Succession
Report by Sandra Sievwright
Since I submitted the succession application - for Nanny’s children (Harry, Molly, Jim, Butch & Tom ) to succeed to their Hongoeka 4A shares- I have continued to check on the progress of the application.
The facts are:
The “Application for Succession when Grant of Administration Held ” for Camellia Violet Mullen (Nanny) was submitted 20 July 2023 at the Maori Land Court (MLC) in Wellington.
The application was incomplete as it required a copy of Nanny’s death certificate .
I ordered a copy of Nanny’s death certificate and it was received and certified by MLC in Wellington , 22 August 2023.
I requested an update and received confirmation ,13 September 2023 , that the application had been forwarded to the MLC Te Waharoa Team (in Auckland) for processing.
The latest Ministry of Justice Pani March 2024 pdf shows all applications for hearings in March and does not include our application . Our application is also not shown in the list of Applications that remain outstanding in the Office of the Chief Registrar in Wellington . I assume from this that our application is still being processed by the Te Waharoa Team and has not yet been referred to the Aotea District Office where the research , recommendations and decisions will be made by the Court or the Registrar.
I have registered on the online portal - Pataka Whenua - maorilandcourt.govt.nz
and have submitted an enquiry via the online portal asking for an update and if our application has been allocated an application number so progress can be monitored via the portal.
It seems the succession applications will take as long as they will take however we have started and are on our way ! As I said at the last hui I also submitted -23 July 2023- an application for succession for my sister & I so we succeed to our father’s (Uncle Tom’s ) Hongoeka shares once Nanny’s application has been processed.
FYI, To potentially “ speed up” the process it is worth submitting an application for succession now that can be processed once Nanny’s application has been processed. The information on how to do this can be found on the Pataka Whenua online portal - maorilandcourt.govt.nz - where you can submit an application through the portal or you can email an application to mlctewaharoa@justice.govt.nz or phone 0800MLC or alternatively you can visit your local MLC office.
NB :
A Crozier family application is not required as effectively the application has been done via a 2023 submission where the MLC ruled to accept Molly’s Will and subsequent deed and this included identifying all shareholders for Hongoeka 4A .
If you have recently succeeded to Wellington Tenth Trust shares and noted somewhere on the application form that you have land interests in Hongoeka 4A there may be a “crossover” here ie you may not have to complete an another application for succession to Hongoeka 4A shares - this was the information Robert Mullen was given when completing a recent succession application for Wellington Tenth Trust shares.
ngā mihi
Sandra
