Magistrates' Perspectives on the Criminal Division of the Children's Court of Victoria

The Children's Court is a critical social institution and important forum of social work practice. It decides important legal and social issues relating to children and families. This article reports the findings of a study of the views of Victoria's Children's Court magistrates on the current status and challenges faced by the Children's Court as well as possible reforms that have recently been canvassed in Australia and overseas. This study was part of a larger national assessment of Australia's Children's Courts. The focus of this article is the Court's criminal jurisdiction. The findings point to concrete directions for change, for example, in aspects of its inputs and throughputs. In addition, the magistrates supported a shift in the Court's orientation to that of a therapeutic, jurisprudence-informed, problem-solving court. Findings also point to the need for research on the understanding of court processes and decisions by defendants and their families.