Criminal litigation

Under s 8B of the Magistrates Courts Act 1980, the grounds for varying a pre-trial ruling where the court acts of its own motion are simply that the variation is in the interests of justice, whereas there is the additional requirement of a material change of circumstances where a party applies for such a variation.

However, it is difficult to accept that it could be in the interests of justice for the court to annul or discharge its own ruling without a compelling reason to do so, such as changed circumstances or fresh evidence. It is not sufficient that a different bench reaches a different conclusion on the same material.