Project Overview
This project considered whether there is a need to establish a Sentencing Council in New Zealand, and whether parole should be reformed to ensure a closer relationship between the prison sentence imposed and time served.
Terms of Reference
The Law Commission has been asked to consider:
- The advantages of providing greater guidance to judges on the exercise of their sentencing discretion, and appropriate mechanisms for achieving this (including whether New Zealand would benefit from the establishment of a body such as the UK Sentencing Guidelines Council);
- The extent to which such guidance can serve as an instrument to enable prison muster issues to be managed more effectively; and
- Whether the parole eligibility component of prison sentences requires adjustment to ensure a closer relationship between the nominal sentence imposed and the actual time served.