Following the confiscation, Ngāti Maru continued to live on their lands. In the early 1870s, the Crown attempted to promote European settlement on confiscated land by paying some Ngāti Maru compensation for the rights that the confiscation had extinguished. These deeds of session, covering about 60,000 acres, created significant divisions within the iwi, compounding the damage already caused by the Crown's confiscation. Much of the remaining Ngāti Maru land was then put through the Native Land Court. Ngāti Maru had no other option but to use that court if they wanted a title that could be legally recognised and protected from other claims. A legal title was also necessary if Ngāti Maru wanted to lease or sell land. However, the individualisation of customary title made the land more susceptible to alienation and further damaged tribal cohesion. Ultimately, Ngāti Maru did not retain any of the land awarded to them by the Native Land Court.