Court Martial Act 2007

Jurisdiction, procedures, and powers - Jurisdiction and sittings of Court Martial - Sittings of Court Martial

39: Judge may limit scope of open court

You could also call this:

"Judge can control what happens in open court to keep things fair and safe."

You are in a Court Martial, which is a type of court for the military. The Judge can make some orders to limit what happens in open court. This means they can control what information is shared with the public. You might wonder why the Judge would do this. It is because they want to protect New Zealand or keep information from the enemy. They also want to make sure justice is fair and morality is protected. The Judge can make orders like stopping people from reporting on the court case. They can also stop people from sharing the names of those involved in the case. In some cases, the Judge can even decide who is allowed to be in the courtroom.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM1001979.

This page was last updated on 12 December 2025 — View changes

Topics:

Crime and justice > Courts and legal help

38: When Court Martial must hold proceedings in closed court, or

"When a Court Martial meeting is closed to the public"

40: Duration of order limiting scope of open court, or

"How long an order to limit what happens in an open court can last"

Part 2Jurisdiction, procedures, and powers
Jurisdiction and sittings of Court Martial: Sittings of Court Martial

39Judge may limit scope of open court

In any proceedings in the Court Martial, the Judge may make any of the orders specified in subsection (2) limiting the scope of open court if the Judge considers that—
a statement may be made or evidence given in the course of those proceedings that might lead to the disclosure of information that would or might—
1. be directly or indirectly useful to the enemy or any foreign country; or
2. be otherwise harmful to New Zealand; or
the making of the order—
1. is necessary in the interests of justice; or
2. is desirable in the interests of public morality; or
3. is necessary for the protection of the reputation of a victim of an alleged sexual offence or offence of extortion.

The orders referred to in subsection (1) are as follows:
an order forbidding publication of any report or account of the whole or any part of the proceedings, including any evidence adduced or submissions made:
an order forbidding the publication of the name of any person connected, whether as a witness or otherwise, with the proceedings or of any name or particulars likely to lead to the identification of that person:
an order excluding all or any persons, except the following:
1. a military member:
2. an officer under instruction:
3. the Director of Military Prosecutions or any person acting on behalf of the Director:
4. the accused and any escort of the accused:
5. the accused's counsel or defender:
6. the Registrar or any other officer of the Court Martial:
7. an interpreter required in the proceedings:
8. a person expressly permitted by the Judge to be present.

However, the Judge may make an order specified in subsection (2)(c) that has the effect of excluding any accredited news media reporter from the proceedings only on the grounds specified in subsection (1)(a), but not on any of the grounds specified in subsection (1)(b).