Warrnambool Magistrates Court seeks to reduce physical appearances

Information received from Magistrates' Court of Victoria on Wednesday revealed all court venues will remain open and operating but physical appearances will be reduced amid coronavirus fears.

First listing times for matters initiated by summons have been extended to at least 20 weeks while the first listing of matters where an accused is on bail will be at least 12 weeks.

Audio visual link technology will be used to maximum capacity to limit in-person appearances in court, and telephone appearances will be introduced where appropriate.

The Koori Court has been suspended immediately to protect the health of the elders and respected persons who are such an integral part of its operation.

Therapeutic courts and programs, including the Court Integrated Services Program, as well as family violence practitioners, will modify practices to utilise telephone contact with participants as much as possible, including the potential for telephone appearances at the discretion of the magistrate.

Among the other changes:

There is no change to listing times for family violence fast track matters - dates remain at 28 days for summons and seven days for bail.

Victoria's chief magistrate Judge Lisa Hannan said all other listings would continue as usual, however matters may be adjourned outside usual protocols at the discretion of magistrates, judicial registrars and registrars.

"The safety of our staff, judicial officers, court users and stakeholders is our highest priority," she said.

"We continue to follow State and Commonwealth government advice and are monitoring the situation closely. We are readying ourselves to implement a range of additional measures and anticipate making further announcements in the coming days.

"I thank our stakeholders and court users for their patience and understanding.

"The Magistrates' Court is an essential part of Victoria's justice system and committed to continuing to serve our community in these difficult times. By implementing changes now we are optimising our ability to continue to provide services as this situation evolves."

We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we want to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. If you would like to support our journalists you can subscribe here.