ABSTRACT
All criminal proceedings are currently initiated in the magistrates’ court, whether they are serious or minor. There are two types of offence, summary and indictable, the former tried in the magistrates’ court and the latter by a jury before a judge. Even so, in respect of indictable offences, there must first be a preliminary enquiry in the magistrates’ court in order for the magistrate to determine if the case should go up for trial to the High Court before a jury. Thus, both summary and indictable matters are begun in the magistrates’ court with the laying of a complaint or information, as the case may be.
