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Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

Provisions relating to procedure in respect of proceedings under Parts 2 and 3A - Attendance of parties at hearing

156: Court may require party to attend hearing

You could also call this:

"The court can make you go to a hearing if they need you to be there to make a decision about your case."

Illustration for Oranga Tamariki Act 1989

If you are involved in a court case, the court might need you to be there in person. The court can send you a summons, which is like an official invitation, telling you to come to court at a certain time. You will have to go to court if you get a summons.

If you do not go to court when you are supposed to, a judge can issue a warrant for your arrest. This means the police can come and take you to court. You can get in trouble if you do not go to court when you are told to, and you might have to pay a fine of up to $1,000.

You can be required to go to court if you were served with an application under section 152, section 154, section 207L, or section 207R. The court needs you to be there so they can make a decision about your case. You have to go to court unless you have a good reason not to.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM151071.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal help
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157: Court may require child or young person to attend hearing, or

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Part 3Provisions relating to procedure in respect of proceedings under Parts 2 and 3A
Attendance of parties at hearing

156Court may require party to attend hearing

  1. Where the court considers that the presence of any person required to be served with an application under section 152 or section 154 or section 207L or section 207R is necessary to enable the court to hear and determine that application, the court may direct the Registrar to issue a summons in a form prescribed by rules of court requiring the person to whom it is addressed to appear before the court at the time stated in the summons.

  2. In any case where a summons under this section has been served on any person, a Family Court Judge may, if the person to whom the summons is issued does not appear to answer to it, direct the issue of a warrant to arrest that person and bring that person before the court.

  3. Every person commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000 who, being required to appear before the court under this section, refuses or fails without reasonable excuse to appear.

Compare
  • 1974 No 72 s 27(6), (8)–(11)
Notes
  • Section 156(1): amended, on , by section 6 of the Family Courts Amendment Act 2000 (2000 No 65).
  • Section 156(1): amended, on , by section 6 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Trans-Tasman Transfer of Protection Orders and Proceedings) Amendment Act 1999 (1999 No 116).
  • Section 156(3): amended, on , by section 4 of the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Amendment Act (No 2) 2011 (2011 No 83).