The Government has introduced two Bills to grant Community Magistrates additional powers and update rules for remote court hearings.
Courts and Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee said the changes would enable Community Magistrates to take on a greater volume of work, releasing the equivalent of more than 5 full-time judges. Under the reforms, Community Magistrates will gain authority to accept guilty pleas in all matters except those heard in the High Court, such as murder and manslaughter.
The magistrates will also be empowered to conduct trials and determine guilt in cases where the maximum penalty does not exceed a fine, community-based sentence, or 3 months' imprisonment. Further powers include ordering pre-sentencing reports when referring matters to District Court judges for sentencing, making a wider range of bail decisions in cases where defendants have entered guilty pleas, and handling additional administrative functions such as transferring trials between District Courts and hearing unopposed limited driver licence applications.
Budget 2025 provided funding for 3 new Community Magistrate positions and extra training. Judge Moses was appointed as the first Chief Community Magistrate, providing judicial oversight.
The Courts Remote Participation Bill will replace the 2010 Act with a new enabling framework. The legislation will allow Court Rules to establish defaults or presumptions about which proceedings should be held in person and which can be held remotely. Judges and registrars will retain discretion to depart from these defaults after considering criteria set out in the Act.
McKee said "too many people are spending too long caught in the court system, and victims should not have to wait a year or more to see a case resolved". The criminal backlog has fallen by 28% since February 2024, with more than 1,500 fewer victims waiting for justice. Between February 2024 and June 2026, the share of cases resolved within timely justice thresholds rose from 81% to 85%, benefiting more than 58,000 victims.