n
( in England and Wales ) a court of law for young people aged 10–17 accused of committing crimes. Three magistrates (at least one of whom is always a woman) decide whether the accused person is guilty or not. The cases are held privately and the names of those accused are usually not published. Young people aged 10–14 can only be found guilty if it is proved that they knew that what they were doing was legally and morally wrong. Youth courts were formerly known as juvenile courts .
See also attendance centre , community service , young offender institution .