In 1991, the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody reported that Indigenous people were significantly over-represented in police custody, prisons and juvenile detention centres.

Following the Royal Commission’s recommendations, the Victorian Government resolved to put into place strategies to reduce the Indigenous custody rate. One such initiative, first piloted in 2002, was the establishment of the Koori Court Division of the Victorian Magistrates’ Court (‘the Koori Court’).

Through the participation of Aboriginal Elders, Respected Persons and other members of the Indigenous community in the hearing process, the Koori Court aims to provide a more culturally relevant and inclusive sentencing process for Indigenous people charged with offences.

This report, the first of two on the sentencing of Indigenous people in Victoria, presents a descriptive profile of the Koori Court.