Legal Counsel | Barrister
Monique is a civil litigator with deep, specialist expertise in Tiriti o Waitangi law, indigenous legal issues, public and administrative law, and resource management law. She has extensive experience representing clients in Tiriti and settlement‑related litigation, including proceedings involving and against government agencies and claims before international institutions. Monique has appeared in numerous significant public‑interest and Tiriti‑focused cases across the Waitangi Tribunal, High Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court.
A key focus of Monique’s practice is supporting the development of Tiriti‑consistent legal frameworks and the recognition of tikanga across Aotearoa’s legal system. Alongside her litigation work, she is committed to law reform and advancing the interface between state law, te ao Māori, and indigenous rights.
Monique is an adjunct lecturer in property law at Victoria University | Te Herenga Waka, where she teaches on native title and tikanga as they relate to land. She also contributes her expertise through service on several professional bodies, including the New Zealand Law Society Human Rights and Privacy Committee, the Wellington Women in Law Committee, and the New Zealand Bar Association Advocacy Committee.
Before joining Chambers in 2019, Monique worked as a judges’ clerk at the High Court of New Zealand | Te Kōti Matua o Aotearoa for Justices Clifford, Dobson and Thomas, and later as Assistant Crown Counsel in the Constitutional and Human Rights Team at the Crown Law Office | Te Tari Ture o te Karauna.
She has also held national editorial leadership roles, serving as Editor‑in‑Chief of the Victoria University Law Review and Co‑Editor‑in‑Chief of the New Zealand Women’s Law Journal – Te Aho Kawe Kaupapa Ture a ngā Wāhine.
AREAS OF EXPERTISE | ĀPURE MĀKOHAKOHA
• Tiriti o Waitangi Law
• Indigenous Legal Issues
• Public and Administrative Law
• Civil and Commercial Litigation
• Resource Management Law