23 february an australian traveller named lucinda baulch was released after spending 28 days in managed isolation in wellington while refusing to take a covid-19 test. the woman had attended an anti-lockdown protest in melbourne in november 2020. national party leader judith collins called for the deportation of the woman back to australia. in early june 2021 new zealand authorities placed three melbourne residents in managed isolation after they entered new zealand without informing authorities that they had circumvented a two-week lockdown in melbourne by driving to sydney and then flying to auckland. the three individuals had intended to attend a funeral in new zealand. on 17 june 2021 radio new zealand reported that 12 travellers from samoa at the crowne park managed-isolation facility in auckland had breached managed isolation by socialising on three occasions despite receiving warnings. all 12 remained with the threat of an extended miq stay if anyone in the group were to test positive for covid-19; four received a police warning. on 2 september a covid-19 "community" case absconded from the novotel & ibis ellerslie miq facility in auckland and returned to his home. police detained the man following a 12-hour manhunt. he later appeared in court via phone and was charged with breaching a covid-19 public-health order. he was bailed back to the novotel facility. the national party's covid-19 spokesperson chris bishop sought an investigation by the government into delays by miq staff and police in reporting and responding to the individual's escape. the man's mother, known as "mele", confirmed that she had alerted the authorities to her son's escape and apologised for his actions. on 4 september, a man made two attempts to access the stamford plaza quarantine facility in auckland, but was discovered by staff. police issued the man with two warnings for unlawfully accessing the property and breaching covid-19 lockdown rules. on 20 october, joint head of miq brigadier rose king confirmed that three covid-19 positive community cases staying at the holiday inn hotel near auckland airport had allegedly absconded the previous night. two of the men were apprehended while one remained at large. legal challenges in early september 2021, a pregnant new zealand woman named bergen graham filed a legal challenge against the health minister andrew little and the ministry of business, innovation and employment after making six unsuccessful attempts to secure a place in miq through the voucher system. graham, who was living in el salvador, had sought to return to new zealand since february 2021 due to her high risk pregnancy stemming from a blood condition. mbie subsequently granted her a place in miq, leading her to drop her legal challenge. however, graham's lawyer francis joychild qc confirmed that other plaintiffs would continue with their legal actions over miq bookings on the grounds that the miq system was breaching section 18 of the new zealand bill of rights act 1990. on 8 october 2021, an advocacy group called "grounded kiwis" filed a judicial review claim in the high court against the health minister little, covid-19 response minister chris hipkins, and the chief executive of mbie claiming that they had they acted "unlawfully and unreasonably" in the design and operation of the miq system." grounded kiwis spokesperson alexandra birt alleged that the government had failed to protect the rights of new zealanders to enter the country and claimed that the "first-in-first served" allocation system breached section 18(2) of the bill of rights act 1990. the group was represented by wellington barristers paul radich qc and lucila van dam, barristers of clifton chambers law firm in wellington. grounded kiwis also filed to be an incorporated society representing new zealanders affected by the miq system. by 10 october, grounded kiwis had raised more than nz$72,000 through a givealittle fundraising campaign. on 14 december, grounded kiwis submitted a petition with 22,888 signatures to the new zealand parliament, calling for the miq system to better align with the bill of rights. the group was received by the national party's covid-19 response spokesperson chris bishop, act party leader david seymour and green party member of parliament elizabeth kerekere. bishop described the miq allocation system as a "lottery of human misery that had gone on far too long" while seymour described the current miq situation as "verging on a form of torture." kerekere stated that the miq situation "was not just a bill of rights issue, but also of the treaty of waitangi." on 27 april 2022, high court justice jill mallon ruled in favour of grounded kiwis' legal challenge against the miq system. mallon found that certain aspects of the miq system particularly the "virtual lobby" and the inability to take applicants' personal circumstances into account breached the bill of rights act 1990. other issues identified included the limited supply of spaces and the strict criteria for emergency allocation.