Annual statistics for the High Court 31 December 2019
High Court criminal jurisdiction - year ended 31 December 2019
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On 1 July 2013, the procedural provisions affecting criminal trials changed with the commencement of most of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (CPA) provisions. Under the CPA, cases that are High Court-only offences (known as Category 4 cases and are generally murder/manslaughter/attempted murder charges) have their first appearance in the District Court and are then managed in the High Court from the second appearance onwards. The rest of the trials heard in the High Court are known as “protocol cases”. [1] Protocol cases are made up mainly of serious sexual, violence, drug and fraud offences. After a case review hearing in the District Court, a High Court judge determines whether the protocol case should be heard in the High Court or District Court. If the case is ordered to be heard in the High Court, it is counted as a High Court case from that time. Cases are counted as ready for trial under the CPA once they have had a case review hearing or protocol determination. |
This analysis compares figures as at 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2018.
Criminal trials
152 new criminal trials were received by the High Court this year, a decrease of 25 case (14%) compared to 177 new criminal trials last year.
These 152 new criminal trials were made up as follows
- Category 4 cases - 84 cases (55%)
- Protocol and other cases [2] - 55 cases (36%)
- Split, reactivated cases and re-trials directed [3] - 13 cases (9%)
A feature of the new business in the past year is the larger number and percentage of Category 4 cases received (84 cases - 55%), compared to the number of new Category 4 cases received last year (76 cases - 43%). There were 13 more homicide cases in 2019 compared to 2018, an increase of 23%.
As at 31 December 2019, there were 141 criminal trials on hand, an increase of 2 trials (1%) compared to 139 trials on hand last year. Of the 141 criminal trials on hand, 123 cases were awaiting trial and 18 cases were awaiting sentencing.
Estimated hearing days for trials have decreased. As at 31 December 2019, the estimated hearing days for the 123 cases awaiting trial was 1689 days (an average of 13.7 days per trial) compared to 1947 days for the 131 cases awaiting trial (an average of 14.9 days per trial) at the same time last year.
The number of criminal trials disposed [4] this year was 126 cases, a decrease of 22 cases (15%) compared to 148 cases last year. Of the disposals with final outcomes, 55 cases (51%) were disposed by guilty plea this year compared with 65 (50%) last year.
The number of criminal trials held this year was 64 cases, a decrease of 28 cases (30%) compared to 92 cases last year. Of the trials held this year, 12 cases (19%) were disposed by guilty plea on the day compared to 22 cases (24%) last year.
The median waiting time to trial was 371 days, an increase of 8 days (2%) compared to 363 days last year.
Criminal appeals
This analysis compares figures as at 31 December 2019 and 30 December 2018.
There were 1,334 criminal appeals filed this year, an increase of 259 cases (24%) compared to the 1,075 cases filed last year. There were 1,333 cases disposed this year compared to 1,039 cases last year, an increase of 294 cases (28%).
The increase in new appeals filed is mainly attributable to an increase in bail appeals. The increase in bail appeals may be related to the increase in the prison’s remand population, which in January 2020 was at its highest level ever.
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active criminal appeals (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 180, an increase of four cases (2%) compared to 176 active criminal appeals last year [5].
[1] See s 66 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 and the most recent Court of Trial Protocol.
[2] As well as protocol cases directed to be heard in the High Court, included are cases transferred to the High Court under s 70 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 and under s 86D of the Sentencing Act 2002 (3rd strike cases - in effect at the time).
[3] Reactivated cases are cases that have had a re-trial directed by the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court. Re-trials directed refers to cases where a trial had a hung jury or were aborted and the High Court has directed a new trial.
[4] "Disposed cases" are defined having a final outcome, e.g. sentence, acquittal, dismissal, withdrawal, or joined to another case.
[5] The 31 December 2018 balance figure noted here is the one noted in the December 2018 year-end statistics. The Ministry updates its figures for 12 months so changes can occur following late data entry or error correction.
High Court civil jurisdiction - year ended 31 December 2019
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Note: Civil cases in this context include: General proceedings, judicial reviews, and originating applications. Insolvency cases are bankruptcy cases (where an adjudication application has been filed) and company liquidations. Civil appeals are matters in the civil jurisdiction appealed to the High Court from either the District Court (including the Family Court), the Environment Court or a Tribunal. |
The analysis compares figures as at 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2018.
Civil jurisdiction overview
There were 2,176 new civil cases filed this year, a decrease of 170 cases (7%) compared to the 2,346 cases filed last year. There were 2,328 civil cases disposed nationally, an increase of 62 cases (3%) compared to the 2,266 cases disposed last year.
The decrease in filings is mainly attributable to the decrease in the number of general proceedings cases filed related to the Christchurch earthquakes, which is noted in more detail below.
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active civil cases (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 2,790, a decrease of 241 cases (8%) compared to 3,031 active civil cases last year.
Cases involving historic abuse in state institutions
As at 31 December 2019, there are 496 cases on hand in the Wellington registry involving allegations of historic abuse in state institutions. 2 cases have been allocated defended fixtures in August 2020 and in 2021. The balance of cases currently do not require management as the parties are not actively pursuing court adjudication at this stage.
Long-term trends
The decreasing trend in the number of general proceedings cases that were filed or disposed continued.
Both new and disposed insolvency cases have been trending down for several years.
General proceedings
General proceedings are the most representative type of civil dispute brought to court.
The greatest proportion of general proceedings claims filed in the past 12 months were “Contractual Disputes” related cases which made up 15% of the claims filed. "Estate Litigation” and " Other Trust Litigation" cases made up 13% and 10% cases filed respectively.
There were 1,112 general proceedings filed this year, a decrease of 177 cases (14%) compared to the 1,289 cases filed last year. The decrease is mainly attributable to the decrease in filings in the Christchurch registry, a drop of 162 cases (56%) from 287 cases to 125, as significantly less cases related to Christchurch earthquake insurance or building defect matters were filed. In the Wellington registry, filings dropped by 36 cases (20%) from 176 cases to 140, however in the Auckland registry, filings increased by 50 cases (9%) from 535 cases to 585.
There were 1,336 cases disposed this year compared to 1,250 cases last year, an increase of 86 cases (7%). The number of active general proceedings (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 2,107, a decrease of 265 cases (11%) compared to 2,372 active general proceedings last year.
In the Christchurch registry alone, the number of active general proceedings decreased by 247 cases (38%) from 643 cases to 396. Of the cases on hand in Christchurch, 65% were earthquake-related cases (79% last year).
The median waiting time [1] to trial for active general proceedings was 406 days, an increase of 56 days (16%) compared to 350 days last year.
Judicial reviews
There were 172 judicial reviews filed this year, a decrease of 22 cases (11%), compared to the 194 cases filed last year. There were 176 cases disposed this year compared to the 179 cases disposed last year, a decrease of 3 cases (2%).
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active judicial reviews (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 125, a decrease of 13 cases (9%) compared to 138 active judicial reviews last year.
Originating applications
There were 892 originating applications filed this year, an increase of 29 cases (3%), compared to the 863 cases filed last year.
There were 816 cases disposed this year compared to the 837 cases disposed last year, a decrease of 21 cases (3%).
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active originating applications (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 558, an increase of 37 cases (7%) compared to 521 active originating applications last year.
Active cases remain at a high level (202 cases) primarily due to the 193 cases filed under the Marine & Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 (MACA) before 3 April 2017 to meet a statutory deadline. 3 cases filed under the previous legislation (Foreshore and Seabed Act), which are considered priority applications under MACA, have been allocated defended fixtures, 2 in 2020 and 1 in 2021. The defended fixtures will also include a number of MACA cases that have overlapping claims with the 3 priority cases. For the other cases, court adjudication is not being actively pursued by the applicants as they are still in negotiation with the Crown.
Civil appeals
There were 256 civil appeals filed this year, a decrease of 12 cases (4%) compared to the 268 cases filed last year. There were 257 cases disposed this year compared to 282 cases last year, a decrease of 25 cases (9%).
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active civil appeals (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 148, a decrease of 7 cases (5%) compared to 155 active civil appeals last year.
Insolvency proceedings
Over the past several years, there has been a decreasing trend in active insolvency proceedings and that trend continued again this year. There were 1,548 insolvency proceedings filed this year, a decrease of 359 cases (19%) compared to the 1,907 cases filed last year. There were 1,573 cases disposed this year compared to 1,995 cases last year, a decrease of 422 cases (21%).
As at 31 December 2019, the number of active insolvency proceedings (awaiting hearing or judgment) was 451, a decrease of 22 cases (5%) compared to 473 active insolvency proceedings last year.[2]
As a comparison, in the 12 months ending 31 December 2014, there were 3088 insolvency proceedings filed and 3087 cases disposed, with the number of active cases at year end being 647.
[1] Waiting time is measured from the date the case was deemed ready for hearing to the future hearing date.
[2] The 31 December 2018 balance figures noted are those noted in the December 2018 year-end statistics. The Ministry updates its figures for 12 months, so changes can occur following last data entry or error correction.
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