A "case conference" in a criminal case is where the prosecution and defence are brought together to see if the matter is capable of being resolved. The prosecution prepare an outline of the facts for the case conference of what they believe they can prove and what charges they believe are appropriate. They give a copy to the accused’s lawyers prior to the case conference in the County Court who then file a response stating an outline of the defence case.

The aim of the case conference is to identify whether a matter is capable of resolution or not. 

County Court Case conferences are held outside normal sitting times with an aim of keeping them short. Generally they are listed at 9 am or 9.30 am and will be finished within an hour of that time.

If the matter resolves through negotiation at the case conference as a guilty plea then it will be allocated a date for that plea. Sufficient time will normally be allocated to allow you to obtain necessary reports (medical or psychological).

At a case conference the case will be booked in for a trial and a directions hearing will also be listed.