The Law To Know

← All court structures

Courts of New Zealand

A single chain of general courts, plus specialised courts and tribunals for employment, environment and Māori land.

Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

General courts

Supreme CourtFinal court since 2004
Court of Appeal
High Court
District CourtIncludes the Family Court and Youth Court

Specialised courts

Employment Court
Environment Court
Māori Land CourtWith the Māori Appellate Court

Stands apart from the chain of appeals

Waitangi TribunalLooks into Treaty of Waitangi claims; it is not a court
Appeals travel up the arrows. Boxes with a heavier border are the top court of each track.

Worth knowing

  • There is no constitutional court. Courts cannot strike down Acts of Parliament.

Compare New Zealand with another country →
Read the New Zealand profile in the Legal Families Atlas →

Sources

Other systems

African Court on Human and Peoples' RightsArgentinaAustraliaAustriaBangladeshBelgiumBrazilCanadaChileChinaColombiaCzechiaDenmarkEgyptEngland and WalesEuropean Court of Human RightsEuropean UnionFinlandFranceGermanyGhanaGreeceHong KongIndiaIndonesiaInter-American Court of Human RightsInternational Court of JusticeInternational Criminal CourtIranIrelandIsraelItalyJapanKenyaMalaysiaMexicoNetherlandsNigeriaNorwayPakistanPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSaudi ArabiaScotlandSingaporeSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSpainSri LankaSwedenSwitzerlandTaiwanThailandTurkeyUnited Arab EmiratesUnited StatesVietnam

TheLawToKnow Tools’s court-structure diagrams are simplified on purpose and are not legal advice. Report a mistake.