Family and the Youth Court

Family group conferences

This is the most important way for the family to be involved with the Youth Court. It gives families a chance to have their say about what should happen to the young person.

Families, whanau, hapu, iwi or family groups can take responsibility for, and support their young people by coming to the family group conference and helping them carry out the agreed plan.

A family group conference is a meeting of everyone involved in the case. It’s held:

either

• when the police are deciding whether to charge the young person with breaking the law – if the people at the conference think the person shouldn't be charged (or go to court), they'll decide what the young person will have to do to make up for their offending. This is often called an "intention to charge" family group conference.

and/or

• after the young person has appeared in the Youth Court – to work out what they did, why they did it, what they can do to make up for their offending and how to make sure they don't get into trouble again. This kind of family group conference is held if the young person agrees that they broke the law or it has been proved that the young person broke the law.

Sometimes people at a family group conference have to say which court (Youth or adult) they think the young person should appear in. This happens when the offence is very serious.

The family group conference is run by a youth justice co-ordinator from the Department of Child Youth and Family Services. The other people usually there are

• the young person and their family/whanau
• the victim
• a police youth aid officer
• the young person's youth advocate or lawyer.

Other people who might be invited are:

• the young person's social worker (if they have one)
• someone from the school or training course the young person attends
• the young person's counsellor (if they have one)

Going to a family group conference to decide if the case should go to court

If the people at the first kind of family group conference think the young person's case shouldn't go to court, they'll decide how else the young person should make up for breaking the law.

They might decide the police should caution the young person. This means the police will warn them that if they break the law again, the police might have to charge them.

The people at the conference might make a diversionary plan. This means the young person shouldn’t have to appear in the Youth Court. The plan says what has to be done and what goals have to be achieved. The plan might need the young person to apologise to the victim, make a donation to charity, or do community work. The plan might give the young person a curfew.

If the people at the conference make a plan that the young person sticks to, the case may not go any further. If they are good at sticking to the plan, it’s called a successful diversion.

It the young person doesn’t stick to the plan, the police will probably charge them and the case will go to the Youth Court.

Sometimes people at family group conferences can’t agree what should happen so they can’t make a plan. Then the Youth Court will decide what should be done.

Going to a family group conference after a Youth Court hearing

People at a family group conference held after the young person has been to court will all help work out a plan on how the young person can make up for their offending.   They will also talk about how the young person can be helped so that they don't get into trouble again.

The plan might need the young person to apologise to the victim, make a donation to charity, or do community work. The plan might say that they have to obey some rules about when they can go out (called a curfew) and where they can go.

The plan might last for a while. It will have to be approved by the court, and the young person might have to talk about it with the judge.

Later, the people at the family group conference will tell the judge how the young person got on, and whether they stuck to the plan. If the young person does what the plan said they had to do, the charge will probably be withdrawn.

If people at a family conference can’t agree what should happen, the Youth Court judge will decide. Usually the judge asks a social worker to write a report about the young person, suggesting how they should make up for what they did.  It's best for the young person and their family if everyone at the family group conference can agree about what the young person should do to make up for their offending.  If they can't agree, the family probably won't have any more say in what happens to the young person.