There are some special courts in Aotearoa NZ which, if you can get into them, take into account special circumstances for young people or those with addiction issues. 

Alcohol & Other Drug Treatment Court

Te Whare Whakapiki Wairua, the Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment (AODT) Court aims to break the cycle of offending by treating the causes of it. It provides an alternative to imprisonment for people whose offending is being driven by alcohol and/or drug substance use disorders.

The AODT Court provides an evidence-based, best practice treatment pathway that includes intensive monitoring, case management, drug testing, and mentoring. Sentencing is deferred while participants work through the programme, which includes regular court appearances to check on progress. The programme may take between one to two years to complete.

Click here for more information on the AODT Court.C

New Beginnings & Special Circumstances Court

• The New Beginnings Court Te Kooti o Timatanga Hou is aimed at homeless people in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland.

• The Court of Special Circumstances is aimed at homeless people in Wellington.

If you are accepted into one of these courts, you can get help to address issues in your life that contribute to your offending.

The Young Adult List

In 2020, Judge John Walker proposed a new pilot scheme to deal specifically with young people who were coming into the New Zealand courts who had a background of trauma and/or neurodiversities. This programme is called the Young Adult List (YAL) and is about ensuring that young people with neurodiversities know what's going on in court and, if necessary, have a communication assistant. There's more information about the pilot scheme here. 

A screening tool is utilised to identify young adults who may have neuro-disabilities or other characteristics that could affect their ability to comprehend and participate in court proceedings. The goal is to ensure that the court process is fair and accessible for all young adults, taking into account their individual needs and limitations.

The YAL's approaches include:

• plain language in the courtroom
  
  
• improved information for judges
  
  
• sharing information between the Youth, Family and District Courts 
  
  
• engaging local agencies and community services to ensure a holistic approach to supporting young adults who have a neurodiversity or trauma
  
  
• connecting young adults to interventions aimed at addressing the root causes of their offending, so they are less likely to offend in the future. 

The YAL pilot has been a highly successful and has now been rolled out permanently in Porirua, Gisborne and Hamilton.

• Click here to find out more about the YAL and how to utilise it if you are in one of these regions.
  
  
• Click here for the YAL Operating Guidelines (downloadable pdf). 
  
  
• Click here to watch a FASD-CAN webinar with Sally Kedge, a speech-language therapist and court-appointed Communication Assistant from Talking Trouble, and Kesia Sherwood, a young lawyer who did her PhD on the YAL. You'll find other helpful resources from the webinar on this page, too.