Mapping guidelines for applications to the High Court under the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011

1   Introduction

1.1  This practice note is intended to provide guidance on maps filed in the High Court that relate to applications for customary marine title and protected customary rights under the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011. This note is not intended to limit the range of information that can be shown on maps, but to achieve a level of consistency across maps prepared for the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 processes in the High Court. The 2022 Protocol came into effect on 23 March 2022.

1. 2 Maps should be used where they are the most concise means of presenting spatial information to support a case for customary marine title or protected customary rights. They should complement other forms of evidence presented to the Court in support of an application.

1.3  All new maps that parties prepare for proceedings, whether paper or digital, should adhere to the guidelines set out in this note. The guidelines do not apply to pre- existing maps. 

2   Types of maps

2. 1 There are two types of maps that can be produced to support an application: 

2.1.1  Application area maps: These depict the location of an application area.

2.1.2  Evidential maps: These allow for the spatial presentation of evidence relating to applications for customary marine title and protected customary rights. Evidential maps can be presented in their own right as evidence or submitted alongside other forms of evidence such as research reports. 

3   Tikanga and mātauranga Māori

3.1  The guidelines in this practice note do not prevent applicants from providing additional spatial information evidence in a format more consistent with the tikanga and mātauranga Māori of their rohe, for example, in a non-topographical format. Oral history and traditional knowledge that is presented by applicants is a valid data source for the purposes of mapping information. 

4    Scope

4.1 The guidelines in this note set out a number of mandatory requirements, regardless of how the map is produced. A map consists of two components:

4.1.1 the information frame, which records information contained in the map; and

4.1.2 the main geographical map, a graphical representation of the area being depicted, and key features represented by symbols and linework relevant to the application.

4. 2  The information frame contains important information about the map and consists of the following elements:

4,2,1 the title;

4.2.2 a disclosure notice;

4.2.3 the source of the information;

4.2.4 the map’s production date or a time stamp;

4.2.5 the map projection;

4.2.6 the scale;

4.2.7 a disclaimer; and

4.2.8 a legend

5  Information frame

5.1  The title

5.1.1 The title is a mandatory requirement for all maps. It is used to clearly and easily identify the purpose of the map and the applicant.

5.1.2 The title must include the High Court CIV number allocated to the applicant.

 5.2 Disclosure notice

5.2.1 The disclosure notice is used in cases where the use or disclosure of a map is restricted by a court order.

5.2.2 Where possible, applicants should avoid filing a map that contains information that is restricted by a court order. This may require applicants to consider filing multiple maps.

5.3 Source of information and permissions

5.3.1  The source of information describes where the information for each item displayed on the map was derived from. Provision of source information is mandatory as this allows for verification of the source data.

5.3.2  The onus is on the applicant preparing the map to obtain permission to use the information displayed on the map, if permission is required. 

5.4  Production date and time stamp

5.4.1 The map production date identifies when the map was completed. This is a mandatory requirement. The format for the date is DD/MM/YYYY.

5.4.2  The map may also include a time stamp. A time stamp may assist applicants with version control. This is an optional requirement. The format for the time stamp is 24H/M/S.

5.5  Map projection

5,5,1  The map projection is a way of representing the surface of the earth as a plane. The plane representation allows horizontal distances to be evaluated. It allows the data to be plotted in the correct real-world application. The map projection is mandatory and must be stated in the information frame.

5,5,2  For most of New Zealand, excluding some offshore islands, the projection to be used is the New Zealand Transverse Mercator 2000 projection (1).  Offshore islands have their own Transverse Mercator projection that is suitable to use and reference.

5.6  Scale

5.6.1 A scale bar is mandatory. The unit of measurement must show metres or kilometres and be clearly shown after the numbers representing distance. The scale bar may also show the unit of measurement in miles. A suggested style is set out in the appendix.

5.6.2 In addition to the mandatory scale bar, a ratio scale may also be used. The scale should be rounded to a suitable number and reflect the size of the page upon which the map is produced. This is an optional requirement.

5.6.3 When a map is used to identify overlapping areas or common features on another map, the two maps must have the same scale.  

5.7 Limitation statement

5.7.1 A limitation statement protects the producer of the map by setting out clear specific limits on the reproduction or use of the map.

5.7.2 The following statement is mandatory:

This map has been produced for the purpose of a High Court application for recognition of [either] customary marine title/protected customary rights [or] customary marine title and protected customary rights and has not been produced for any other purpose. Access to material filed in the High Court is governed by the Senior Courts (Access to Court Documents) Rules 2017.

5.8  Disclaimers

5.8.1 Parties may add appropriate disclaimers to maps filed. For example, a disclaimer may relate to the accuracy or completeness of the data.

5.9 Legend

5.9.1  The legend is a list and description of all the symbols, shapes and lines used on the map to represent features. This is a mandatory requirement.

Items in the legend should be displayed in the same size, thickness and colour that are shown  on the main geographic map. A suggested information frame specification template is set out in the appendix.

5.10  Main geographical map

5.10.1 The main purpose of the geographical map is to display relevant features to support the evidence for an application in a way that is not cluttered. All maps should use a base map that may be overlaid with additional sets of information.

5.11  Base map

5.11.1  The base map is mandatory. It will show the geographical area the information relates to. It will give positional context by showing the application area in relation to the land position and hence the need for the identification and use of a projection.

Example of base layers that can be used:

• World Topographic; and
• Aerial imagery for detailed maps

5.12  Optional information

5.12.1 The party producing a map will determine what information or features to show on the map. The sources of the information are to be recorded on the map.

Examples of New Zealand-wide sources of information that can be collated and added to a map are:

• TPK Marae layer;
• Regional Council coastal consents; and
• NZPMA-Petroleum permits.

 5.13 Location map

5.13.1 A location map is a map that shows the location of a specific area within a larger geographical context. It can be placed within the border of the main geographical map but should not obscure important information relevant to the application. A location map is highly recommended. It must use the same base map as the main geographical map. The location map should be oriented to the north.

5.14 Colours

5.14.1 Applicants can assign colours to features, line work and symbology. Colours used for features must consider users with colour blindness. By way of example red line work on a green background should be avoided where possible as it can prove problematic for colour blind people. Information regarding what colours to avoid for colour blindness can be found on the Internet. The colours should have enough contrast to be easily distinguishable from one another. The colours selected should be consistent across different maps prepared by the same party.

5.15  Symbology

5.15.1 For evidential maps, applicants can assign symbology to features. Symbology should be clear, unambiguous and distinguishable when overlaid on the base map in each map. Symbology should be referenced back to the legend and used consistently across multiple maps in support of the same application. Examples of symbology are set out in the appendix.  

5.16  User-added text

5.16.1  Text can be added to the geographical map to provide clarity and an explanation. Text should be placed in a position that does not obscure important information or features relevant to the application. User-added text should be used sparingly to avoid cluttering what should be a predominantly visual presentation of spatial information. An alternative may be to attach an explanatory narrative to a map, or for other evidence to refer to the information contained in a map. 

5.17  North orientation

5.17.1  It is mandatory that all maps (main geographical maps and location maps) be oriented north. 

5.17.2  A north arrow may be positioned on the map. If a north arrow is used it should not be decorative or ornate. The north arrow symbol should be positioned inside the map and at the top right-hand corner if possible. The use of a north arrow is optional. Examples of north orientation symbols are set out in the appendix.

5.18  Main geographical map specifications

5.18.1  To maintain consistency of the application maps filed by different parties, the following main geographical map specifications are shown in Table 1 below. 

5.18.2  The following text font, colour and minimum size (point) used in the main geographical map template are mandatory: 

5.18. 3  A checklist of mandatory and optional requirements for maps is shown in Table 2 below.

⁽¹⁾ Applicants should refer to Land Information New Zealand for more information about Transverse Mercator 2000 projections.

Hon Justice Susan Thomas
Chief High Court Judge – Te Kaiwhakawā Matua

23 March 2022

Tables and appendix (PDF, 692 KB)

HCPN 2022/1 Mapping guidelines for applications to the High Court under the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 (PDF, 815 KB)