The Children's Court Clinic was founded in 1944 as a small scale service that provided clinical psychology services and assessments of children.

Over time the Children's Court Clinic has grown into a larger service and currently operates as the investigative arm of the Children's Court under the auspices of Department of Justice. In the past, the clinic also reported to the Department of Health.

The functions of the Clinic as defined in s. 546(2) Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 are as follows

- make clinical assessments of children
- submit reports to courts and other bodies
- provide clinical services to children and their families

Operating independently, the Children's Court Clinic undertakes assessments at the request of the Children's Court, and also assists the Magistrate's Court in dealing with child witnesses.