Sentencing: Three strikes and other legislative reform

The revised Three Strikes legislation comes into force on 17 June 2025, and the recently passed Sentencing (Reform) Amendment Act comes into force a couple of weeks later on 29 June.  These are important legislative reforms which will be relevant to all criminal practitioners.

The new three strikes regime is not the same as the previous regime, and both pieces of legislation have some complexities which may not be immediately apparent.  In this webinar our presenters Charlotte Brook, James Carruthers and chair Katie Hogan will take you through each piece of legislation, explain what you need to know and point out some legal issues arising which will assist you in advising clients and making submissions at sentencing. 

Speakers

Charlotte Brook has more than 20 years’ experience in criminal and regulatory litigation.  She has worked as a Crown prosecutor, conducting trials in the District and High Courts, and as Crown Counsel with the Crown Law Office, conducting appeals in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.  She has also worked for a major European law firm specialising in professional disciplinary work. She joined Kate Sheppard Chambers in February 2025. Charlotte is on the faculty for a number of New Zealand Law Society Continuing Legal Education courses and is a lecturer in Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington.

James Carruthers is an experienced criminal lawyer with particular expertise in appellate advocacy. He has handled well over 150 matters in appellate courts, the vast majority as lead counsel in the Court of Appeal. He has also led dozens of jury trials and provided advice on a wide range of criminal, regulatory, and public law issues.

Before joining Mills Lane, James spent six years at Meredith Connell and another six at Crown Law. In between times, he served a Pegasus Scholarship at Doughty Street Chambers in London, and obtained a BCL from Oxford with a focus on constitutional and human rights law.

Katie Hogan (Chair) worked as a senior criminal prosecutor, before she joined the Independent Bar and became a member of City Chambers in October 2018.  Katie has in excess of 19 years’ trial experience and works for both prosecuting entities and defendants in a wide spectrum of serious cases.  Criminal Proceeds is a particular specialty of Katie’s.  Katie is an approved criminal legal aid lawyer (all levels) and civil legal aid lawyer.  She serves on the NZ Bar Association Criminal Committee, the NZLS Litigation Skills Programme, and is a member of a number of government prosecution panels.