Chaoter 4.5

Question 1

victorian court hierarchy

Answer 1

• high court of aus
• supreme court of vic (court of appeal)
• supreme court of vic (trial division)
• county court
• magistrates court

Question 2

jurisdiction

Answer 2

the lawful authority
(or power) of a court,
tribunal or other
dispute resolution body
to decide legal cases

Question 3

original jurisdiction

Answer 3

the power of a court to
hear a case for the first
time (i.e. not on appeal
from a lower court)

Question 4

appeal

Answer 4

an application to have a higher court review a ruling made in a lower court

Question 5

appellate jurisdiction

Answer 5

the power of a court to
hear a case on appeal

Question 6

reasons for court hierarchy

Answer 6

-specialisation
- appeals

Question 7

specialisation of supreme court ( appeal division )

Answer 7

specialises in determining criminal appeals in indictable
offences, and has expertise in sentencing principles

Question 8

specialisation of supreme court (trial division)

Answer 8

the Supreme Court (Trial Division) hears the most serious indictable offences (such as
murder and manslaughter) and has developed its own specialisation in those types of crime
and the elements of each crime, as well as developed expertise in trial processes such as
giving evidence

Question 9

specialisation of the county court

Answer 9

the County Court has expertise in hearing particular types of indictable offences (such as
cases involving drug offences, sexual offences and theft)

Question 10

specialisation of the magistrates court

Answer 10

the Magistrates’ Court is familiar with cases involving summary offences that need to
be dealt with quickly and efficiently (such as drink-driving and traffic offences), as well
as committal proceedings. The Magistrates’ Court also has more familiarity with and
experience in dealing with self-represented accused people, because the number of people
charged with a summary offence who choose to represent themselves is high

Question 11

specialisation of childrens and coroners court

Answer 11

other specialist courts such as the Children’s Court and Coroners Court deal with
specialised cases. The Children’s Court specialises in cases where young people have been
charged with a crime, and the Coroners Court specialises in investigating deaths and fires
involving suspicious circumstances or where the cause of death is unknown.

Question 12

appeal

Answer 12

If there are grounds for appeal, a party who is dissatisfied with a decision in a criminal case can take the matter to a higher court to challenge the decision. A party who appeals is known as the
appellant, and the other party is the respondent. The system of appeals provides fairness and
allows for any mistakes made in the original decision to be corrected. If there were no higher
courts, there could be no system of appeals, which would create unfairness if a court incorrectly
determined a case.

Question 13

grounds for appeal in a criminal case

Answer 13

• appealing on a question of law (where some law has not been followed; for example, if the
  court was allowed to hear inadmissible evidence or the court misinterpreted a statute)
• appealing a conviction (which can only be appealed by the offender)
• appealing because of the severity (or leniency) of a sanction imposed. The prosecution will appeal on leniency, and the offender will appeal because of severity. An offender will usually appeal the sanction on the basis that it was ‘manifestly excessive’.

Question 14

strength of the courts

Answer 14

strengths
- A court hierarchy allows courts to specialise
in different types of criminal matters, which
allows more efficient processes or resources
based on the cases they hear (e.g. there are
more Magistrates’ Courts and magistrates to
hear the volume of summary offences).
- The existence of a court hierarchy allows
appeals to be made by both parties if there is
an error in the original decision.

Question 15

weakness of a court hierarchy

Answer 15

weakness
- The many different courts can be confusing
for people who do not understand the
criminal justice system. This can be
particularly so for people charged with an
indictable offence, where the case will involve
both the Magistrates’ Court (for a committal
proceeding) and one of the higher courts
(for the trial).
- The court hierarchy does not allow for an
automatic right to appeal in most instances;
offenders need to establish grounds for
appeal. This can restrict the ability of
accused people to access the appeal
hierarchy, particularly self-represented
people, who may struggle to formulate
grounds for appeal.