CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
Kate Stubbing
Partner | Cooney Lees Morgan
SPEAKER BIO
Kate Stubbing is a Partner at Cooney Lees Morgan in Tauranga. She specialises in resource management, planning, environmental and local government law, advising councils, developers and private clients on resource consent applications, planning processes, development and infrastructure projects and planning disputes.
Kate has more than two decades of legal experience in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. She is actively involved in resource management law reform through her role as Secretary of the Resource Management Law Association (RMLA)’s National Committee and also sits on the local Bay of Plenty RMLA Branch Committee. Kate contributes to submissions and has presented to the Environment Select Committee on recent legislative changes.
TALK TITLE
NZ Notable Trees Trust talk: What the Planning Act and Natural Environment Act will mean in practice
ABSTRACT
New Zealand’s resource management system is undergoing its most significant reform in more than three decades. By October 2026, the new legislation is expected to be in force, bringing substantial changes to how land use, development, environmental protection and urban amenity are managed.
This presentation will provide a practical overview of the reforms, focusing on what the new framework means for the protection and management of trees and urban forests. It will examine key legislative changes in the context of the proposed exclusion of visual amenity and related character effects, the future of notable tree scheduling, regulatory relief provisions, and the continued role of territorial authorities in tree protection.
The session will explore how the reforms are likely to influence decision-making and consenting processes, and consider the issues that may shape tree protection and arboricultural practice in New Zealand over the coming years.