When you are entering a not guilty plea, you must make an election under section 50 at that time, unless you get permission from the court. You can get permission to make this election later if the court thinks something has changed that might affect your decision about having a trial by jury. The court will not let you make this change once a Judge-alone trial has already started, and you can find more information about this in section 50.

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This page was last updated on 29 June 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3360101.

Topics:

Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help

50: Defendant charged with category 3 offence may elect trial by jury, or

"You can choose a jury trial if you're accused of a category 3 crime and plead not guilty."

52: Judicial officer or Registrar may receive elections, or

"A judge or court worker can accept your decision to have a jury trial."

Part 3Procedure before trial
Decision regarding trial by jury for category 3 offences

51Timing of election

An election under section 50 must be made at the time of entering a not guilty plea, unless the defendant obtains the leave of the court under subsection (2).
The court may grant leave to make an election at a later time, but only if the court is satisfied that there has been a change in circumstances that might reasonably affect the defendant's decision whether to elect a trial by jury.
The court must not grant leave under subsection (2) after a Judge-alone trial has commenced.