Headline: All new jury trials suspended from Monday 23 March
The Chief Justice initially suspended all new jury trials from Monday 23 March for two months as a precautionary measure due to the COVID-19 outbreak. She has now extended this timeframe for a further two months until 31 July 2020.
Ongoing jury trials will continue as scheduled.
The suspension will be reviewed regularly and may be revised based on any new advice received.
More information
Further questions? Call 0800 COURTS (0800 268 787).
See the latest updates on news and events around the Ministry. If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, try our media release section or news archive.
A one-off extension to the Victim Assistance Scheme will financially support more victims of the Christchurch Mosque Attacks to travel to attend sentencing.
New figures from the Ministry’s New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey (NZCVS) (link to report) show worryingly low levels of reporting of sexual violence – 94% p
Budget 2020 initiatives will deliver investment to the Family Court, Community Law Centres Whānau Protect services and improvements to court properties.
Christchurch High Court’s historic dais is to be gifted to Canterbury Museum once court services move into the new Justice and Emergency Services Precinct, the Ministry of Justice and Canterbury Museum announced today.“The dais is an important part of Canterbury’s legal history and I am delighted that Canterbury Museum has…
Lawyers, judges, media and other people working in Waitakere and Manukau district courts have access to Ministry-supported wifi from their mobile devices.
We have almost completed a review of court custodial cells throughout NZ following a death of a defendant in a cell in the Papakura courthouse last year.
Dr Ian Lambie, Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology at the University of Auckland, has been appointed to the role of Justice Sector Science Advisor.
Headline: New Zealanders have a range feelings about criminal justice system
New Zealanders are divided in their views of whether crime is a choice, but there is strong consensus that people who offend can go on to lead productive lives with the right effort and support, a study has found.
Published today by the Ministry of Justice, the Social Wellbeing and Perceptions of the Criminal Justice System report draws results from the New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey 2019 – released in May this year – which interviewed 8,000 people about their experiences and perceptions of crime.
“The report has some fascinating insights into what Kiwis agree on and what they don’t,” Sector Deputy Secretary Tim Hampton says. “While there were differing views on the contribution of social circumstances and personal choice, the vast majority of people agreed that offenders can go on to lead productive lives with some help and hard work.
“Most New Zealanders believe the Police and groups that support victims are doing a good job, and they have a high level of trust in them. This trust decreases when it comes to courts and Corrections, which is consistent with previous New Zealand and international studies.
The report reveals disparities among different groups of people, such as their feelings of safety and their experience of the criminal justice system in general.
“While there is a solid level of trust in the criminal justice system, Pacific peoples and Indian New Zealanders are more concerned about being the victim of a crime than other New Zealand adults,” Mr Hampton says. “Māori and Pacific peoples are less likely to agree that New Zealanders are treated fairly by the Police. Māori, Chinese and Pacific adults are all less likely to feel that their values align with the criminal justice system than other adults.
“The results shed light on areas of the criminal justice system that could be improved and made safer and more effective for all New Zealanders, which can provide a baseline to examine the effectiveness of initiatives.”
These results are similar to the findings of an online survey with voluntary participation of around 5,000 people conducted late last year by the Government’s criminal justice reform project – Hāpaitia Te Oranga Tangata, which was also published today.
“While there are disparities between the two reports, which use different methodologies, there was common ground found on a number of topics including that the goal of the criminal justice system should be to help offenders so they don’t reoffend,” Mr Hampton says.
The Hāpaitia survey provided a more qualitative insight into New Zealanders’ views of proposals to transform the criminal justice system, particularly among those who’ve experienced it personally, and found an overwhelming majority of people surveyed want transformation in the justice system.
Headline: Data of COVID-19 Alert Level 4 effect on District Court released
New Ministry of Justice figures indicate the extent to which the District Court, including the Family Court and Youth Court, has maintained an essential service for priority matters during COVID-19 Alert Level 4.
“The District Court is New Zealand’s busiest court. During the COVID-19 Alert Level 4 restrictions, the justice system, including courts, were an essential service.
These figures show that the courts adapted to deal with priority proceedings during lockdown restrictions when the ability to hold court hearings was severely constrained,” says Andrew Kibblewhite, Secretary for Justice.
Priority proceedings included those affecting the liberty of the individual; protection of the at-risk or vulnerable (including children); national and community safety; and facilitating and promoting public order.
The figures compare data during COVID-19 Alert Level 4 (26 March to 27 April 2020) with a baseline period four weeks prior to COVID-19 Alert Level 2 (24 February –22 March 2020).
Among other things, the figures show that at the end of COVID-19 Alert Level 4:
31,712 District Court events (across the criminal, family and civil jurisdictions) were adjourned or rescheduled due to COVID-19 during Alert Level 4.
4,772 (13%) more criminal cases are waiting to be resolved in the District Court. An increase in active criminal cases has occurred in every area of the country.
22% fewer criminal charges were filed in the District Court during COVID-19 Alert Level 4. Of the 13,454 charges filed, 608 were for breaching lockdown requirements.
54% fewer Family Court applications were filed during COVID-19 Alert Level 4. A higher proportion than usual were filed without notice. The figures provided on the Family Court do not include work that was done ‘on the papers’.
“The courts steadily expanded their operations during COVID-19 Alert Level 4 and Alert Level 3 and are completing more court events. But as the Chief District Court Judge has stated, it is not back to business-as-usual yet,” Mr Kibblewhite says.
“The Ministry is continuing to work hard to support the judiciary to increase its work as much as is practicable while Level 2 physical distancing and hygiene requirements continue to constrain normal operations.”
“The move to Alert Level 4 not only affected individuals and their cases but impacted the volume of matters that could be progressed in all court jurisdictions, and the Ministry is also working closely with the judiciary on how to address this,” he said.
At Alert Level 2, health and safety measures in court buildings remain stringent as per Ministry of Health guidelines.
“I want to again thank our people, the judiciary, the legal profession and justice sector agencies for their work to ensure continued access to justice through priority proceedings and progressing as much work as feasible beyond those during this period,” Mr Kibblewhite says.
The Ministry plans to publish data from the COVID-19 Alert Level 3 period, and future alert levels.
Headline: Essential Justice Services continuing during COVID-19 Alert Level 4
The Secretary for Justice is asking all court participants to comply with the Chief Justice of New Zealand’s instructions that only those people who’re required to attend court do so, during COVID-19 Alert Level 4.
“These steps from the Chief Justice have been taken to protect the safety of those who need to be in court for priority justice services during Alert Level 4 and to give effect to this alert level,” says Andrew Kibblewhite, Secretary for Justice.
The measures mean no member of the public can enter a courthouse unless their presence is required for the business of the court, for example: defendants, prosecutors, lawyers, officers of the court and accredited media. If you are attending court for priority civil matters, including priority Family Court proceedings, there will be signs on the court doors advising who to contact.
Any supporter of a defendant who wishes to come to court requires the advance permission of the presiding judge. This request cannot be made in person and can only be done through contacting 0800 COURTS (0800 268 767).
People who are unwell and required to attend court are also being asked to not come to court and to also call 0800 COURTS (0800 268 767) to advise of this.
The priority proceedings were decided by Heads of Bench and are listed on the Courts of New Zealand website and the District Courts website.
In the District Court, proceedings that are deemed not essential will be administratively adjourned until the next available date. Youth Court proceedings that are not essential will be adjourned on the papers for four weeks.
“We are working with the Judiciary to ensure the identified priority proceedings, for example when a defendant is in custody, are dealt with. Where possible, these are being heard via audio-visual link,” Mr Kibblewhite says.
“While the courts have faced challenges before, this is the first time they have had to make such wide adjustments on this national scale. I ask all court participants to be patient and work with the Ministry and Judiciary as we work to continue to deliver essential justice services for New Zealanders,” he says.
“The Ministry is also working closely with other government departments to constantly assess our services and the current situation. We are also thoroughly cleaning court buildings regularly and ask all court users to keep following the Ministry of Health guidance,” says Mr Kibblewhite.
The move to Alert Level 4 will have an impact on all court jurisdictions and on how court hearings are run. In the District Court, which is New Zealand’s busiest and biggest court, many court participants, lawyers and judicial staff may not be able to attend in person as a result of the measures implemented, or the need to self-isolate.
Based on the priorities identified by the Chief District Court Judge, Principal Family Court Judge and Principal Youth Court Judge, the Ministry estimates about 12,500 events will go ahead over the next month.
Typically, 72,000 events take place each month in the District and Youth Courts. A court case has multiple events.
All counter services in courts are closed and filing of court papers is to be done electronically or via post. Filing fees are also being waived under section 24 of the Epidemic Preparedness Act. Justice of the Peace services have also been suspended. Bailiffs will only serve urgent documents if all other options are unavailable.
Only staff who are considered critical to maintaining the justice system will be working out of the courts or the Ministry’s National Office in Wellington. All other staff have been asked to remain home to work as required unless their manager requires them in the office for these critical services.
“We have worked closely with the Judiciary to prepare for this because upholding the rule of law is just as vital at times like this. I want to thank them, the profession and our people for their work to ensure justice can be administered during this period,” Mr Kibblewhite says.
For more information, please visit the Ministry of Justice website. Regular updates will also continue to be made through the Courts of New Zealand and District Court of New Zealand Twitter accounts.
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Media contact: Hannah Mills – Senior Media Advisor 021 636 416 or media@justice.govt.nz
Headline: New survey results show extent of offences by family members
Almost 80,000 adults were offended against by a family member in 2018, according to the Ministry of Justice’s latest report Offences by Family Members.
The report, which comes off the back of the 2018 New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey, also notes that just over 100,000 adults who had a partner in the last 12 months had experienced psychological violence by an intimate partner.
Figures from the report show:
Māori adults (4 percent) were found to be more at-risk of experiencing family member violence than European adults (2 percent).
Adult females (2.8 percent) were more than twice as likely to report offences by family members than adult males (1.2 percent).
Young people between 15 – 29 years of age were 1.7 times as likely to report offences by family members (3.4 percent) than New Zealand average.
Quite often victims are injured (23 percent) and require medical attention for mental, emotional or physical health issues (15 percent) but only one in three offences by family members are reported to Police.
The Offences by Family Members report details who experiences offences by family members, what types of offences occur, and what services victims interact with. The offences include physical assault, sexual assault, psychological violence by intimate partners, harassment and threatening behaviour, property damage and robbery.
“The report is important because it provides precise, national level information about violence committed within families,” says James Swindells, the Ministry’s Manager of Research and Evaluation. “It tells us more about the nature of this type of offending and gives those leading interventions in this area the evidence they need to refine initiatives or develop new ones and to monitor the impact of this work.”
“Our findings show that victims of offences by family members experienced moderate-to-high levels of psychological distress, at more than four times the rate of other adults (37 percent compared to 8 percent). Data like this helps people understand the needs of those affected by violence and links with things like mental illness.”
The report also identifies that adults facing high levels of financial stress are more vulnerable to offending by family members. For example, adults who could not afford a non-essential item costing $300 in the next month were five times as likely to have experienced an offence by a family member in the past year than those who could afford the item.
“Future work – once more data is accumulated from further cycles of NZCVS – will help to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between offending by family members, and the demographic, socioeconomic and family circumstances of an individual,” says Mr Swindells.
The report contributes to the evidence base that supports efforts across the Justice Sector to improve community safety and reduce family and sexual violence, such as the Joint Venture for Family Violence and Sexual Violence and the Hāpaitia te Oranga Tangata, the Safe and Effective Justice programme.
The first New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey was carried out in 2018 where 8,000 New Zealanders over 15 years of age were interviewed about their experience of crime. The main report from the 2019 New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey is due out in the coming months.
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Media Contact: Hannah Mills – Senior Media Advisor – 021 636 416
Headline: Minority of New Zealanders experience majority of crime
Māori form 26 percent of the most highly victimised people, almost twice as high as their proportion of the New Zealand adult population, according to the Ministry of Justice’s latest report Highly Victimised People.
The report comes off the back of the New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey, which was released earlier this year, where 8,000 New Zealanders over 15 years of age were interviewed in March-October 2018 about their experience of crime.
The report focuses on the four percent of New Zealand adults who experience 47 percent of all crime incidents that occurred in the 12 months prior to the interview.
Highly victimised people are those who have experienced four or more criminal incidents within a 12-month period.
“Māori are significantly over-represented in the highly victimised four percent compared to other ethnic groups,” says James Swindells, Manager of Research and Evaluation.
“New Zealand Europeans are evenly represented across victim groups whereas those who identify as Pasifika, Asian and other ethnicities are significantly under-represented.
The report also found young people aged 15-29 make up a large part of the highly victimised group, whereas there are few people in that group over the age of 60.
“Interestingly, we found that people who have never been married, or in a civil union, are significantly more likely to experience more crime than those who are committed to a partner,” Mr Swindells says. The report revealed there was no difference in the level of highly victimised people in the North or South Islands, or in the four main centres of Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch.
“It’s no surprise that we found people who were highly victimised had high levels of psychological distress and were less satisfied with life,” Mr Swindells says. “This means that highly victimised people will require higher levels of mental health support to cope with their situation.”
Update: Restricted Court counter services will be available at 18 Stanley Street, Levin (nearby the closed courthouse) from Monday to Friday 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm; and Police Registrars List from 8.30am on Thursdays.
The Ministry of Justice has implemented several interim justice services in Levin to minimise disruption during the District Court’s seismic strengthening period, including leasing temporary space.
The Ministry received a seismic assessment report on 8 November recommending that strengthening work be undertaken as a high priority on the Levin District Courthouse, due to moderate earthquake risk. The court was closed effective 5pm 15 November 2019, and the registry moved to the Palmerston North District Court.
Counter services will also be operated from the Levin Police Station from Monday 25 November from 10am to 3pm and cease on Friday 6 December. These are for matters that don’t require a judge, such as filing urgent document collection, managing non-appearances, bail variations and certifying documents. All other hearings and services are being operated from the Palmerston North DC.
The Ministry has also, with approval from the Chief District Court Judge,secured a temporary lease on Bateman Chambers, which are directly opposite the Levin courthouse,from which the Ministry intends to operate the Registrar’s List hearings and counter services from Monday 9 December onwards, until the courthouse reopens.
Securing this temporary lease on the Bateman Chambers is vital for basic justice services to remain in the Levin community,Carl Crafar says. The Registrar’s List hearing will be conducted from these chambers once a week on a Thursday.
Disputes Tribunal hearings and Justice of the Peace matters could also be accommodated at the temporary facility, this will be confirmed as soon as possible.
“I acknowledge the frustration many will be feeling with the closure of the Levin District Court,” Chief Operating Officer Carl Crafar says. However, the safety of our staff, the judiciary and court participants will always come first. We cannot let people into an unsafe building.
We do need to make it as easy as possible for court participants to access justice services, which is why we have run the Registrar’s List hearings from the Levin Police Station since Wednesday last week and will continue to operate from there one day per week until Friday 6 December. I thank the Chief District Court Judge, and the NZ Police, for allowing this to happen.”
“Once final arrangements have been confirmed, court participants will be informed by letter or phone call,” Crafar says. Updated notices will also be posted at the Levin courthouse, online and on social media.
“We will also hold a local stakeholder meeting in Levin next week to keep everyone informed. I want to thank everyone involved for their patience while the Ministry puts these interim measures in place.”
Work is underway with structural engineers to finalise the seismic strengthening work at the Levin courthouse. This will take approximately four weeks to complete.
Headline: Court users and jurors highly satisfied with justice services and facilities
The latest surveys conducted by the Ministry of Justice show court users and jurors continue to be satisfied with the services and facilities the Ministry provides.
Court users’ overall satisfaction was 82%, an increase on last year’s 81%. Jurors’ overall satisfaction was 90%. This is consistent with previous years.
Ninety-one percent of people surveyed said they were treated fairly by staff, 90 percent said that staff were helpful, and 81 percent said they felt staff took their individual circumstances into account.
The Juror Satisfaction Survey found 98% of jurors were satisfied with how court staff treated them. This result is consistent with previous years. Jurors continue to feel safe at court, rating their satisfaction with the safety and security at 90%.
The most common suggestions from jurors for improvements were making the jury retiring room more comfortable, providing a wider range of healthy food and beverages at court and improving the sound quality and WIFI in courtrooms. The Ministry will look into the suggested improvements to determine future action.
The Court User Survey measures court users’ satisfaction with the services and facilities provided by the Ministry. The 2019 survey was conducted in June and July with 2,055 participants.
The Juror Satisfaction Survey measures juror satisfaction with the services and facilities provided at court. The 2019 survey was carried out in May and June and was completed by 1,044 participants.