Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Crimes (Criminal Trials) Act 1999 - SECT 8

Provisions applicable to prosecution and defence

8. Provisions applicable to prosecution and defence



(1) Unless in the opinion of the court there are exceptional circumstances,
the prosecutor and the defence when opening their respective cases must
restrict themselves to the matters set out in their respective documents
served and filed under this Part.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a change of legal practitioner does
not constitute exceptional circumstances.

(3) Despite subsection (1), at the trial the prosecutor is not restricted to a
verbatim presentation of the summary of the prosecution opening and the
defence is not restricted to a verbatim presentation of the defence response
to the summary of the prosecution opening as served and filed under this Part.

(4) A party must inform the court and the other party in advance of any
intention to depart substantially from a matter set out in a document served
and filed by that party under this Part and, if the court so orders, inform
the court and the other party of the details of the proposed departure.