Christchurch List Court will operate on 18 April
The Ministery of Justice has advised New Zealand Law Society Canterbury-Westland branch president Allister Davis that there will be a list court in operation in Christchurch on 18 April.
Allister says the decision to operate an interim criminal list hearing facility was confirmed following discussions with senior District Court judges, the Law Society and justice sector agencies.
The venue is to be advised on Monday, 4 April, and information on this will be advised when known.
The Court will operate as the normal Number One List Court did before 22 February.
It is hoped that a second list court will come on stream soon in order to clear the backlog.
There have also been discussions around hours and it is highly likely that there will be extended hours for the first court and the second court but this has yet to be settled on.
Allister reports that the Ministry of Justice’s earthquake recovery focus has now moved from essential services only to a business recovery stage. The ministry will be able to support the operation of District Court criminal list hearings from the week beginning 18 April.
Initially, these hearings will be held at an interim facility until they can proceed at the Māori Land Court building on Peterborough Street. This is dependent on the zone six cordon being lifted and some temporary alterations being made to the building.
The interim facility will be used for defendants on bail, or remanded at large as well as those summoned to appear. There will be custodial processes in place for defendants remanded in custody and for those who receive a custodial sentence as a result of their court appearance.
“The ministry needs time to prepare the criminal list court facility and schedule hearings effectively. The ministry also needs to give appropriate notice to defendants, lawyers, Community Probation Service, and police operations in order to operate the criminal hearings,” says Allister.
“This latest interim facility follows the announcement last week of the intention to use premises at Riccarton Racecourse to extend the range of family and civil hearings.”
He says the ministry has growing confidence about accessing court buildings, particularly the Māori Land Court, which can be used as a multi-jurisdictional facility.
Jury trials are likely to continue to be held in Timaru at least in the short term. Allister says practitioners should let Chris Lange know if they have any suitable trials or pretrial matters that can be heard there.
“I am having continued discussions with MoJ and the Crown around this but at least we have now all got a date to work towards. We are making steps in the right direction but I stress that we all have to cooperate and be a little patient as we try to bed these things in.”
“I must acknowledge the hard work that MoJ/Crown and Judges have put in to get us to this point but there is still a way to go” Allister says.