An original or certified copy of Probate or Letters of Administration.

6. The names and addresses (postal or email) of all those entitled to succeed.

7. Details for any of the people entitled to succeed who are whāngai, including how they whakapapa back to your loved one.

8. Whakapapa of your loved one including parents, siblings, marriages or unions and children from those unions.

With all this information at hand, an application form can be completed and signed. There are different forms, but Court staff are happy to advise which form is required. A fee of $60 is charged by the Court to file the application.

A succession application can be heard in any district requested by the applicant, and it is best if the applicant or another family member attends to confirm the information they have provided is true and correct.

Once an application is filed, you can expect to wait a minimum of three months for a court sitting. If the succession is straightforward, the time before the judge will usually be no more than 10 minutes. If the succession is complicated or contentious (for example, overturning a will or if whānau disagree about who is entitled to the shares) it can take longer for the court to make an order.

The Court process ends when a Court order is issued to those entitled to the shares and the Māori Land Court records are updated. Ātihau-Whanganui Incorporation is also informed of the change and it will contact the new shareholders for their bank account details and to welcome them to the organisation.