What is the Difference Between the Local Court & the District Court

This is a question I often get.

The main practical difference is that the Local Court is restricted to sentencing a person to a maximun 2 years imprisonment per offence.

But what determines whether a matter is in the Local Court or the District Court?

If you are charged with an Indictable Offence, the parties can elect to have the matter taken from the Local Court to the District Court. Ordinarily, the prosecution will do so only in the event of a serious case.

If you a charged with a strictly indictable offence, which is usually reserved for some of society's most serious crimes, it means that the matter must automatically be committed from the Local Court to the District Court.

In Sydney, most of those matters are heard in the Downing Centre District Court (pictured) or the Parramatta District Court. There are however District Court's sitting at Wollongong and Newcastle as well as some country circuits.

The Legal Guy aka John Vizzone appears almost daily in both the Local Court of New South Wales and the District Court of New South Wales. If you are interested in his services for your case please complete the form here and he will be in touch.