Chief judge defends Manukau court against critics

Chief District Court Judge Russell Johnson has defended the Manukau District Court, saying it is "performing with distinction".

At the weekend, leaked emails from a senior judge to a lawyer revealed his frustration over what he called "Mickey Mouse Manukau mayhem" at the court.

Judge Roy Wade was scathing about some of the lawyers working in the court and staff, saying one lawyer would come a "big cropper in the near future".

He also said that on one day, he was "just about to lose the plot with some of the useless staff we seem to have".

And in her report on the legal aid system, Dame Margaret Bazley said up to 80 per cent of lawyers in the court could be "gaming the system".

But Judge Johnson yesterday released Ministry of Justice figures showing a significant lift in productivity during the past three years.

Summary crime, which included everything except matters taken through to jury trials, increased 27 per cent, but disposals of cases exceeded that at 39 per cent.

Other significant figures were:

Between July and November this year 7428 new crime cases came in, but 7603 were concluded by the nine crime judges.

Depositions plummeted from 303 in June, 2007 to 140 in June this year.

There were 258 new jury trials in the year to June, but the court disposed of 276 in the same time.

In the past two years, the median length of time for jury trials was down from 314 days to 244.

Courtroom use over the past four months was higher and longer in Manukau than any other court in Auckland and Northland.

Judge Johnson said that, far from being dysfunctional, the Manukau court was performing with distinction.

"It is a court with a very high workload that has done a magnificent job in meeting and sometimes surpassing the demands made of it.

"The contribution of the legal profession to this success cannot be overlooked. Although there are identifiable problems with the legal aid system, the District Court judges will work with the Law Society to help improve the system."

-NZPA