Application
This unit describes the skills required to manage a brief for pre-hearing mentions, communicate with stakeholders, present a case and complete pre-hearing mention duties. This includes performing prosecution duties in a professional, ethical and accountable manner that ensures public confidence in the police.
This unit applies to police prosecutors undertaking pre-hearing mention duties including managing briefs and presenting in court.
The skills and knowledge described in this unit must be applied within the legislative, regulatory and policy environment in which they are carried out. Organisational policies and procedures must be consulted and adhered to, particularly those related to court proceedings and prosecution guidelines.
Those undertaking this unit would generally work autonomously within a court/justice system environment but may be required to work under supervision at times. They will be required to perform complex tasks and demonstrate adaptability across a broad range of contexts.
No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to unit at the time of publication.
Elements and Performance Criteria
ELEMENTS | PERFORMANCE CRITERIA |
Elements describe the essential outcomes | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. Where bold italicised text is used, further information is detailed in the range of conditions section. |
1. Manage a brief for pre-hearing mention | 1.1 Assess brief to ensure sufficiency of evidence. 1.2 Analyse evidence to determine that it substantiates elements of offences. 1.3 Evaluate brief to determine possible defences. 1.4 Analyse brief to identify adherence to legislation and precedent. 1.5 Identify deficiencies in the brief to determine remedial actions. |
2. Communicate with stakeholders | 2.1 Engage with stakeholders to resolve issues. 2.2 Negotiate with stakeholders to progress case. 2.3 Document actions undertaken on brief for recording purposes. 2.4 Provide assistance and advice to the court regarding the management of pre-hearing mentions. |
3. Present a case | 3.1 Present circumstances of the case for courts consideration. 3.2 Detail issues and concessions of the case. 3.3 Evaluate the need for applications and submissions in accordance with pre-hearing mention requirements. 3.4 Assess status of unresolved issues throughout proceedings to identify further actions required. |
4. Complete pre-hearing mention duties | 4.1 Analyse circumstances of the case to determine need for applications. 4.2 Submit applications to achieve desired outcome of prosecution. 4.3 Record issues and court outcomes for future reference. 4.4 Process briefs for administrative purposes. 4.5 Communicate with stakeholders to inform them of unresolved issues and outcomes. 4.6 Analyse conduct of prosecution case critically to identify areas for improvement. 4.7 Develop recommendations for continuous improvement purposes. |
Evidence of Performance
Evidence required to demonstrate competence must satisfy all of the requirements of the elements and performance criteria. If not otherwise specified the candidate must demonstrate evidence of performance of the following on at least one occasion.
managing and processing briefs and files for court purposes
communicating with stakeholders
presenting a case and tendering documents to the court
making persuasive and judicial submissions and applications to the court
developing recommendations for continuous improvement purposes
identifying gaps in briefs/evidence and undertaking remedial actions
recording actions and outcomes for future reference
analysing circumstances critically and develop strategies
Evidence of Knowledge
Evidence required to demonstrate competence must satisfy all of the requirements of the elements and performance criteria. If not otherwise specified the depth of knowledge demonstrated must be appropriate to the job context of the candidate.
current Commonwealth, national, state or territory legislation, jurisdictional policies and procedures which regulate the Rules of Evidence
jurisdictional information management systems and legal databases
sources of law
stakeholder roles and responsibilities
organisational policy and procedures
Assessment Conditions
This unit contains no specific industry-mandated assessment conditions. Guidance on suggested and recommended conditions and methods can be found in the Implementation Guide.
Consideration must be given to holistic assessment for this unit. Refer to advice in the companion volumes.
Assessors must satisfy the NVR/AQTF mandatory competency requirements for assessors.
Foundation Skills
The foundation skills demands of this unit have been mapped for alignment with the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF). The following tables outline the performance levels indicated for successful attainment of the unit.
Further information on ACSF and the foundation skills underpinning this unit can be found in the Foundation Skills Guide on the GSA website.
Competency Field
Prosecution