There has been serious political and legal conflict in New Zealand in recent years between indigenous Maori claims of rights to the foreshore and seabed and the understandings of non-Maori New Zealanders. This book chapter analyses the political leadership provided in this conflict from 1997 to 2005. It applies an approach to leadership developed by Ronald Heifetz which emphasizes the importance of identifying and addressing the real issues underlying a conflict. Applying Heifetz's diagnostic to the foreshore and seabed conflict suggests that the absence of constitutional mechanisms for dealing with the relationships between the Crown, Maori and other New Zealanders encourages the temptation to New Zealanders and their politicians to avoid the real underlying issues. True leadership involves identifying the relationship conflict underlying the superficial issues, and creating mechanisms for managing these relationships.