Judgment delivery expectations

Reserved judgments

Section 170(2) of the Senior Courts Act 2016 requires the President of the Court of Appeal, in consultation with the Chief Justice, to publish information about reserved judgments of the Court.

Judgment delivery expectations: 

1. In the civil jurisdiction, the judges of the Court of Appeal expect that 80% of decisions will be delivered within three months of the last day of hearing or receipt of the last submission.
2.  In the criminal jurisdiction, the judges of the Court of Appeal expect that 90% of decisions will be delivered within three months of the last day of hearing or receipt of the last submission.
3. On occasion the Court may advise the parties at the hearing that the judgment will take longer than three months to deliver due to the complexity of the case or other pressing matters of the Court.
4. The three month period does not include Court vacations.

Inquiry about delayed judgments

Where a litigant or lawyer is concerned about a delay in delivering a reserved judgment in the Court of Appeal in a case in which they have an interest, they should make an inquiry to the Registrar. This can be done by letter or by emailing: courtofappeal@justice.govt.nz. 

Include the following details in your inquiry:

a. the name of the proceedings and the case number;

b. your role in the proceedings (e.g. appellant/respondent; legal representative for the appellant/respondent); and

c. the date on which the judgment was reserved.

The Registrar will alert the panel members who heard the appeal that an inquiry has been made. Following discussion with the panel, the Registrar will pass on to the inquirer and other parties to the proceedings such information from the panel regarding the delivery of the judgment as the panel is able to give.

The inquirer's identity will not be revealed to the panel members.

Delayed judgments report

The President of the Court of Appeal will periodically publish information about the number of judgments considered to be outstanding beyond a reasonable time for delivery in accordance with s 170(2)(b) of the Senior Courts Act 2016. 

The President has determined any judgment which is not delivered within six months of the last day of hearing or receipt of the last submission is outstanding beyond a reasonable time unless extenuating circumstances, making a delay beyond six months not unreasonable, apply. Court vacations are excluded from the six-month period.

The President will report on a six-monthly basis.

Report as at 1 September 2024

As at 1 September 2024, the number of judgments outstanding beyond a reasonable time was: 4

During the period from 1 March 2024 to 31 August 2024, the total number of judgments delivered was: 376

During the same period from 1 March 2024 to 31 August 2024, the total number of judgments outstanding beyond a reasonable time before delivery was: 2.

Both judgments have since been delivered.