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STANDARDS
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BENCHMARKS
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Personal
independence of Magistrates
Integrity of appointments procedures |
| 4.1 |
Appointment procedures ensure that the selection of Magistrates
is unaffected by personal influence or private interest.
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| 4.1.1 |
Appointments procedures for Magistrates are public, including
publicly advertised:
- vacancies
-
selection procedures
- selection
committee membership
-
selection criteria.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Peer
review
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| 4.1.2
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The
qualifications for appointment to Magistrate are stated clearly
in a public document. They include:
- a
statement of attributes considered necessary to fulfil the
office of Magistrate;
- statements
of policy on professional and other qualifications (eg.
age, gender and other qualifications, if any).
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Peer
review
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| 4.1.3
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The terms and conditions of appointment are stated clearly
in a public document. This document is available to candidates
and other interested persons on request.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Peer
review
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| Conduct
during tenure of office |
| 4.2 |
There
is a code of conduct for Magistrates providing guidelines for
personal and professional conduct, which is public and is regularly
reviewed and made known to Magistrates. |
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| 4.2.1 |
The guidelines in the code of conduct for Magistrates are
contained in a public document and include statements on the
following matters:
-
financial affairs, with provision for declarations of interest;
- conduct
in court;
- relations
with the legal profession, other users of the court and
with the wider community;
- relations
with court staff and the Attorney General's Department.
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| 4.2.2 |
The code of conduct is reviewed annually, by a committee of
experts chaired by the Chief Magistrate.
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| 4.2.3
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The code of conduct is introduced to Magistrates during an
induction program and aspects of it are workshopped with Magistrates
regularly.
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| Breaches
of code of conduct |
| 4.3 |
Alleged breaches of the code of conduct are dealt with in accordance
with clear, up-to-date and publicly known procedures. |
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| 4.3.1
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Grounds
for proof of breach of the code of conduct are stated clearly
and publicly.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Peer
review
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| 4.3.2 |
Procedures for reporting alleged misconduct and/or breach
of the code of conduct are clearly stated in a public document.
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| 4.3.3
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The effectiveness of the procedures for reporting misconduct
is reviewed annually.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Peer
review
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Institutional
independence of the court
Court beyond undue influence |
| 4.4 |
The court is to be beyond undue influence of the legislative
and executive branches of government and of popular majorities. |
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| 4.4.1 |
In each court there are regular business meetings between
the Magistrate/s and the Registrar which consider issues in
the management of the court including:
- staffing
of the court;
- property
and accommodation;
-
funding of the court, with particular reference to indicators
of court efficiency and effectiveness.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Central
review
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| 4.4.2 |
The outcomes of business meetings and other matters of internal
relations between Magistrate/s and other court staff are regularly
reviewed and reported to the Chief Magistrate and the Director,
Local Courts.
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Daily
checklist
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Local
review
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Central
review
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| 4.4.3 |
The court's relations with government and other external agencies
are reviewed regularly. There are procedures in place for
each court to report to the Chief Magistrate on:
-
issues of law reform;
-
any aspects of Local court practice which have been the
subject of government action or debate;
-
aspects of practice which have been the subject of public
debate or media comment.
Reports
of these reviews are made public annually in the Chief Magistrate's
Review of the court.
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Last
Updated 10/02/01 
