Part 15 Certain offences to be dealt with on indictment
(1) An offence must be dealt with on indictment unless it is an offence that under this or any other Act is permitted or required to be dealt with summarily.(2) An offence may be dealt with on indictment if it is an offence that under this or any other Act is permitted to be dealt with summarily or on indictment.
6 Certain offences to be dealt with summarily
(1) The following offences must be dealt with summarily:(a) an offence that under this or any other Act is required to be dealt with summarily,(b) an offence that under this or any other Act is described as a summary offence,(c) an offence for which the maximum penalty that may be imposed is not, and does not include, imprisonment for more than 2 years, excluding the following offences:(i) an offence that under any other Act is required or permitted to be dealt with on indictment,(ii) an offence listed in Table 1 or 2 to Schedule 1.(2) An offence may be dealt with summarily if it is an offence that under this or any other Act is permitted to be dealt with summarily or on indictment.
7 Certain summary offences may be dealt with by Local Court
(1) An offence that is permitted or required to be dealt with summarily is to be dealt with by the Local Court.(2) This section does not apply to an offence that, under this or any other Act, is required to be dealt with summarily otherwise than by the Local Court.
8 Prosecution of indictable offences
(1) All offences shall be punishable by information (to be called an indictment) in the Supreme Court or the District Court, on behalf of the Crown, in the name of the Attorney General or the Director of Public Prosecutions.(2) Such an indictment may be presented or filed whether or not the person to whom the indictment relates has been committed for trial in respect of an offence specified in the indictment.(3) This section does not apply to offences that is required to be dealt with summarily.(4) This section does not affect any law or practice that provides for an indictable offence to be dealt with summarily.
9 Name in which prosecutions may be instituted
Any prosecution or proceedings instituted by the Attorney General or the Director of Public Prosecutions in respect of any offence (whether an indictable offence or a summary offence) may be instituted in either the official name or the personal name of the Attorney General or the Director of Public Prosecutions.
10 Indictment of bodies corporate
(1) Unless a contrary intention appears, a provision of an Act relating to an offence applies to bodies corporate as well as to individuals.(2) On arraignment, a body corporate may enter a plea of “guilty” or “not guilty” by means of writing signed by its representative.(3) If no such plea is entered the court is to enter a plea of “not guilty”, and the trial is to proceed as though the body corporate had pleaded “not guilty”.(4) A representative of a body corporate need not be appointed under the body’s seal.(5) A written statement that:(a) purports to be signed by one of the persons having the management of the affairs of the body corporate, and(b) contains a statement to the effect that a named person is the body’s representative,is admissible as evidence that the named person has been so appointed.
The description of any offence in the words of an Act or statutory rule or other document creating the offence, or in similar words, is sufficient in law.
12 Short description of certain offences
(1) For the purposes of this or any other Act, a summary offence, or an indictable offence that may be dealt with summarily, is taken to be sufficiently stated or described if it is stated or described by the use of a short expression that describes the offence in general terms.(2) This section applies to a statement or description of an offence in any court attendance notice, warrant, subpoena, notice, order or other document.(3) Nothing in this section affects any other method of stating or describing an offence.(4) Nothing in this section affects any requirement made by or under this Act in relation to the form of a court attendance notice or any other document.
(1) New South Wales is a sufficient venue for all places, whether the indictment is in the Supreme Court or any other court having criminal jurisdiction.(2) However, some district or place within, at or near which the offence is charged to have been committed must be mentioned in the body of the indictment.(3) Any such district or place is to be taken to be in New South Wales, and within the jurisdiction of the court, unless the contrary is shown.
(cf Fines and Penalties Act 1901 sec 4)
A prosecution or proceeding in respect of any offence under an Act may be instituted by any person unless the right to institute the prosecution or proceeding is expressly conferred by that Act on a specified person or class of persons.