Before the Magistrates' Court started recording proceedings following Practice Direction 1 of 1999, the Victorian Supreme Court considered a few cases about tape-recording court proceedings.The cases weren't definitive. Nguyen v Magistrates' Court of Victoria [1994] 1 VR 88 held that recording without the knowledge and permission of the presiding magistrate was a contempt of court. …
Day: June 27, 2010
Jurors not allowed to do research
It's a traditional common law directive (now given a 'gloss' at s 78A of the Juries Act 2000) that jurors are not to make their own enquiries about the case they are required to decide.The rationale is easy to follow. Evidence that goes into the jury room without the knowledge of the court hasn't had …