The County Court of Victoria is the intermediate court in the Australian state of Victoria. It is equivalent to district courts in the other states. The County Court is the principal trial court in the state, having a broad criminal and civil jurisdiction. The court hears indictable offences (with the exception of murder, manslaughter, and treason), and has unlimited civil jurisdiction, though it generally only hears cases where the statement of claim exceeds the Magistrates' Court limit of $100,000. The court also possesses appellate jurisdiction for cases from the Magistrates' Court, while decisions of the County Court may be appealed to the Supreme Court. With approximately 70 sitting judges, the court hears up to 12,000 cases annually. Peter Kidd was named Chief Judge of the County Court on 8 September 2015. History The County Court was first established in Victoria in 1852 by the County Courts Act 1852. A County Court operated in the County of Bourke and some regional towns. The County Courts were modelled on the British county courts, which were established in 1846. Originally, the Court's principal purpose was to handle small civil claims. Since that time, the Court's jurisdiction has expanded. Jurisdiction In the hierarchy of Victorian courts, the County Court of Victoria sits above the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria and below the Supreme Court of Victoria. Judges of the County Court hear matters across three divisions – Criminal, Commercial and Common Law. County Court judges also sit as the heads of jurisdiction at the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria, Coroners Court of Victoria and the Children’s Court of Victoria and sit at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal as Vice-Presidents. Criminal Division The County Court hears all indictable criminal matters except treason, murder and certain other homicide offences. The Court deals with a broad range of offences under Victorian and Commonwealth legislation including serious theft, armed robbery, drug trafficking, sexual offences, fraud and dishonesty offences, culpable driving, serious assault and income and sales tax offences. All trials are heard before a judge and a jury of 12 members of the community. Criminal appeals The County Court hears criminal appeals from the Magistrates’ Court. These appeals are determined by judge alone. An appeal decision is generally final, except when a sentence of imprisonment is imposed and the Magistrates’ Court did not originally impose a sentence of imprisonment. In such a case, the appellant may then appeal to