Kanaloa Pasifika is threatening court action after missing out on a place in the 2022 competition.
The Auckland-based Moana Pasifika bid and a Fiji-led delegation have been chosen to join the competition, alongside the existing five teams from New Zealand and five from Australia.
But Kanaloa Pasifika claimed New Zealand Rugby breached its own rules by appointing Moana Pasifika as a Primary Partner when the group did not take part in the formal tender process.
