Te Au Reka replaces many paper-based manual court processes, giving lawyers a secure online way to interact with the court. Lawyers and parties will access Te Au Reka through the new Courts Portal.

Lawyers will use the Courts Portal to file documents and deal with the Family Court in all new cases following rollout in their region. In the lead-up to its deployment, lawyers will continue to use existing filing and case management processes.

The Ministry of Justice and the judiciary have been working closely to deliver the new system. Wellington Family Court Judge Tim Black has played a key role in shaping the design of Te Au Reka and gave an early demonstration at the Law Society’s 2025 Family Law Conference with Judge Belinda Pidwell.

“Te Au Reka is the biggest change in the operations of the courts in a generation,” he says. “It is truly transformational in its effect and scope.”

Representatives of the legal profession have been involved in ensuring that the associated communications, learning and support will reflect the needs of legal practitioners.

Lawyers will receive information and support before Te Au Reka is introduced in their region – including online learning, instructional videos, practical demonstrations and supporting guidance materials. Access to the Courts Portal will require a verified RealMe account and more information about these requirements and account setup will be provided ahead of rollout.

Designed with input from the legal profession

Reference groups made up of lawyers from different practice types, including small and large firms, Oranga Tamariki as well as sole practitioners, have been instrumental in developing the new system – including to review features, workflows and design options, and provide feedback throughout development.

Family lawyers Amy Gulbransen (Tiaki Family Law) and Liz Lewes (Cuba Family Law) are members of the reference groups.

Amy says the opportunity for lawyers to provide feedback throughout the design has helped create a system that reflects how practitioners work. Based on demonstrations she’s seen, the system is user-friendly and logical. “It will be much less likely for things to get lost or be mis-diarised. You log in and all your communications are there, all your dates are there. It will be a huge time-saver.”

Liz says one of the biggest benefits will be improved visibility of case information and court deadlines. “You’re going to be able to get in and see all of your active cases, your active tasks, when things have to be filed and upcoming court events. It’s a one-stop shop.”

She says the ability to customise notifications will help practitioners manage their workload and keep track of important deadlines. “You can set notifications and tailor those to suit the way you like to work.”

Lawyers won’t need extra technology: they can just do the work on their laptop or phone, she says.

Benefits for practitioners and the court

The new system is expected to improve access to information, provide greater transparency of case progress, and reduce delays associated with paper-based administration.

Judge Black says immediate benefits will include greater accessibility of court information and reduced reliance on physical files.

“People sometimes ask me what benefits we’ll see straight away. We won’t have to wait for a file to be sent from another courthouse to be able to work on it. If I’m in Porirua and my court case finishes early and I want to do some preparation for a list in Wellington that I’ve got the next day, I can start doing that from Porirua rather than having to drive into Wellington and then see if the trolley is ready for the list."

He says the system has been designed to be intuitive and easy to use. “I tell my colleagues that if they can do their banking on their phone, they can use the system.”

The Court Portal

Lawyers will use the Court Portal to:

• file documents online
• view upcoming court events
• track the progress of cases
• receive reminders and notifications
• access court documents and communications
• manage active cases and tasks in one place.

A progressive rollout

November 2027 – Christchurch and Ashburton (Judges and Court staff)

March 2027 – South Island

April 2027 – Central and Lower North Island Regions

May 2027 – Northern Region

Find out more

More information about Te Au Reka, including implementation updates, training opportunities and guidance for legal practitioners, will be made available through the Ministry of Justice in the lead-up to rollout.

This article has been supplied by Te Au Reka Programme at the Ministry of Justice.