3 Pretrial arrangement proceeding
When the court deems it necessary to conduct productive proceedings of a trial consecutively, systematically, and speedily, it may, prior to the first trial date, order that the case be subject to a pretrial arrangement proceeding as trial preparation for arrangement of the issues and evidence of the case. The Act on Criminal Trials Examined under Lay Judge System (Act No. 63 of 2004; hereinafter referred to as the “Lay Judge Act”) defines that all cases subject to lay judge trials (criminal trials with the participation of lay judges) shall be subject to the pretrial arrangement proceeding (See Section 2, Part 6). In addition, when the court considers it necessary during the course of the proceedings, it may, after the first trial date, put the case into an inter-trial arrangement proceeding as preparation for the trial to arrange the issues and evidence of the case.
Table 2-3-2-5 shows the number of persons involved in cases brought to a pretrial arrangement proceeding or inter-trial arrangement proceeding and conclusively disposed in district courts as the first instance in 2011 by type of offense.
Table 2-3-2-5 Number of persons involved in cases brought to a pretrial arrangement proceeding or inter-trial arrangement proceeding in district courts by type of offense (2011)
In 2011 the average trial period (refers to the period between new receipt and conclusive disposition (including transfer, etc.)) of cases brought to a pretrial arrangement proceeding in district courts as the first instance was 9.9 months and the average number of trials 4.7 (Source: Annual Report of Judicial Statistics).