糖心Vlog

Professor Wilson was the founding Dean of Law at Waikato University from 1990 to 1994, then moved into research and teaching roles until 1999, before moving into a series of ministerial roles in Parliament. She returned to Te Piringa as a professor in 2009, then retired in 2019.

Getting started

When reflecting on the impetus for setting up a new law school at Waikato, Professor Wilson says the push came from several directions.

A group of Hamilton lawyers, backed by Waikato-Tainui and the late Sir Robert Mahuta were key players.

鈥淭hey all believed there should be an opportunity to study law at Waikato University, and they were a very effective lobby group,鈥� recalls Professor Wilson.

鈥淭here was also a feeling from inside the judiciary, and [former High Court judge] the late Sir Ivor Richardson, that it was time for a different approach to legal education.鈥�

Lobbying eventually led to the Government to set up a fourth law faculty at the 糖心Vlog.

鈥淚t was a contestable process - Massey lobbied for it along with Waikato - and the Government awarded the capital funding for a new law school to Waikato鈥�.

Challenging times

Professor Wilson was appointed the Dean in 1990, and stayed in the role for several years while the Faculty of Law was established at Waikato.

However, those early years proved challenging. A change in government and a change in policy in funding tertiary institutions saw capital funding removed from the Waikato law school in 1991.

鈥淚t was difficult for the university, but our Vice-Chancellor at the time, the late Wilf Malcolm, and a group of local lawyers led by former mayor, the late Ross Jansen, lobbied the Government and we rescued about $1 million,鈥� recalls Professor Wilson.

With strong student interest and operational funding, based on the number of enrolled students, plans for the law school continued.

鈥淲e started in 1991 and I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 looked back.鈥�

Demand for Waikato law school

With around 1000 applications before the Faculty of Law had even opened, 鈥渢here was a genuine need at the time鈥�, not only from the Waikato and Bay of Plenty region, but further afield including Tair膩whiti (Gisborne) and north of Auckland.

鈥淭he University provided students with the opportunity to study law that wouldn鈥檛 have been available but for setting it up,鈥� says Professor Wilson. 鈥淭hat was the most important thing for me. For many students going to Auckland, Victoria, Otago or Canterbury wasn鈥檛 a practical option.

The central University campus, with its on-site accommodation and supportive culture, was appealing to those from smaller towns and M膩ori and Pacific communities.

The name Te Piringa was gifted to the Faculty by the late M膩ori Queen, Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu. It translates as 鈥渢he coming together of peoples and cultures鈥�.

Around 150 Waikato law students began in 1991.

鈥淲e only had a small number of places, because we had to be careful bringing it on,鈥� recalls Professor Wilson. 鈥淲e had to get staff, and it takes time to set these things up.鈥�

They were a diverse group, not only from a variety of cultural backgrounds, but a diversity of ages and life stages.

鈥淲e had really good applicants,鈥� recalls Professor Wilson, of the first law cohort. 鈥淎t the time, New Zealand society was going through a lot of redundancy through restructuring, and we attracted a lot of people changing jobs and requalifying, so that initial student body for the first few years was incredibly diverse which was good.鈥�

Taking a new approach

Being a new school gave them the license to be creative and innovative.

鈥淲e had enormous freedom 鈥� and we had a very different approach. We placed an emphasis on the quality of teaching. We were the first law school to have a computer lab.鈥�

One of Te Piringa鈥檚 key pillar鈥檚 was a bicultural approach to law education. This, and a programme funding Pacific students, attracted a large number of M膩ori and Pacific students.

鈥淪ince those early days, M膩ori and Pacific students have been very important to Te Piringa, reflected in the graduates, alumni and research in these communities from Waikato University,鈥� says Professor Wilson.

鈥淲e also had an emphasis on supporting not only M膩ori, but women, and those coming back to retrain. There was a strong feminist perspective that ran through the curriculum, which some may have found threatening, but some of those women now lead law firms of course.鈥�

The first graduation in 1994 鈥渨as wonderful鈥�, and after six months of professionals, seeing 鈥渢he first admissions to the profession was a big moment for the law school,鈥� recalls Professor Wilson.

Founding Dean, Emeritus Professor Margaret Wilson, says the three pillars were important to the shape and direction of the law school in 1991.

鈥淏ecause we were new, we had the opportunity to set out what our foundation principles would be,鈥� says Professor Wilson. 鈥淔irstly, professionalism. We knew we had to produce good lawyers who understood the legal system and legal rules so they could practice law. Because that鈥檚 why most people do a law degree, they want to get a job.

鈥淪econdly, we had a commitment to a bicultural approach to legal education. We were the first law school to introduce into our mainstream legal programmes, a M膩ori perspective.

鈥淎nd third, and as important in my view, we said we were going to teach law in context. We weren鈥檛 only going to teach rules, but we were also going to teach how rules are made and how they can be changed and what the social and economic context was for legal regulation. And that was a distinguishing feature of Waikato. Subsequently, I think some other law schools have incorporated some of what we were initiating at that time.鈥�

Professor Wilson said that Waikato University Law Faculty led the way from the very start.

鈥淲e really pioneered dispute resolution.

鈥淚t鈥檚 important that people know what their legal rights are and how they can get remedies, but going to court isn鈥檛 always the best way to get legal resolution; you can do it through mediation or adjudication, so we had that structured into the degree from early on.鈥�

A Waikato law degree would also be practical and versatile, designed as a foundation for a variety of careers.

鈥淭he intention was also to provide students with legal skills, but for students to not necessarily get jobs in law offices in a traditional sense,鈥� says Professor Wilson. 鈥淭he statistics said that about one third of people that got law degrees didn鈥檛 end up in law offices, they did other things. We were providing students with a range of skills they could use in all sorts of occupations. And that鈥檚 what happened.鈥�

An innovative structure also enabled Waikato law students to do integrated, conjoint degrees - law and management, and law and social sciences, were popular combinations. Professor Wilson estimates that around 50 per cent of law students do conjoint degrees at Waikato.

Even today, the three pillars are a vital part of Te Piringa.

鈥淥ur three founding pillars are unique and have continued to serve us well,鈥� says Professor Alpana Roy, current Dean of Law at Waikato University.

鈥淭he three pillars of biculturalism, professionalism and the study of law in context is something that we take seriously. It鈥檚 in our DNA. Many organisations have a mission, but usually it鈥檚 just words. But here, it is something you see embedded in our curriculum, in our vision, our research, our teaching, our engagement, and our student body. These core principles are something our academics go back to again and again.鈥�

鈥淏iculturalism was something that Te Piringa pioneered 30 years ago, and it will always be one of our foundation principles,鈥� says Professor Roy.  鈥淏iculturalism and tikanga M膩ori will continue to be embedded in our law programme.

鈥淥ur genuine commitment to biculturalism is mirrored by the fact we have one of the largest cohorts of M膩ori and Pacific students in the country..

鈥淭hose three founding pillars are as relevant today as back when we were founded in 1991, in fact they seem to have become stronger. The three pillars of biculturalism, professionalism and the study of law in context is what makes us genuinely unique and will stand the test of time.鈥�

This carved paepae was a personal gift from Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu to the university and the Law School.

The timber for this piece of carving came from the tahahi (ridgepole) of the whare whakairo (meeting house) at Waahi,which was originally carved by Patara Te Tuhi for T膩whiao,the second M膩ori King. When the house was dismantled in 1965, the totara timber was put in storage for some years.

This carving was started in 1981 and completed in 1985 at Waahi Pa. Supervision of this project was undertaken by one of Tainui鈥檚 master carvers, Taonui-a-Kupe Rickard. This carving comprises eight main figures representing the sacred canoes which sailed to Aotearoa in 1 350AD.

From east to west, the first figure represents Te Arawa, the second M膩taatua, the third T膩kitimu, the fourth Tokomaru, the fifth Kurahaup茅, the sixth Aotea. The seventh is Ngatokimatawhaorua and the eighth, Horouta. At the east end of the R膩kau is the face of a m膩naia welcoming the coming of a new day. The mandia at the west end faces the setting sun and pays homage to the day's end as evening approaches. The whole Rakau represents Tainui welcoming, embracing and giving full support, blessing and last but not least giving assurance to the descendants of the sacred canoes represented. The small figurehead in the centre of the R膩kau represents the descendants of all those canoes and the young generation of tomorrow who will enter this Law School to search, to seek, to find, to question, to learn and to further their knowledge. The background interlinking the manaia coincides with the whakapapa (genealogy) of the sacred canoes. It links, it binds, strengthens and uplifts the kaupapa (principles) on which the Law School is founded.

The name of the carving is Te R膩kau Kotahi. Literally this means 鈥榯he one tree鈥� but refers to 鈥榯he tree of knowledge鈥� or 鈥榯he tree of wisdom鈥� tree of unity, in all of its aspects, one of the most powerful and central conceptual values of the Maori ethos, combining all the strands and components of history, time and culture of all the peoples of Aotearoa.
The carving was moved to the new building sunken courtyard on the Management side of the building.