Criminal Code Act 1983

(1) The following rules govern the order in which the parties address the jury:

(a) counsel for the Crown must make an opening address, outlining the case for the prosecution, before calling evidence for the prosecution;

(b) if the accused person proposes to call witnesses to give evidence for the defence, the accused person may, at the close of the case for the prosecution, make an opening address, outlining the case for the defence, before giving or calling evidence;

(c) at the conclusion of the evidence, counsel for the Crown may address the jury to sum up the case for the prosecution;

(d) at the conclusion of that address, the accused person may address the jury to sum up the case for the defence.

(2) If, in the opinion of the presiding Judge, the accused person (or counsel for the accused person) made assertions in the course of summing up the case for the defence that are unsupported by the evidence, the Judge may allow counsel for the Crown a further opportunity to address the jury to reply to those assertions.

(3) If there are 2 or more accused persons, the order in which they are to exercise the right to address the jury is to be:

(b) in default of agreement – the reverse of the order in which their names appear on the indictment.

(4) If an accused person is represented by counsel, the right to address the jury is to be exercised on the accused person's behalf by counsel.

(5) The presiding Judge may, if of the opinion that there should be a departure from these rules in the circumstances of a particular case, allow a departure from these rules.

Example

If a particular witness would not otherwise be available to the defence, the presiding Judge might authorise the defence to interpose the witness before the close of the case for the prosecution.