The Children's Court of New South Wales is a court within the

Australian court hierarchy The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as the ultimate court of appeal on matter ...

established in 1905. The current iteration was established on 18 January 1988 pursuant to the which deals with

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

offences committed by children aged over 10 years and under 18 years, as well as with proceedings relating to the

care Care may refer to: Organizations and projects * CARE (New Zealand), Citizens Association for Racial Equality, a former New Zealand organisation * CARE (relief agency), "Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere", an international aid and ...

and

protection Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

of children. The court is located in the

Parramatta Justice Precinct The Parramatta Justice Precinct (PJP) is located in the western part of the Parramatta () central business district. The precinct houses the corporate headquarters of the New South Wales Department of Attorney General and Justice. Other legal of ...

History

The treatment of juvenile offenders in the colony of New South Wales reflected the system of criminal law inherited from the United Kingdom. The law of Australia at that time was heavily influenced by the social norms of English society. As a result, children criminals were treated no differently from adult criminals. They were liable to the same harsh penalties. The

Judicial Commission of New South Wales The Judicial Commission of New South Wales is an independent statutory corporation of the New South Wales Government that provides sentencing information and continuing education to and examines complaints made against judicial officers in New So ...

cited an example of one English judge who, after condemning a 10-year-old boy to death, described the boy as "a proper subject for capital punishment". The Commission also noted that on one day in 1815, five children aged between eight and 12 years were hanged for petty larceny in England. The first children's court was established under the ''Neglected Children and Juvenile Offenders Act 1905''. The Judicial Commission of New South Wales stated the first court was set up in the spirit of ''

parens patriae ''Parens patriae'' is Latin for "parent of the nation" (lit., "parent of one's country"). In law, it refers to the public policy power of the state to intervene against an abusive or negligent parent, legal guardian, or informal caretaker, and to ...

'', a jurisdiction that was exercised by the superior courts of the United Kingdom and as a consequence, of the

Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. Whilst the Supreme Court i ...

. The court was set up in light of the widespread poverty and

child neglect A form of child abuse, child neglect is an act of caregivers (e.g., parents) that results in depriving a child of their basic needs, such as the failure to provide adequate supervision, health care, clothing, or housing, as well as other physica ...

at that time. The courts had to assume the role of parent, protector, and ultimate punisher. The main court began sitting at Ormond House until 1911 when it moved to Albion Street,

Surry Hills Surry Hills is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney. Surry Hills is surroun ...

, and became known as the Metropolitan Children's Court. on 29 April 1983 the court moved to Bidura House, during which time it was known as the Bidura Children's Court; the building gradually fell into disuse as a court until its closure in 2017. Most of its functions were moved to a purpose-built facility as part of the

in 2006. The present children's court is constituted under the . The Court is an inferior court and is effectively a

court of record A court of record is a trial court or appellate court in which a record of the proceedings is captured and preserved, for the possibility of appeal. A court clerk or a court reporter takes down a record of oral proceedings. That written recor ...

. The court was established on 18 January 1988.

Composition

The court is composed of

magistrates The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

of the

Local Court of New South Wales The Local Court of New South Wales is the lowest court in the judicial hierarchy of the Australian state of New South Wales. Formerly known as the Court of Petty Sessions and the Magistrates Court, there are more than 160 branches across New Sou ...

who are appointed by the Chief Magistrate of the Local Court of New South Wales. A magistrate so appointed is called a Children's Magistrate. The Governor appoints a qualified person to be the President of the Children's Court. Any judge of the District Court is a qualified person and may be appointment as the President of the Children's Court for a duration not exceeding 5 years. After the expiry of the initial term of the appointed, the Governor may re-appoint the same person for another term, or to appoint another judge of the District Court as the President of the Children's Court. It is significant that the orders (other than interim orders) made by the President may be appealed to the Supreme Court, while orders made by the Children's Magistrate may be appealed to the District Court only. The President of the Children's Court administers the court, arranges sittings of the Court, and convenes meetings of Children's Magistrates. The President of the Children's Court also confers regularly with community groups and social agencies on matters involving children and the Court.

Jurisdiction

The court exercises criminal jurisdiction under the ''Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987''. The court exercises care jurisdiction under the ''

Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 {{Use dmy dates, date=May 2018 The Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 is a law in New South Wales that relates to the guardianship and care of children and young people. The Reportable Conduct Scheme is operated under this ...

''. Until its repeal in 1998, the ''

Children (Care and Protection) Act 1987 {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2018 The Children (Care and Protection) Act 1987 was legislation in New South Wales that dealt with the guardianship and care of children. It was repealed A repeal (O.F. ''rapel'', modern ''rappel'', from ''rapeler'', ...

'' also covered the operations of the Court.

Notable magistrates

Rod Blackmore Rodney ("Rod") David Blackmore OAM (born 7 August 1935), is a former senior magistrate in the Australian state of New South Wales. He is perhaps best known for his work with children and adolescents. Blackmore's last judicial posting was as t ...

Barbara Holborow Barbara Anne Holborow ( Edmonds, 29 June 1930 – 23 May 2012) was an Australian magistrate in the New South Wales Children's Court. Biography Holborow was born on 29 June 1930 to William Edmonds, a painter and decorator, and Elsie () Dunlop ...

Mary Jerram Mary Stella Jerram (born 1945) is a former State Coroner of New South Wales. Jerram was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Honorary Division in the 2018 Australia Day Honours: "For significant service to the law in New South Wa ...

References

External links

* {{Australian Courts New South Wales courts and tribunals 1905 establishments in Australia

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...