Foreword | 1. Introduction | 2. Our court system | 3. Key participants for media in the court | 4. Media in court | 5. Courts with special media provisions | 6. Access to court information | 7. Courts with special rules concerning access to information | 8. Ministry of Justice media contacts | 9. References | 10. Appendices
In 2004 the Supreme Court issued media guidelines relating to applications to cover proceedings in the Supreme Court.
The Court has its own audio-visual system which the media can access from a room outside the courtroom to take an audio or video feed direct from the courtroom.
The Supreme Court Media Guidelines can be found in Appendix Two on page 53.
5.2 Media coverage of Waitangi Tribunal proceedings
As in other courts, the Waitangi Tribunal generally allows the media to record and broadcast proceedings. However, the following specific rules apply when covering Tribunal proceedings.
The coroner is the ultimate authority in this court and will consider requests for media coverage, or access to information on inquests, in the same way as for other courts. Generally speaking, the Coroners Court is open to the public.
However, the Coroners Act 2006 contains specific provisions concerning a coroner’s power to exclude persons from inquests or prohibit publication of evidence.
The Act outlines the law regarding the publication of details in cases of suicide. Most details about a suicide can only be made public with the coroner’s authorisation. To find out more about the Coroners Act 2006 visit www.legislation.govt.nz.
While the Family Court is part of the District Court, its proceedings are not open to the public.
The only exceptions are proceedings heard under the Care of Children Act 2004, which allows for a level of openness in Family Court proceedings involving disputes over guardianship issues or day-to-day care of, or contact with, children.
The Act establishes the right of representatives of "accredited" news media organisations to attend Family Court hearings in certain circumstances and allows for wider publication of reports about court proceedings. It also sets important limitations on media coverage.
Accredited media provisions
You may attend a Family Court hearing under the Care of Children Act 2004 if you are employed by an accredited media organisation.
A news organisation will be accredited if the organisation is subject to a code of ethics or professional standards and a relevant complaint procedure. News organisations that wish to be accredited should make an application to the General Manager, District Courts.
The Ministry holds a registry database of accredited media organisations and if you wish to cover a Family Court hearing and you are asked, you will need to produce either a press identification or a letter from your organisation, introducing you as a bona fide member of that organisation’s staff and your personal identification. In the case of commissioned writers, the letter should introduce you as a bona fide representative.
It would be helpful if you could arrive at court about 15 minutes early so that court staff can check the name of your employer organisation against the database of Ministry accredited news organisations.
Freelance media personnel and media researchers need to seek permission from the judge on case by case basis in order to enter and report on the court.
Please apply to the court with your name and reason for attending in advance to allow time for the judge to consider your request.
If you are not able to verify that you are a bona fide representative of an accredited organisation and you do not have evidence of permission from the judge, court staff may not allow you into the Family Court.
Identification
Once you have been verified as accredited media, court staff will provide you with a sticker to wear with the word MEDIA and the day’s date. This sticker authorises you to attend all Care of Children Act 2004 hearings in that court that day.
Please wear your media sticker so it is clearly visible to everyone in court, to identify you to the parties and others involved in the proceedings.
In court
The use of cameras or sound recording equipment in the Family Court is at the discretion of the judge.
During the hearing, if the judge asks you to leave you are obliged to do so.
Restrictions on reporting and publication
The ability to attend the Family Court does not mean there is a right to publish a report of the proceedings without restrictions.
Under the Care of Children Act 2004 reports can be published without leave of the judge if they do not identify parties, wider family, witnesses or others involved in the proceedings.
Anything you publish as a result of a Care of Children Act hearing must not include names or any information that would be likely to identify:
Requests for permission to publish any other details must be made to the judge, who may ask the parties, and the lawyer for the child, for their views before making a decision on what can be published.
Reports from Care of Children Act proceedings can also be published in professional or technical journals, and circulated among people with a professional interest in the case, as long as the reports do not include the names of the parents or children. The Act defines the groups of people such publications would be intended for as being members of the legal or medical profession, officers of the public service, psychologists, or advisers in the sphere of relationship counselling or social work.
Mixed proceedings
In some cases in the Family Court there are proceedings under the Care of Children Act and another Act, such as the Domestic Violence Act 1995, being heard together, with differing media restrictions applying. You will need to seek permission from the judge hearing the case to attend the proceedings. The judge will rule on whether you may stay for all or part of the hearing.
Court lists
When Family Court lists are displayed they are usually anonymised. Lists that are not anonymised will be available to media from the Family Court Registrar. You may access list information including identifying details and you can request this from court staff at court on the day. The information on the court list is subject to the same reporting restrictions as information produced at a hearing.
The Youth Court is a division of the District Court but its proceedings are not open to the public. Media can attend the Youth Court, however specific conditions apply.
Restrictions on reporting
Under the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989 (CYPF Act) you cannot publish any report of proceedings without the permission of the presiding judge.
The Youth Court is keen to adopt an open approach to publication and will generally take the least restrictive approach necessary, consistent with the principles of the Act, and subject to the interests of a fair trial.
Requests to publish a report of proceedings should be made in writing to the court registrar before the case starts. If necessary, you can make an oral request in court when the case is first called, or seek leave at the completion of the case.
In considering a request to report on proceedings, the Youth Court judge may seek the views of the youth advocate, the Police and other relevant parties before making a decision.
If leave is given to publish, there are certain matters under s438(3) of the CYPF Act that are prohibited from publication. You may not publish:
In some cases leave to publish may be subject to further conditions as specified by the judge.
It is only in rare cases that leave to publish will be refused, perhaps to protect witnesses who may be later giving evidence in trials in the District or High Court, or to ensure that a fair trial is not prejudiced.
Family Group Conferences
The CYPF Act prohibits the publication of any particulars that could lead to the identification of a person who was the subject of, or a participant in, a Family Group Conference.
It may be possible to report on what was agreed as part of the Family Group Conference and discussed in court, unless the publication might prejudice the treatment or rehabilitation of the young person or otherwise compromise the principles or provisions of the Act. You should check with the judge involved if you want to report on this aspect of the Family Group Conference.
Identification
As a media representative coming into a Youth Court to cover proceedings, or when you make an enquiry of court staff, you may be required to provide some professional identification to confirm that you are representing a media organisation.
You may be asked for identification such as a business card or a letter from your editor, chief reporter or producer.