Jacinta Ruru (Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui) MNZM, FRSNZ is a Distinguished Professor of Law and holds an inaugural Sesquicentennial Distinguished Chair at the University of Otago, Aotearoa New Zealand.

She researches how state legal systems should reconcile with their Indigenous peoples, their laws and knowledges, and specifically considers Māori rights and responsibilities to care for, own, manage and govern lands and waters. Her work includes co-authoring Discovering Indigenous Lands: The Doctrine of Discovery in the English Colonies (Oxford University Press, 2010) and co-editing Ngā Kete Mātauranga: Māori Scholars at the Research Interface (Otago University Press, 2021) and Books of Mana (Otago University Press, 2025).

Jacinta completed her PhD studies in Canada and is the recipient of a number of significant awards for her research, supervision and teaching.