Mark Zuckerberg drops lawsuit to acquire Hawaii land

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has dropped lawsuits seeking to buy more land in Hawaii.

The billionaire had been seeking to buy land from Native Hawaiians who own small pieces within his sprawling estate on the island of Kauai.

Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan, said in a letter to the community that they were ending the cases "to find a better path forward."

It was the tech-giant's use of the "quiet title" legal system that caused friction with residents around the area in Hawaii.

Mr Zuckerberg said: "Now that I understand the issues better, it's clear we made a mistake."

After buying the large area of land it was realised that within that space there were small pockets of land called kuleana.

These small bits of land were given to native tenant farmers in the 1850s.

Many original owners died without wills. Ownership today is split among hundreds of descendants, many of whom are unaware of their shares.

The couple filed court cases last month to identify the owners and ask the court to auction the land.

Critics say the process often results in Native Hawaiians losing their land.

Kilauea Sugar Co. previously owned Zuckerberg's land. He bought his 700-acre ocean-front property in 2014 for $100 million, Forbes reported.

Moses Haia, executive director of the Native Hawaiian Legal Corp, welcomed the tech billionaire's move.

"We appreciate Mr. Zuckerberg's sense of justice and his desire to truly understand the impact that the introduction of private property has had on the indigenous people of Hawaii," Haia said. "We are encouraged by his desire to engage in a process intended to achieve the true intent of the Mahele."