I've been served with court documents about my dog. What happens now?
Being served with court documents can be frightening.
You may be reading words like “defendant”, “charge”, “prosecution” and “District Court” for the first time.
And somewhere amongst all of that legal language is your dog.
You may be worried about being convicted. About the cost. About going to Court. About what this could mean for your job or reputation.
But often the biggest question is much simpler: What's going to happen to my dog?
Don't ignore the documents — and don't assume that being charged means you have been found guilty.
There is still a legal process to go through, evidence to examine and decisions to make.
First, what have you actually been charged with?
Start with the documents.
They should tell you what offence you are alleged to have committed, the legislation involved and when you are required to appear in Court.
Dog prosecutions can arise from quite different circumstances.
Your dog may be alleged to have:
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bitten or attacked a person
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attacked another dog or animal
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rushed at or frightened somebody
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been somewhere it was required to be controlled
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been involved in an incident after an earlier classification or warning.
There can also be charges relating to an owner's obligations under the Dog Control Act.
The precise charge matters.
Two cases that sound almost identical when someone describes what happened can have quite different legal consequences.
Does being charged mean I'm guilty?
No.
Being charged means that a prosecuting authority alleges that you have committed an offence.
It does not mean the allegation has been proved.
The prosecution still has to establish the elements of the particular offence to the required legal standard.
That means one of the first things we do is separate what is alleged from what can actually be proved.
That distinction can be particularly important in dog cases, where a few seconds of behaviour may be described very differently by different witnesses.
Do I have to go to Court?
Your court documents should identify your first appearance date and the District Court dealing with the case.
Don't simply put that date in the diary and wait for it to arrive.
There may be useful work to do before the first appearance, including understanding the charges, obtaining information about the prosecution case and deciding how the matter should initially be dealt with.
If you instruct a lawyer, whether you personally need to attend on a particular occasion can depend on the circumstances and the stage of the proceeding.
The important thing is not to miss a Court date or ignore a document requiring action.
What could happen to my dog?
For many owners, this is the part that matters most.
Depending on the offence and the circumstances, a prosecution can potentially have consequences for the dog as well as its owner.
In some dog attack cases, destruction may become an issue before the Court.
That changes the significance of the proceeding enormously.
You are no longer dealing only with a fine or conviction.
You may be dealing with a decision about whether your dog comes home.
Where destruction is potentially in issue, it is important to identify that early and understand the precise statutory pathway involved. The law relating to destruction orders is technical, and the consequences are obviously irreversible.
But my dog isn't dangerous
Perhaps it isn't.
Or perhaps there was an incident that needs to be understood in its proper context.
Either way, the Court process should not reduce an animal's entire life and behaviour to a label.
The dog you know may be the dog that sleeps beside your bed, plays with your children, travels with you, goes to the beach and has never previously caused a problem.
That history doesn't automatically determine the legal outcome.
But neither should it simply be ignored.
Depending on the issues in the case, matters such as the dog's history, behaviour, management, veterinary evidence, the circumstances of the incident and what has happened since may all require consideration.
There is the legal case. And there is the animal at the centre of it. We look at both.
Why DogLawyer?
Dog cases aren't just about law.
There is criminal law and procedure.
There is the prosecution evidence.
And there is the dog itself — its behaviour, health, history and the circumstances in which the incident occurred.
I’m Dr Ian Robertson, the Principal of Guardianz. I'm often referred to as 'that guy who's a vet and a lawyer'.
I started my career as a clinical veterinarian, later become a lawyer, and worked as a prosecutor for the Ministry of Primary Industries. Today, I leverage this unique blend of expertise as a defence barrister, specialising exclusively in the field of animal law.
Animal law is not just one of the things I do; it’s the entire focus of my work as a lawyer.
Guardianz is the only law firm in New Zealand dedicated to the practice of animal law. We genuinely care about animal law being done well and the outcome you get.
How do you want to look back on things in 12 months?
What's the best that could happen?
What's the worst?
Smart steps taken at the right time are routinely key factors that affect your outcomes in these matters, so your next step is simply to fill in this contact form.
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