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Evidence Act 2006

Trial process - Documentary evidence and evidence produced by machine, device, or technical process - General and special rules

139: Evidence of convictions, acquittals, and other judicial proceedings

You could also call this:

"Proving things in court with special documents about crimes and court decisions"

Illustration for Evidence Act 2006

If you need to prove something in court, you can use a special document called a certificate. This certificate can show that someone was found guilty or not guilty of a crime, and what the crime was. It can also show what penalty the court gave the person.

You can use a certificate to prove other things too, like if someone was given a warning, or if a court made an order or judgment. The certificate can also be used to prove if a court case is happening or has already happened. A certificate is enough proof of these facts without needing to check who signed it.

If someone is trying to prove that a person was found guilty or not guilty, and they have a certificate with a similar name, it is assumed to be the same person unless proven otherwise. There are rules about what evidence can be used in court, but these rules do not apply to certificates used in this way, as stated in the Sentencing Act 2002.

You can use a certificate to prove things in addition to other ways of proving them that are allowed by law. This means you have more options to prove what you need to in court.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM393981.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal helpCrime and justice > Criminal law
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Part 3Trial process
Documentary evidence and evidence produced by machine, device, or technical process: General and special rules

139Evidence of convictions, acquittals, and other judicial proceedings

  1. Evidence of the following facts, if admissible, may be given by a certificate purporting to be signed by a Judge, a registrar, or other officer having custody of the relevant court records:

  2. the conviction or acquittal of a person charged with an offence and the particulars of the offence charged and of the person (including the name and date of birth of the person if the person is an individual, and the name and date and place of incorporation of the person if the person is a body corporate):
    1. the sentencing by a court of a person to any penalty or other disposition of the case following a plea or finding of guilt, and the particulars of the offence for which that person was sentenced or otherwise dealt with and of the person (including the name and date of birth of the person if the person is an individual, and the name and date and place of incorporation of the person if the person is a body corporate):
        1. a record of first warning or a record of subsequent warning (as those terms are defined in section 86J of the Sentencing Act 2002) made in respect of a person:
          1. an order or judgment of a court and the nature, parties, and particulars of the proceeding to which the order or judgment relates:
            1. the existence of a criminal or civil proceeding, whether or not the proceeding has been concluded, and the nature of the proceeding.

              1. A certificate under this section is sufficient evidence of the facts stated in it without proof of the signature or office of the person appearing to have signed the certificate.

              2. The manner of proving the facts referred to in subsection (1) authorised by this section is in addition to any other manner of proving any of those facts authorised by law.

              3. Subsection (5) applies if—

              4. a certificate under this section is offered in evidence in a proceeding for the purpose of proving the conviction or acquittal of a person, or the sentence by a court of a person to a penalty, or an order made by a court concerning a person; and
                1. the name of the person stated in the certificate is substantially similar to the name of the person concerning whom the evidence is offered.

                  1. If this subsection applies, it is presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, that the person whose name is stated in the certificate is the person concerning whom the evidence is offered.

                  2. Subpart 1 of Part 2 (which relates to hearsay evidence) does not apply to evidence offered under this section.

                  Notes
                  • Section 139(1)(ba): repealed, on , by section 16 of the Three Strikes Legislation Repeal Act 2022 (2022 No 40).
                  • Section 139(1)(ba): inserted, on , by section 19 of the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 54).