During 2020 the New Zealand Law Society | Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa released our draft research report ‘Access to Justice – a stocktake of initiatives’ for consultation.

The report aimed to build a picture of the range of access to justice initiatives across Aotearoa New Zealand. The consultation process provided the opportunity to engage with a range of people to better understand this broader landscape and the range of activity already in development. We heard from specialist groups of lawyers, community-based organisations, government officials and individuals who have an interest in access to justice issues. 

Our interactions with all of these individuals and groups were invaluable and we have updated our tables of initiatives and woven feedback through the report as a result. We particularly appreciated the level of engagement given the urgent and immediate focus for many on responding to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during much of 2020.

As with all stocktakes, this report captures activities at a moment in time. Progress has continued with many of the initiatives outlined in the stocktake report being further developed, and new initiatives starting. 

Our next challenge is to use this report to help identify where the Law Society is uniquely placed to act, including in partnership with others, to have the greatest impact on improving access to justice for all New Zealanders.