Rights
Uncodified constitution; Bill of Rights Act 1990 s. 4 bars invalidation
An uncodified constitution: no single supreme document, parliamentary sovereignty, and a Bill of Rights that courts cannot use to strike down legislation. The Treaty of Waitangi is a distinct and central constitutional element.
Governing law
- Constitution Act 1986
- New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 (s. 4)
- Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975
- Senior Courts Act 2016
In practice
New Zealand has no entrenched written constitution and no power of judicial invalidation. Section 4 of the Bill of Rights Act is explicit: no court may hold any enactment invalid or refuse to apply it by reason of inconsistency with the Act. Instead s. 6 requires legislation to be read consistently with rights where possible, and s. 7 requires the Attorney-General to report to Parliament on any bill that appears inconsistent — a political rather than judicial safeguard. The Supreme Court has declared inconsistency in cases such as Taylor without affecting the statute's validity. The Treaty of Waitangi is not directly enforceable of its own force, but its principles are referenced in many statutes and give the Waitangi Tribunal its jurisdiction.