Kerensa Johnston

LLM (First Class), BA (History)
Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court

Contact details
Building 803, room 208
17 Eden Crescent
Auckland

Phone: +64 9 373 7599 ext 85389
Email: k.johnston@auckland.ac.nz

Profile

Kerensa Johnston, LLM (First Class), BA (History), Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand, (Ngaruahinerangi, Te Atiawa) is a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University of Auckland where she researches and teaches in the area of Māori development and the law, international human rights law as it relates to indigenous peoples and Te Tiriti o Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi. Kerensa has represented iwi and hapu groups in the courts and the Waitangi Tribunal on a variety of issues relating to land and sovereignty rights. She belongs to the Ngaruahinerangi and Te Atiawa iwi situated on the west coast of the North Island of Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Selected Publications

• "The Treaty of Waitangi - A Review of Legal Developments" Part 3 New Zealand Law Review [2007] 551.
• "Everything in Context: Indigenous Women, International Human Rights Law and Discrimination - Is International Human Rights Law the Way Forward?" Vol 7, Issue 1 Indigenous Law Bulletin [2007] 17.
• "Māori Women Confront Discrimination: Using International Law to Challenge Discrimination" 4 (2005) Indigenous Law Journal 19.
• "The Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi: A Discussion of Legal Developments", Vol III [2005] New Zealand Law Review 603.
• "Discrimination, the State and Māori Women" in Ani Mikaere (ed), Yearbook of New Zealand Jurisprudence 8(2) [2005] 31-78.
• "Ask that Taniwha - Who owns the Foreshore and Seabed of New Zealand - Part II" [2004] Journal of Māori Legal Writing, 10 (co-written with Dr Nin Tomas).
• Conference Paper, "Māori Engagement with United Nations Institutions", Developments in International Law and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Victoria University of Wellington, 16 April 2004.
• New Zealand Law Review: Analysis of Legal Developments, "Who owns the Foreshore and Seabed of New Zealand" (2003) Part III New Zealand Law Review 462 (co-written with Nin Tomas).
• Conference Paper, "Māori Involvement at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues - What can be achieved in this Forum?", presented at Te Hunga Roia Māori (Māori Lawyers’ National Conference), Wellington, September 2003, published at www.thr.co.nz).
• "An Analysis of the Utility of United Nations’ Bodies and International Human Rights Law in the Protection of Indigenous Peoples’ Rights", in Australian New Zealand Society of International Law, International Governance and Institutions - What Significance for International Law?, Conference Proceedings, Victoria University of Wellington, 4-6 July 2003, pp184-216.
• Conference Paper, "The Treaty of Waitangi and International Human Rights Law", Legal Research Foundation, The Treaty of Waitangi and Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Auckland, May 2003 (published at the Human Rights Commission’s website at http://www.hrc.co.nz/).