(1) The Governor may, by commission under the public seal of the State, appoint any qualified person to be a member of the Tribunal. (2) A person is qualified to be a member of the Tribunal if the person is a Judge of the District Court.
(1) The Tribunal has, except as provided by sections 29 and 32, exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine proceedings referred to in sections 11 and 12. (2) The Tribunal has such other jurisdiction as may be conferred on it by or under any other Act.
(1) If:
(a) a person is suffering, or has suffered, from a dust-related condition or a person who has died was, immediately before death, suffering from a dust-related condition, and (b) it is alleged that the dust-related condition was attributable or partly attributable to a breach of a duty owed to the person by another person, and (c) the person who is or was suffering from the dust-related condition or a person claiming through that person would, but for this Act, have been entitled to bring an action for the recovery of damages in respect of that dust-related condition or death, proceedings for damages in respect of that dust-related condition or death may be brought before the Tribunal and may not be brought or entertained before any other court or tribunal. (1A) Proceedings by any tort-feasor liable in respect of damages referred to in subsection (1) to recover contribution from any other tort-feasor liable in respect of that damage may be brought before the Tribunal. Note— This subsection does not prevent those proceedings being brought in another court.
(1) The Tribunal must hold its proceedings in open court, except to the extent that the rules provide otherwise. (2) The President is to fix the times and places for the holding of proceedings before the Tribunal and is to nominate the member before whom proceedings are to be held.
(1) If a judgment or order of the Tribunal is for payment of an amount of money (including a sum awarded as costs) the judgment or order shall, on the filing of the prescribed documents in the registry of the Common Law Division of the Supreme Court, be taken to be a judgment of that Court for the payment of that amount of money in accordance with the judgment or order of the Tribunal.
(1) If a party to proceedings before the Tribunal has a right to proceed against two or more persons who may be jointly liable:
(a) it is sufficient if at least one of those persons is served with process in the proceedings, and (b) a decision in the proceedings may be given and enforced against the person or persons found to be liable.
(1) If the Tribunal so directs or a party to proceedings before the Tribunal so requests, the registrar must issue a subpoena requiring a specified person to do either or both of the following:
(a) to attend and give evidence before the Tribunal at a time and place specified in the subpoena, (b) to produce to the Tribunal, or to attend before the Tribunal and produce, any document or thing in the person’s custody or under the person’s control that the person is required by the subpoena to produce. (2) If:
(a) in accordance with this section, a person is required by a subpoena to produce a document, and (b) the document is not in writing, or is not written in the English language, or is not decipherable on sight, the subpoena shall be taken to require the person to produce, in addition to the document if it is in writing, or instead of the document if it is not in writing, a statement, written in the English language and decipherable on sight, containing the whole of the information in the document.
(1) Issues of a general nature determined in proceedings before the Tribunal (including proceedings on an appeal from the Tribunal) may not be relitigated or reargued in other proceedings before the Tribunal without the leave of the Tribunal, whether or not the proceedings are between the same parties.
(1) A party who is dissatisfied with a decision of the Tribunal in point of law or on a question as to the admission or rejection of evidence may appeal to the Supreme Court.
(1) The Rule Committee is to be composed of no more than 6 members. (2) Of the members of the Rule Committee:
(a) one is to be the President of the Tribunal, and (b) no more than 3 are to be members of the Tribunal other than the President, and (c) one is to be a barrister, and (d) one is to be a solicitor.
(1) The procedure for calling meetings of the Rule Committee and for the conduct of business at those meetings is, subject to any procedure that is prescribed by or under this Act, to be as determined by the Rule Committee. (2) Three members of the Rule Committee are to form a quorum and any duly convened meeting of the Rule Committee at which a quorum is present is competent to transact any business of the Rule Committee and has all the functions of the Rule Committee. (3) The chairperson of the Rule Committee or, in the absence of the chairperson, the deputy chairperson of that Committee is to preside at a meeting of that Committee.
(1) Subject to and in accordance with Part 2 of the , a person is to be appointed to hold office as the Secretary to the Rule Committee. Public Sector Management Act 1988
(1) The Governor may make regulations for or with respect to the following:
(a) the establishment of a claims resolution process for claims, with procedures for identifying the issues in dispute between the parties to a claim and the settlement of claims by alternative dispute resolution processes, (b) procedures and presumptions for the apportionment of liability between defendants and cross-defendants in connection with a claim, (c) the making and acceptance of offers of compromise and the consequences by way of costs penalties and costs relief of the rejection of an offer by a party who fails to improve their position at hearing, (d) identifying the issues that remain in dispute when a claim is not settled by the claims resolution process and limiting the determination of the claim in the Tribunal to a determination of those issues, (e) subpoenas to give evidence or to produce any document or thing, including the issue and return of subpoenas and compliance with subpoenas, (f) costs (including disbursements) payable by a party in or in relation to a claim, (g) the practice and procedure to be followed in proceedings and any other matter for or with respect to which rules may be made under this Act, (h) the exclusion of any proceedings or class of proceedings from the operation of any specified provision of the or the rules made under that Act, Civil Procedure Act 2005 (i) the modification of any specified provision of the or the rules made under that Act in its application to any proceedings or class of proceedings. Civil Procedure Act 2005 (2) Without limitation, this section authorises the making of regulations for or with respect to the following:
(a) the exchange of information between the parties to a claim, (b) the compulsory mediation of claims and the functions, privileges, remuneration, immunities and protections of mediators and parties to mediation, (c) procedures and presumptions for the apportionment of liability between defendants and cross-defendants (including by providing for the making of determinations as to apportionment and for the determination by the Minister of standard presumptions as to apportionment), (d) the appointment of a single claims manager to be responsible for managing and otherwise dealing with a claim on behalf of all defendants and cross-defendants to the claim, (e) determining the issues in dispute between the parties, and the facts and evidence that may be relied on by the parties, for the purpose of the determination by the Tribunal of a claim that has been through the claims resolution process, (f) requiring the parties to a claim and their legal representatives to provide information about or relevant to the claim and any aspect of the claim (including costs and disbursements incurred in connection with a claim), (g) the awarding of costs on a party and party basis, on an indemnity basis, or on any other basis, including costs penalties and costs relief in connection with a contravention of any provision of the regulations, (h) the assessment of costs payable to a legal practitioner in connection with a claim, including by providing for the modification of provisions of the or the Legal Profession Act 1987 with respect to the assessment of those costs, Legal Profession Act 2004 (i) suspending the operation of any provision of rules of court and any direction or order of the Tribunal under a provision of this or any other Act or rules of court while a claim is subject to the claims resolution process or other procedures under the regulations or subsequently, pending its determination by the Tribunal.
(1) A legal practitioner who acts for a party on a claim must provide the Registrar with such information concerning the claim as the regulations may require for the purposes of this section. (2) If both a barrister and a solicitor act for a party, the obligation to comply with subsection (1) falls on the solicitor and not the barrister. (3) A failure by a legal practitioner to comply with this section is capable of being unsatisfactory professional conduct by the legal practitioner. (4) If a party to a claim is not represented on the claim by a legal practitioner, the party must provide the information required by this section (as and when a legal practitioner representing the party would be required to provide it). Maximum penalty: 5 penalty units.
(1), (2) (3) The Rule Committee may make rules, not inconsistent with this Act, for or with respect to any matter that by this Act is required or permitted to be prescribed for the purposes of, or in connection with, the exercise by the Tribunal of its jurisdiction or that is necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act. (4) Without limiting subsection (3), rules may be made under that subsection for or with respect to:
(a) the procedure and practice to be followed in proceedings before the Tribunal (including the procedure and practice to be followed in the office of the registrar) and any matters incidental or relating to any such procedure or practice, and (a1) regulating and prescribing the practice and procedure to be followed in the mediation or neutral evaluation of any matter under Part 3B, and (b) the continuance of proceedings on the death or bankruptcy of a party or, in the case of a party that is a corporation, the continuance of proceedings on the winding up or dissolution of the corporation, and (b1) the manner in which, time at which and persons by whom further damages to be awarded under section 11A (and any interest on those damages awarded under section 15) may be claimed, and (c) the listing of matters for hearing by the Tribunal and the removal of matters from lists, and (d) the commencement of proceedings before the Tribunal, and (e) pre-hearing conferences and arbitration, and (f) the charging of fees for interpreting services, and (g) authorising the registrar or an agent of the Tribunal to:
(i) exercise any function of the Tribunal, or (ii) exercise any function that, under the rules, is required to be exercised, and (h) regulating the payment or transfer of money into or out of the Tribunal, and (i) the duties of, and the records to be kept by, the registrar in relation to, or for the purposes of, any proceedings before the Tribunal, and (j) any matters relating to costs of proceedings before the Tribunal, including taxation of costs, and (k) regulating the mode in which evidence may be given, including the taking of evidence by video link or any other form of telecommunication from persons not present before the Tribunal, and (l) requiring a plaintiff to file and serve on other parties a notice of particulars or further particulars of a specified class or description (verified as prescribed by the rules):
(i) at the time the plaintiff applies for an expedited hearing or within a specified period before or after making such an application, and (ii) at any other specified stage of the proceedings, and (m) where there is more than one alleged tortfeasor:
(i) requiring a plaintiff who settles a claim with one or more but not all the alleged tortfeasors (before or after the proceedings were commenced) to file the terms of settlement and particulars of amounts paid under the settlement, and (ii) authorising the disclosure, by the Tribunal or by a member, registrar or officer of the Tribunal, of any terms and particulars filed by a plaintiff to another party to the proceedings, whether or not the terms contain non-disclosure requirements, and (iii) specifying the circumstances in which, and the matters that are to be taken into consideration before which, any such disclosure may be made, and (n) empowering the Tribunal to order that all or any of the provisions of section 151AC of the do not apply in or in relation to a particular case: Workers Compensation Act 1987
(i) on its own motion, or (ii) on application by a party or by an insurer who is not a party and on its being satisfied as to specified matters. (5) The rules may, with any adaptations specified in the rules, adopt by reference any rules made under the . Supreme Court Act 1970
(1) The rules may make provision for or with respect to the arbitration of disputes as to the liability of insurers as referred to in section 151AC of the . Workers Compensation Act 1987
(1) While an inter-insurer dispute remains unresolved, the Tribunal may, in accordance with this section, order a designated insurer who is a party to the dispute to make one or more payments to the plaintiff of part or the whole of the damages sought to be recovered in the proceedings concerned.
(1) This section applies to proceedings in which a designated insurer makes one or more interim payments before damages are assessed.
(1) This section applies where a designated insurer makes one or more interim payments after damages are assessed.
(Section 37)