Criminal Procedure Act 1986

At the first mention of proceedings or at any other time, the court may order the prosecutor and the defendant to attend one or more preliminary hearings before the court.

During a preliminary hearing, the court may make such orders, determinations or findings, or give such directions or rulings, as it thinks appropriate for the efficient management and conduct of the proceedings.

Without limiting subsection (2), the court may take any or all of the following action under that subsection—

hear and determine an objection to any application for an appearance order prior to the commencement of a trial,

order the holding of a preliminary conference under section 247H,

order preliminary disclosure by the prosecutor or the defendant under section 247I,

give a direction under section 247M (3),

give a ruling or make a finding under section 192A of the Evidence Act 1995 as if the trial or sentencing hearing had commenced,

hear and determine a submission that the case should not proceed to trial prior to the commencement of the trial,

give a ruling on any question of law that might arise at the trial or sentencing hearing.

Despite any other provision of this Act, the court may make any order, determination or finding, or give any ruling, under this section on application by a party to the proceedings or on the court’s own initiative.

Any order, determination or finding made, or ruling given, by the court under this section is binding on the presiding Judge in the proceedings unless, in the opinion of the presiding Judge, it would not be in the interests of justice for the order, determination, finding or ruling to be binding.

Except with the leave of the court, a party to proceedings may not raise a relevant preliminary hearing matter if a preliminary hearing was held in the proceedings and—

the matter was not raised at the preliminary hearing, or

the matter was dealt with at the preliminary hearing.

A relevant preliminary hearing matter means—

an objection to an application for an appearance order, or

a question that was the subject of a ruling or finding under subsection (3) (e).

Except with the leave of the court, a party to proceedings may not raise a question of law that was the subject of a ruling under subsection (3) (g) if a preliminary hearing was held in the proceedings and the matter was dealt with at the preliminary hearing.

Leave is not to be granted under subsection (6) or (8) unless the court is of the opinion that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to refuse leave to raise the matter concerned.