At court, they will call your name.
In the courtroom, the judge will ask what you want to do about your legal problem.
If it is a criminal problem, the judge will ask you to plead guilty/not guilty or if you want more time.
The judge will usually ask you to come back again on another day.
If you plead guilty, the judge will usually decide your punishment (sentence) on the same day.
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Who Can Help? (Service Providers)
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| Going to Court
Booklet explaining what you should do to prepare for court and what will happen at court. |
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You understand, don’t you? (Yolngu Matha)
https://ictv.com.au/video/item/3188Part two of a video explaining what happens in court and exploring language barriers.
You understand, don’t you? (Pintupi-Luritja) – Court role play
https://ictv.com.au/video/item/3190Reversed role play explaining court and exploring language barriers.
What’s the law – the Australian Legal System
A video explain how the legal system works in Australia.
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This audio explains the word hearing in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word adjournment in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word judge in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word defence lawyer in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word lawyer in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
Glossary: What these words mean
| criminal | A criminal is someone who a court decides has broken a law. |
| plea | If you are charged with an offence and go to court, the just will ask you whether you agree with the charge(s) or not. the answer you give is called a plea. There are two basic types of plea: guilty and not guilty. If you agree with the charge, and that you broke the law, you plead guilty. If you disagree, you plead not guilty. |
| sentence | In criminal law, sentence means ‘to punish’ or ‘punishment’. The punishment comes from a judge in a court. |