The case against him is proceeding to a trial which is scheduled to begin in Christchurch on June 2 next year.
Today in the High Court at Christchurch a further pre-trial hearing started at 10am.
The content of the hearing and the issues it is dealing with cannot be reported. It was expected to take about two hours.
The 28-year-old alleged shooter did not appear in court after his Auckland-based lawyers, Shane Tait and Jonathan Hudson, asked Justice Cameron Mander that his attendance be excused. The judge granted the move.
About 30 survivors and victims of the March 15 shootings, along with family members, were in attendance, along with seven translators.
The accused has pleaded not guilty to murdering 51 people during the attacks at two Christchurch mosques.
He has also denied 40 charges of attempted murder and one charge laid under the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002.
