High Court
Contents
Criminal jurisdiction
Civil jurisdiction
Statistics
The High Court hears more serious and complex criminal and civil cases. It also hears appeals from lower courts and tribunals. The civil jurisdiction accounts for approximately 60% of the court’s overall workload, while the criminal jurisdiction accounts for around 40%. The High Court in Auckland accounts for around 40% of the High Court’s overall workload.
Criminal jurisdiction
The number of new jury trials (new business) increased in the first half of 2012, having generally decreased since mid-2008. As at 30 June 2012, there were 192 active jury trials (awaiting trial or sentencing), an increase of 9% from 30 June 2011, when there were 176 active jury trials.
The mix of trials heard in the High Court has changed since mid-2008:
- Since July 2008, short and simple Class A drugs trials can be heard in the District Court, and have consequently been removed from the High Court’s criminal jurisdiction
- A greater proportion of trials involve multiple accused; and
- A greater proportion of trials are particularly complex, such as those relating to finance companies.
As a result of this change in complexity over the past four years, the average estimated hearing time for a High Court jury trial has increased and, correspondingly, the number of trials heard has dropped.
Since June 2011 the number of trials heard has decreased, from 157 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2011 to 106 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2012. Over the same period there has been a corresponding increase in the number of non-trial disposals, such as:
- the judge discharging the accused (as allowed under s347 of the Crimes Act 1961, such as for insufficient evidence to justify the trial or its continuation, unconscionable conduct in the investigation or prosecution or undue delay); or
- guilty pleas before trial.
The median waiting time for a case to go from committal to trial (as at 30 June 2012) was 310.5 days, meaning it took nearly three months less for a case to get to trial than at the same time in June 2011.
| Note: The way High Court criminal appeals are reported on has changed. The data source used has changed from manual workload returns to the Ministry's electronic Case Management System (CMS). The manual data only reported the number appeals awaiting hearing or judgment in the High Court, while the new CMS data includes criminal appeals that have been filed in the District Court but have not yet been received in the High Court. |
The number of new criminal appeals decreased over the last year: 1,107 new criminal appeals were filed in the 12 months ending 30 June 2012, down from 1,261 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2011. Over the same period disposals increased slightly: 1,221 criminal appeals were disposed in the 12 months ending 30 June 2012, up from 1,213 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2011. As at 30 June 2012 there were 230 active appeals, a decrease of 29% compared to 30 June 2011, when there were 322 active appeals.
Civil jurisdiction
| Note:
Civil cases in this context include:
Insolvency cases are bankruptcy cases (where a creditor’s petition has been filed) and company liquidations. The way the workload of the civil jurisdiction of the High Court is reported on has changed. The data source used has changed from manual workload returns to the Ministry's electronic Case Management System (CMS). The manual data only reported on cases that were ready to be heard, while the new CMS data includes cases that have been filed but are not yet ready to be heard. |
The number of civil cases filed in the High Court increased substantially for several years until mid-2010. Since then a declining trend has been observed. Even so, the number of cases both filed and disposed in the court remains significantly higher than five years ago.
In the 12 months ending 30 June 2012, 2,934 civil cases were filed, a 6% decrease compared to the 12 months ending 30 June 2011, when 3,118 civil cases were filed. Disposals of civil cases increased over the same period, from 3,190 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2011 to 3,307 in the 12 months ending 30 June 2012. As at 30 June 2012 there were 2,326 active civil cases (awaiting hearing or judgment).
Of the civil cases on hand as at 30 June 2012, around 25% were awaiting hearing, being heard or awaiting judgment. The remaining 75% were not yet ready to be heard.
General proceedings are most representative of a standard civil dispute brought to court. The median waiting time for general proceedings (measured from the date the case was deemed ready for hearing to the future hearing date) as at 30 June 2012 was 286 days.
The number of new civil appeals filed has been steadily decreasing for around 18 months. As at 30 June 2012 there were 188 active civil appeals (awaiting hearing or awaiting judgment), a decrease of 8% compared to 30 June 2011, when there were 204 active civil appeals.
The number of insolvency cases filed in the High Court has been declining since the start of 2011, after a significant increase in filings over several years that peaked in early 2009, as a result of the economic downturn. As at 30 June 2012 there were 714 active insolvency proceedings (awaiting hearing or judgment), a decrease of 18% compared to 30 June 2011, when there were 869 active insolvency proceedings.