A long-running legal battle around shark cage diving has taken another twist, after a court ruled the Department of Conservation does not have the power to grant authorisation to operators.
But the High Court judgment, released this month, did not address how the venture must be governed - or how public safety should be factored in.
Over the past decade, fledgling tourism ventures offering shark cage diving have emerged in the northeastern waters of Stewart Island, leading to a stand-off between operators and the paua industry.
In 2012, Maritime New Zealand hosted a multi-agency meeting of officials and groups interested in establishing commercial shark cage diving operations.
The following year, DoC released interim guidelines around potential risks to great white sharks from cage diving, at the same time acknowledging its "limited statutory authority to require permit applications for all commercial interactions with protected marine wildlife under the Wildlife Act 1953".