District Court of New Zealand

{{Infobox court

|court_name = District Court of New Zealand

|native_name= Te Kōti ā Rohe (Māori)

|image =Coat of arms of New Zealand.svg

|imagesize = 200px

|established = 1980 (Magistrates' courts in 1893)

|caption =

|jurisdiction = New Zealand {{flagicon|NZ}}

|coordinates=

|type = Appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Attorney-General

|authority = District Court Act 2016

|appealsto = High Court of New Zealand, Court of Appeal of New Zealand

|terms = until age 70 (District Court Act 2016, s 28)

|positions = 133

|website = [http://www.districtcourts.govt.nz/ districtcourts.govt.nz]

|chiefjudgetitle = Chief District Court Judge

|chiefjudgename = Heemi Taumaunu{{Cite web|url=https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/chief-district-court-judge-appointed-0|title = Chief District Court Judge appointed}}

|termstart = 25 September 2019

}}

The District Court of New Zealand ({{langx|mi|Te Kōti ā Rohe}}) (formerly the district courts before 2016) is the primary court of first instance of New Zealand. There are 59 District Court locations throughout New Zealand ({{as of|2017|lc=on}}).{{cite web|last1=Joseph|first1=Philip A.|last2=Joseph|first2=Thomas|title=Judicial system|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/judicial-system|publisher=Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand|access-date=31 January 2017|date=20 June 2012}} The court hears civil claims of up to $350,000 and most criminal cases.Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (NZ) s 73 http://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2011/0081/latest/DLM3360137.html It is governed by the District Court Act 2016, which replaced the earlier District Courts Act 1947 (formerly titled the Magistrates' Courts Act 1947) as well as the District Court Rules which are periodically revised by the Rules Committee.

The court was established in 1980 to replace magistrates' courts, which had dealt with minor criminal matters and civil claims since 1893. The establishment of the court was the result of the recommendations made in the 1978 report of the Royal Commission on the Courts. It was given an expanded jurisdiction and the Family Court was created as a division of the District Court in 1981.{{Cite web

|title = District Courts Act 1947

|work = New Zealand Legislation

|publisher = Parliamentary Council Office, New Zealand

|url = http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1947/0016/latest/096be8ed80594706.pdf

|access-date = 9 May 2011

}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The Youth Court is another specialist division of the District Court, dealing with people under the age of 17 who have been charged with criminal offending.

In 2011, the New Zealand Attorney-General stated that the District Court was "the largest court in Australasia".Darise Bennington, "Judiciary bereft at sudden loss of Chief District Court Judge", NZ Lawyer, 29 July 2011, p 1. The larger District Court locations operate on a daily basis, while others may only operate on a weekly or monthly basis, usually being serviced by judges from larger centres.{{Cite web

|title = History of the District Court

|work = Courts of New Zealand

|publisher = Ministry of Justice, New Zealand

|url = http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/district/district/history

|access-date = 9 May 2011

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110510053739/http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/district/district/history

|archive-date = 2011-05-10

|url-status = dead

}}

Jurisdiction

The jurisdiction of the District Court derives from the District Court Act 2016, which provides that the District Court can hear both criminal and civil proceedings.

The District Court's criminal jurisdiction is busier and arguably broader than any other court. Over 95% of all criminal trials, including jury trials on all but the most serious matters are heard in the District Court. Within its jurisdiction are offences ranging from very serious offending such as rape, aggravated robbery, and sexual violation down to minor offences such as disorderly behaviour. The only charges that cannot be heard by the District Court are category 4 offences, such as murder, manslaughter and crimes against the state (e.g. treason). The District Court cannot sentence a person to life imprisonment or to preventive detention; such cases require a transfer to the High Court for sentencing.

The District Court's civil jurisdiction allows the court to hear any matter where the amount in dispute is $350,000 or less. Civil claims where the amount is $30,000 or less are usually heard by the Disputes Tribunal rather than the District Court. Civil claims involve arguments over money and property and can include complex commercial transactions.{{Cite web | title = Jurisdiction of the District Court | work = Courts of New Zealand | publisher = Ministry of Justice, New Zealand | url = http://www.districtcourts.govt.nz/about-the-courts/jurisdiction-of-the-district-court/ | access-date = 26 June 2017}}

The District Court can hear appeals from some tribunals and authorities, including the Disputes Tribunal, Tenancy Tribunal and Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) external review hearings.

Te Kooti Matariki, the Matariki Court, is a sentencing court for Māori adult offenders within the mainstream court system,{{cite journal| url=https://oxfordre.com/criminology/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264079.001.0001/acrefore-9780190264079-e-655| title=Indigenous Courts| first=Valmaine |last=Toki| date=30 July 2020| doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780190264079.013.655| journal=Criminology and Criminal Justice| publisher= Oxford University Press}} under the District Court and operating under the Sentencing Act 2002. It is based in Kaikohe, Northland Region.{{cite web | title=Matariki Court | website=The District Court of New Zealand | url=https://www.districtcourts.govt.nz/criminal-court/criminal-jurisdiction/specialist-criminal-courts/matariki-court/ | access-date=26 July 2022}}

Judges

There are 133 District Court judges, including the Chief District Court Judge. Judges are permanently based in the main centres, but travel to other courts on circuit. While each District Court judge can preside over minor criminal matters, they each specialise in particular aspects of the District Court's jurisdiction, either jury trials, family or youth.{{Cite web

|title = Role & Structure

|work = Courts of New Zealand

|publisher = Ministry of Justice, New Zealand

|url = http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/district/district/role

|access-date = 9 May 2011

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110510053744/http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/district/district/role

|archive-date = 2011-05-10

|url-status = dead

}}

=Chief District Court judges=

The following is a list of chief District Court judges since 1980.

class="wikitable" ! ! Name ! Portrait ! colspan=2 \|Term of office
align="center" \| 1	Desmond Sullivan		1980	1985
align="center" \| 2	Peter Trapski		1985	1989
align="center" \| 3	Silvia Cartwright	60px	1989	1993
align="center" \| 4	Ron Young	60px	1993	2001
align="center" \| 5	David Carruthers		2001	2005
align="center" \| 6	Russell Johnson		2005	2011
align="center" \| 7	Jan-Marie Doogue		2011	2019
align="center" \| 8	Heemi Taumaunu		2019	Incumbent