Court Registry Officer Āpiha Whakarite Kōti/Ture

Court registry officers assist with the day-to-day operation of courts. They handle court documents, schedules and may support the judge in running court hearings.

Court registry officers may do some or all of the following:

  • process documents, such as marriage certificates, for the public
  • answer questions from the public about court sittings and legal documents
  • process court orders, court summons (when you are called to come to court), warrants to arrest and notices
  • schedule court hearings
  • swear in witnesses and read out charges
  • document court proceedings for transcriptionists (people who record what is said in court)
  • prepare and maintain case files
  • liaise with police, judges and lawyers.

Useful Experience

Useful experience for court registry officers includes:

  • work as a legal secretary or law clerk, or other work in a law office
  • court work
  • administration work
  • work with the public.

Personal Qualities

Court registry officers need to be:

  • accurate
  • organised
  • able to work well under pressure
  • able to relate to people from a range of cultures
  • able to understand complex information and explain it clearly to members of the public
  • confident and capable in front of a large audience
  • reliable and able to keep information confidential.

Skills

Court registry officers need to have knowledge of:

  • court processes
  • the order of court proceedings
  • legal terms and methods.

Conditions

Court registry officers:

  • usually work regular business hours, but may work evenings if a court hearing is running late
  • work in offices and courtrooms, although collections registry officers work from home.

Subject Recommendations

NCEA Level 2 is required to become a court registry officer. Useful subjects include English, history and classical studies, languages, social studies and te reo Māori.

Court Registry Officers can earn around $50K-$70K per year.

Pay for court registry officers varies depending on experience, but they can earn $50,000 to $70,000 a year.

Source: Ministry of Justice website, 2022.

Court registry officers can specialise as collections registry officers.

Collections Registry Officer
Collections registry officers advise people how to pay their fines, and negotiate with the public to collect overdue fines.

Years Of Training

To become a court registry officer you need to have NCEA Level 2.

  • A current New Zealand driver's licence is an advantage and may be essential in some courts.
  • A tertiary qualification such as a certificate in administration can also be useful.
Court Registry Officer