Defence (Amendment) Act 2007

Amendment of section 193 of Principal Act (dissolution of courts-martial).

43.— The following section is substituted for section 193 of the Principal Act:

“Dissolution of courts-martial.

193.— (1) This section applies to the dissolution of a general court-martial or limited court-martial.

(2) The Court-Martial Administrator may dissolve a court-martial at any time before it has been sworn, where he considers that by reason of the exigencies of the service or for any other reason it is desirable to do so.

(3) The military judge for a trial by court-martial may dissolve the court-martial at any time after it has been sworn where he considers it to be necessary or expedient in the interests of the administration of justice.

(4) Where a court-martial has been sworn and the military judge dies or for any other reason is unavailable, the court-martial may be dissolved by another military judge or by the Court-Martial Administrator, as appropriate.

(5) The military judge shall dissolve the court-martial—

(a) where, on account of the illness of the accused at any time before the finding, it is impossible, in the opinion of the military judge, to continue the trial within a reasonable time, or

(b) where at any time after the court-martial is sworn, and before the finding, the number of members of the court-martial board is reduced below the minimum number of members required for the trial—

(i) by reason of the death of a member or the discharge of a member by the military judge owing to his being incapable through illness or any other cause of continuing to act as a member, or

(ii) because the military judge directs that a member shall not serve or shall not continue to serve as a member where he considers that for any stated reason it is desirable in the interests of justice.

(6) Where a court-martial is dissolved under this section, the accused may, on the directions of the Director, be retried by another court-martial in accordance with this Part.

(7) For the purposes of subsection (5) of this section the minimum number of members of a court-martial board shall be—

(a) in the case of a general court-martial, 5 members (including the officer referred to in section 189(2)(a) or (3)(a)(i), as the case may be), and

(b) in the case of a limited court-martial, 3 members (including the officer referred to in section 190(2)(a)(i)).”.