NTIn ForceAct
Evidence (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2011
165BDelay in prosecution
Start here
Get a plain-English read of 165B
Turn the raw legal text into a practical explanation grounded in Evidence (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2011.
165B Delay in prosecution
(1) This section applies in a criminal proceeding in which there is a
jury.
(2) If the court, on application by the defendant, is satisfied that the
defendant has suffered a significant forensic disadvantage because
of the consequences of delay, the court must inform the jury of the
nature of that disadvantage and the need to take that disadvantage
into account when considering the evidence.
Subsection (2) differs from the NSW Act.
(3) The judge need not comply with subsection (2) if there are good
reasons for not doing so.
(4) It is not necessary that a particular form of words be used in
informing the jury of the nature of the significant forensic
disadvantage suffered and the need to take that disadvantage into
account, but the judge must not in any way suggest to the jury that
it would be dangerous or unsafe to convict the defendant solely
because of the delay or the forensic disadvantage suffered because
of the consequences of the delay.
(5) The judge must not warn or inform the jury about any forensic
disadvantage the defendant may have suffered because of delay
except in accordance with this section, but this section does not
affect any other power of the judge to give any warning to, or to
inform, the jury.
(6) For the purposes of this section:
(a) delay includes delay between the alleged offence and its
being reported; and
(b) significant forensic disadvantage is not to be regarded as
being established by the mere existence of a delay.
(7) For the purposes of this section, the factors that may be regarded
as establishing a significant forensic disadvantage include, but
are not limited to, the following:
(a) the fact that any potential witnesses have died or are not able
to be located;
(b) the fact that any potential evidence has been lost or is
otherwise unavailable.
Evidence (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2011 107
Note for Part 4.6, Division 1
Section 182 of the Commonwealth Act gives Part 4.6, Division 1 of the