The Ministry of Justice is standing by the level of security provided at courts.
Chief District Court Judge Russell Johnson says weaknesses in court security are allowing people to enter courthouses with concealed weapons.
His comments followed an incident on Tuesday in Wellington District Court, in which a 29-year-old man stabbed himself in the neck with a steak knife he had hidden in his sock.
The man, who has name suppression, faced 32 charges of possession of indecent publications and was sentenced to a six-month jail term.
A court security officer recognised the man as someone who had previously tried to harm himself in a police cell.
As he was being escorted from court by police, the man stabbed himself and was taken to hospital for surgery. He is in a stable condition on Wednesday.
In a statement, the Ministry of Justice admits there were no security checks at the court's doors before the incident and the man did not pass through a metal detector when he entered the court.
It says it received no information that the man was likely to be a danger.
However, the ministry says it is moving towards single entrances at courthouses, where feasible.
A spokesperson says the Wellington court does conduct limited searches for high-profile cases with gang involvement - and at random times.
An allocation of almost $10 million for court security was announced in this year's Budget.
A roll-out of additional security was scheduled to start in September, but Courts Minister Georgina te Heuheu says it could begin sooner.
