Tamaki Legal employs 13 solicitors and 4 administrative support staff members. We employ a large number of solicitors because of the nature of the kind of work that we do.
Assistance from a relatively large number of lawyers, compared with other law firms and lawyers who work in the Treaty claims area, means that we have greater capacity to address the legal issues that confront our clientele in a timely and comprehensive way.
DARRELL NADEN
LLB
MANAGING DIRECTOR
Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti, Ngati Ruawaipu, Te Whanau-a-Apanui, Te Whakatohea, Ngati Rahiri, Ngati Awa. Darrell graduated from the University of Auckland in 1995.
He has worked primarily as a Treaty claims lawyer since 1998. He has appeared before the Waitangi Tribunal in many district inquiries and has also been involved in a number of urgent hearings before the Waitangi Tribunal.
Other areas of law that Darrell works within include Maori land law, the law relating to the foreshore and seabed and environmental law.
SIAOSI LOA
BCOM/LLM (Hons)
SENIOR SOLICITOR
Siaosi graduated from the University of Auckland in 1999, then worked in Rarotonga as a Corporate Attorney specialising in trusts in several jurisdictions including onshore US trusts administered under US State Tax laws. After an OE through North, Central and South America, he returned to New Zealand and graduated in 2009 with a Masters in Law (Honours), specialising in Commercial Law.
Siaosi has been working in the Treaty claims area since 2009 and has been involved in Te Rohe Potae, Te Paparahi o Te Raki and various urgency inquiries. He has conducted work in all aspects of Waitangi Tribunal hearings including research, the preparation of claim documents and the presentation of claims. Siaosi also assists clients with trust administration and with Maori land law matters.
STEPH ROUGHTON
LLB/BA
INTERMEDIATE SOLICITOR
After working in the United Kingdom for a number of charitable organisations advocating for community and societal change, Steph returned to New Zealand to study law in 2007.
Steph graduated from the Victoria University of Wellington in 2012. Steph has assisted clients with criminal law and family law matters and has advocated for law reform to provide more robust legislation prohibiting human trafficking and labour exploitation in New Zealand.
Steph has worked in Treaty claims since 2015. She has assisted clients with their Marine and Coastal Area Act applications. Presently she represents claimants in the Te Paparahi o Te Raki Inquiry, the Taihape Rangitikei ki Rangipo Inquiry, the Porirua ki Manawatu Inquiry, the Maori Military Veterans and the Health Services and Outcomes Kaupapa Inquiries, and various Urgent Inquiries of the Waitangi Tribunal.
She also assists clients with their Maori land law issues.
Many of the other solicitors at Tamaki Legal worked in other law firms before taking up employment with the firm and so they bring a host of experience from other areas of law to the practice. All of the younger solicitors have outstanding qualifications and abilities.
Mr Joseph Naden works for Tamaki Legal in relation to Treaty claims concerning the Crown’s mis-delivery of education to Maori over the years since colonization began. He draws on over 40 years of experience in Maori education. Mr Naden also advises in relation to matters of tikanga, kawa and uasges of te reo Maori.
The Office Manager has been an employee at Tamaki Legal and its predecessor and so she has over 15 years of experience with the firm. The Receptionist/Secretary has been working in that role at Tamaki Legal for over 7 years now.