(1) In this Act, except in so far as the context or subject-matter otherwise indicates or requires: action means action in the Court, but does not include any proceedings under Division 8 of Part 3 or under Part 4.admitted set-off , in relation to an action, means set-off admitted by the plaintiff in the document lodged by the plaintiff to commence the action or, where a defendant pleads a cross-claim, by the defendant in the prescribed notice of the cross-claim.Chief Judge means Chief Judge of the Court.civil procedure rules means rules of Court made and in force under Part 3.civil proceedings means proceedings in the Court in its civil jurisdiction.corporation includes any body of persons that may by law sue or be sued, whether in its own name or in the name of any officer or other person.criminal procedure rules means rules of Court made and in force under Part 4.criminal proceedings means proceedings in the Court in its criminal jurisdiction.file , in relation to any proceedings, means lodge with the registrar for the proper place in relation to the proceedings, for inclusion in the record of the Court.Judge means Judge of the Court.judgment , in relation to an action, means judgment given or entered up in the action.jurisdictional limit of the Court means $750,000.land includes messuages, tenements and hereditaments, corporeal and incorporeal, of any tenure or description, and whatever may be the estate or interest therein, whether vested or contingent, whether freehold or leasehold, and whether at law or in equity.motor accident claim means a claim for damages arising from the death of, or injury to, a person where the death or injury has been caused by an act or omission of the owner or driver of a motor vehicle in the use or operation of the vehicle.officer , in relation to a corporation, includes a director and any person having (whether alone or with others) powers of management, direction or control of the corporation.prescribed means prescribed by this Act or the rules.Principal Registrar means the registrar for Sydney.proceedings :
(a) where occurring in a provision of Part 3 and in subsections (3) and (5), means civil proceedings, (b) where occurring in a provision of Part 4, means criminal proceedings, and (c) where occurring in any other provision of this Act, shall be construed according to the context in which the expression occurs. proclaimed place means a place for the time being specified in a proclamation under section 18F.proper place , in relation to any proceedings in the Court in its civil jurisdiction:
(a) where there has been no change of venue in respect of the proceedings—means the proclaimed place at which the proceedings were commenced, (b) where there has been only one change of venue in respect of the proceedings—means the proclaimed place to which the venue was changed, or (c) where there have been two or more changes of venue in respect of the proceedings—means the proclaimed place to which the venue was last changed. registry , in relation to a proclaimed place, means the office of the registrar for the proclaimed place.Rule Committee means the District Court Rule Committee established under section 18A.sitting place means:
(a) any proclaimed place, and (b) in relation to the Court’s civil jurisdiction—any place (other than a proclaimed place) that is the subject of a direction in force under section 32 (1), and (c) in relation to the Court’s criminal jurisdiction—any place (other than a proclaimed place) that is the subject of a direction in force under section 173 (1). the Court orthe District Court means the District Court of New South Wales, and includes all registries and offices of the Court, whether they are within the precincts of the Court or not.the registrar , in relation to any proceedings, means the registrar for the proper place in relation to the proceedings, and, where any other registrar is authorised by or under this Act to exercise or discharge any power, authority, duty or function of the registrar for that place, includes that other registrar when exercising or discharging that power, authority, duty or function.the rules means:
(a) where occurring in Part 3 and Division 2 of Part 6, the civil procedure rules, and (b) where occurring in Part 4, the criminal procedure rules. work injury damages claim means a claim for an award of damages to which Division 3 (Modified common law damages) of Part 5 of theapplies. Workers Compensation Act 1987 Note— The contains definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Act. Interpretation Act 1987 (2) A reference in this Act:
(a) to the giving of a judgment is a reference to the recording and delivering of a judgment, not being a judgment under any provision of the civil procedure rules prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph, and (b) to the entering up of a judgment is a reference to the entering up of a judgment in accordance with any provision of the civil procedure rules so prescribed. (3) A reference in this Act to the commencement of proceedings at a proclaimed place (however expressed) is a reference to the commencement of those proceedings by the lodging of the document commencing the proceedings with the registrar for that place. (4) A reference in this Act to the issue of a document at a proclaimed place (however expressed) is a reference to the issue of that document by the registrar for that place. (5) A reference in this Act to a stay of proceedings (however expressed) includes a reference to a stay of enforcement of the judgment arising from the proceedings.
(1) The Governor may, by commission under the public seal of the State, appoint any qualified person as a Judge. (2) In this section: qualified person means any of the following persons:
(a) a person who is an Australian lawyer of at least 7 years’ standing, (b) a person who holds or has held a judicial office of this State or of the Commonwealth, another State or a Territory, (c) without limiting paragraph (a) or (b), the Chief Magistrate of the Local Court. (d) (3) The following provisions apply to and in respect of the Chief Magistrate of the Local Court if he or she also holds office as a Judge:
(a) service by the Chief Magistrate in the office of the Chief Magistrate (during any period for which he or she also holds office as a Judge) is, for the purposes of this Act (including section 15) and the , taken to be service in the office of a Judge, Judges’ Pensions Act 1953 (b) the Chief Magistrate may not hear or determine an appeal in his or her capacity as a Judge from any decision made by the Chief Magistrate in his or her capacity as a Magistrate of the Local Court, (c) nothing in this Act or any other law requires the Chief Magistrate to devote the whole of his or her time to the duties of a Judge. Note— Section 14 (5) of the enables a Chief Magistrate who has been appointed as a Judge to exercise the jurisdiction of the District Court while holding office as the Chief Magistrate by arrangement with the Chief Judge. Local Court Act 2007
(1) The Governor may, by commission under the public seal of the State, appoint a Judge to be Acting Chief Judge during such period as the Chief Judge may be absent from duty.
(1) The Governor may, by commission under the public seal of the State, appoint any qualified person to act as a Judge for a time not exceeding 5 years to be specified in the commission. (2) In subsection (1), qualified person means a person qualified for appointment as a Judge.(3) The person so appointed, for the time and subject to the conditions or limitations specified in the person’s commission, shall have the powers and authorities and fulfil the duties of the Judge and shall, for the purposes of this or any other Act (other than the ), be deemed to be a Judge. Statutory and Other Offices Remuneration Act 1975 (3A) The person so appointed may, despite the expiration of the period of the person’s appointment, complete or otherwise continue to deal with any matters relating to proceedings that have been heard, or partly heard, by the person before the expiration of that period. (3AA) While a person completes or otherwise continues under subsection (3A) to deal with any matters relating to proceedings that have been heard or partly heard by the person before the expiration of the person’s appointment, the person has all the entitlements and functions of a Judge (subject to the conditions and limitations specified in the person’s commission) and, for the purposes of those proceedings, is taken to continue to be a Judge.
(1) The Rule Committee shall be composed of no fewer than 9 and no more than 10 members. (2) Of the members of the Rule Committee:
(a) one shall be the Chief Judge, (b) six shall be Judges other than the Chief Judge, (c) one shall be a barrister, and (d) one shall be a solicitor. (3) If the Minister thinks it appropriate to do so, the Minister may, by instrument in writing, appoint as a member of the Rule Committee a person who, in the Minister’s opinion, is suitably qualified to hold that position.
(1) The procedure for calling meetings of the Rule Committee and for the conduct of business at those meetings shall, subject to any procedure that is prescribed by or under this Act, be as determined by the Rule Committee. (2) Five members of the Rule Committee shall 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 shall have and may exercise all the powers, authorities, duties and functions of the Rule Committee. (3) The chairman of the Rule Committee or, in the absence of the chairman, the deputy chairman of that Committee shall preside at a meeting of that Committee.
(1) A person may be employed in the Public Service under the as the Secretary to the Rule Committee. Government Sector Employment Act 2013
(1) The Minister may appoint any qualified person to be the Judicial Registrar of the Court. (2) A person is qualified for appointment as the Judicial Registrar if the person is an Australian lawyer.
(1) There shall be a registrar of the Court for each proclaimed place.
(1) An assistant registrar for a proclaimed place has and may exercise:
(a) in the case of an action to which the applies, the functions conferred on the assistant registrar pursuant to section 12 or 13 of that Act, or Civil Procedure Act 2005 (b) in any other case, such of the registrar’s functions as may be prescribed by the civil procedure rules or the criminal procedure rules.
(1) The Minister may, by order in writing, appoint a person to act in the office of registrar or assistant registrar during:
(a) an absence from duty of the registrar or assistant registrar, or (b) a vacancy of not more than 6 months’ duration in the office of the registrar or assistant registrar. (2) The Minister may delegate to the Secretary of the Department of Justice the Minister’s power of appointment under this section.
(1) The Chief Judge may, by order in writing, direct that the Court is, during a specified calendar year, to sit in its civil jurisdiction at such proclaimed places or other places within the State and at such times as may be specified in the order. (1A) The Chief Judge is to consult with the Attorney General before making a direction under subsection (1) that substantially alters the frequency of sittings at a particular place compared with the previous calendar year.
(1) If a defendant has been duly served with the document commencing an action:
(a) the Court has jurisdiction in accordance with this Act to hear and dispose of the action, and (b) a registrar has and may exercise:
(i) if the action involves proceedings to which the applies, the functions conferred on the registrar pursuant to section 12 or 13 of that Act, or Civil Procedure Act 2005 (ii) in any other case, the functions prescribed by the civil procedure rules, regardless of whether the cause of action to which the action relates arose wholly or partly outside New South Wales.
(1) An action in which the amount claimed does not exceed $4,000 and which could have been commenced in the Local Court shall not be commenced in the District Court except with the leave of the District Court, which leave may be given on terms.
(1) This section applies to an action or cross-claim that, but for this section, the Court would not have jurisdiction to hear and dispose of by reason only of the fact that the amount claimed exceeds the jurisdictional limit of the Court as at the time the action was commenced. (2) The Court has, and may exercise, jurisdiction to hear and dispose of an action or cross-claim to which this section applies:
(a) if a party to the action or cross-claim files a memorandum of consent in respect of the action or cross-claim, or (b) if no objection to the Court’s jurisdiction has been raised by any of the parties prior to 3 months before the trial of the action commences. (3) For the purposes of subsection (1):
(a) the jurisdictional limit of the Court in relation to an action commenced before 1 July 1993 is taken to be $100,000, and (b) the jurisdictional limit of the Court in relation to an action commenced on or after 1 July 1993 but before 18 July 1997 is taken to be $250,000.
(1) An action is to be tried without a jury, unless the Court orders otherwise.
(1) In an action the Judge shall determine all questions of law.
(1) This section applies if, after judgment in an action, the Court orders that proceedings be stayed during the period within which an appeal may be brought.
(1) The Court shall have jurisdiction to grant an injunction, to be called a temporary injunction, to restrain:
(a) a threatened or apprehended trespass or nuisance, or (b) the breach of a negative stipulation in a contract the consideration for which does not exceed $20,000, in like manner, subject to this Subdivision, as the Supreme Court might grant an interlocutory injunction in like circumstances. (2) Subject to this Subdivision, a temporary injunction shall continue in force for a specified period not exceeding fourteen days, but if the specified period is less than fourteen days, it may be renewed from time to time, but so that the total period for which the temporary injunction is in force does not exceed fourteen days.
(1) If a party to any proceedings before the Court in its compensation jurisdiction is aggrieved by an award of the Court in point of law or on a question as to the admission or rejection of evidence, that party may appeal to the Court of Appeal.
(1) The Court may, subject to any order of the Supreme Court, order a stay of proceedings (on such terms as the Court thinks fit) in respect of any award the subject of an appeal under this Division.
(1) The Rule Committee may make rules, not inconsistent with this Act, for or with respect to any matter:
• that by this Act, or by any other Act or law, is required or permitted to be prescribed by rules, or • that is necessary or convenient to be prescribed by rules, for the purposes of, or in connection with, the exercise by the Court of its civil jurisdiction under provisions of this Act, or of any other Act or law, or for carrying any such provisions into effect, and in particular for or with respect to:
(a) providing for the procedure (including the method of pleading) and the practice to be followed in the Court in all proceedings in which, or with respect to which, the Court has for the time being civil jurisdiction, and regulating or providing for any matters incidental to, or relating to, any such procedure or practice, (b) subject to the provisions of any other Act, regulating and prescribing the procedure and practice to be followed in connection with the transfer of any proceedings to the Court from any other court or from the Court to any inferior court, and, where proceedings are transferred to the Court, the procedure and practice thereafter to be followed in the Court, and (c) subject to the provisions of any other Act, regulating and prescribing the procedure and practice to be followed in connection with the institution of any appeal to the Court, including:
(i) the time within which, and the manner in which, the appeal is to be instituted, and (ii) the procedure and practice thereafter to be followed in the Court. (2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), rules may be made under that subsection for or with respect to:
(a) prescribing the powers, authorities, duties and functions of the Judicial Registrar, other registrars, assistant registrars, bailiffs, assistant bailiffs and other officers of the Court, and the Sheriff, and the records to be kept by them in relation to or for the purposes of any proceedings, (b) enabling any specified registrar, in such circumstances as may be prescribed, to exercise the powers and authorities, and to discharge the duties and functions, of another specified registrar, (c) providing for the sittings of the Court and the regulation of business at those sittings, (d) prescribing and providing for the places at which particular proceedings may be heard, commenced or otherwise dealt with and prescribing the circumstances in which, and the conditions subject to which, the venue of proceedings or specified parts of proceedings may be changed, (e) providing for the vacations and holidays of the Court and for the hearing and disposal of proceedings during any such vacations or holidays, (f) providing for and regulating the joinder of causes of action and the consolidation of proceedings, (g) providing for the bringing and disposal of proceedings by or against the executor, administrator or trustee of the estate of any person and providing for the enforcement of judgment in any such proceedings, (h) prescribing or providing for the manner in which corporations may participate in proceedings, (i) providing for the joinder of parties in proceedings, (j) prescribing the cases or circumstances in which security may be required in relation to proceedings, the form of any such security, and the manner in which, and the person to whom, it is to be given, (k) providing for pleading in relation to cross-claims (whether in the nature of set-off, cross-action or otherwise), (l) empowering the Court to strike out the whole or any part of any proceedings brought by a party on the ground that the proceedings or part of the proceedings are frivolous or vexatious or disclose no cause of action, or on any other ground prescribed in the rules, and to reinstate any proceedings that have been struck out, (m) providing for the trial or hearing of proceedings, including the giving of written or oral evidence and the production of documents and other things in evidence at the trial or hearing, (n) regulating the means by which particular facts may be proved, and the mode in which evidence may be given (including the administration of oaths to and the taking of evidence of witnesses in or out of New South Wales), in any proceedings or in any application in connection with, or at any stage of, any proceedings, (o) empowering the Court:
(i) to dispense with the rules of evidence for proving any matter that is not genuinely in dispute in any proceedings and to dispense with such rules of evidence as might cause expense or delay in proceedings if those rules were applied in specified circumstances, and (ii) to require a party to any proceedings (not being a minor or person of unsound mind) to make admissions with respect to documents or questions of fact, and prescribing the effects of and consequences for failing to comply with a requirement of the kind referred to in subparagraph (ii), (p) prescribing matters relating to expert evidence, including the disclosure, by providing copies of reports or otherwise, of the nature of expert evidence to be given, and including the exclusion of expert evidence in the case of non-compliance with the rules relating to expert evidence or with any order for disclosure of the nature of expert evidence, (q) providing for and regulating the payment or transfer of money into and out of the Court, (r) providing for the manner and form in which, and the times and places at which, judgments, orders or other decisions of the Court may be given, (s) empowering Judges to deal with and determine specified kinds of proceedings or specified parts of specified kinds of proceedings while sitting in chambers, (t) prescribing the circumstances in which judgments may be set aside, (u) providing for judgments by confession, agreement or consent and providing for orders for judgment, default judgments and orders for summary judgment and the circumstances in which such judgments and orders may be given or made, (v) prescribing the circumstances in which a party to proceedings may be non-suited, (w) enabling the Court to order that the amount of a judgment in favour of a person against another person be set off against an amount payable under another judgment in favour of that other person against the firstmentioned person, (x) providing for matters relating to proceedings in which a person interpleads, including the staying of proceedings in courts other than the Court and for the barring of claims of persons who do not interplead when required to do so, (y) providing for any matters relating to the costs of proceedings, (z) empowering the Court to order the Australian legal practitioner for a party to particular proceedings personally to pay specified costs of the proceedings and to order further that the costs so specified not be recoverable by the Australian legal practitioner from that party, (aa), (ab) (ac) prescribing matters relating to claims for, payment of, and entering up of judgment for, interest on money (including debts, damages and the value of goods) recovered or sought to be recovered in proceedings before the Court, (ad) prescribing means for, and the procedure and practice to be followed in, the enforcement and execution of judgments and orders of the Court, (ae) providing for the manner of payment of a judgment debt and prescribing the practice and procedure to be followed in relation to orders and agreements for varying the manner of payment of any such debt, (af) empowering the Court to direct the manner or form of procedure to be followed in any particular proceedings in which the manner or form of procedure for taking any step in the proceedings is not prescribed by or under this Part, (ag) providing for the service or giving of notices, documents and other instruments relating to proceedings, (ah) providing for the amendment of documents filed by a party to any proceedings, (ai) prescribing the times for doing or not doing any act or thing for the purposes of this Act or the rules in or in relation to any proceedings, and (aj) interim payments. (3) (4) The rules may make provision for or with respect to the bringing of money into the Court by a defendant in any proceedings and, without affecting the generality of the foregoing provisions of this subsection, may make provision for or with respect to:
(a) prescribing the manner in which money may be so brought into the Court, (b) without affecting the generality of paragraph (a), deeming money to be brought into the Court if there is filed a security given by:
(i) the Government Insurance Office under the or the Motor Vehicles (Third Party Insurance) Act 1942 or where the matter relates to a cause of action which arose before 1 July 1984, an authorised insurer under that Act, Transport Accidents Compensation Act 1987 (ii) a licensed insurer under the , or Workers’ Compensation Act 1926 (iii) any other person authorised by the Court, (c) requiring the Government Insurance Office, insurer or other person who gives a security as referred to in paragraph (b) to pay the amount for which the security was given in the prescribed circumstances and providing that any such amount not so paid may be enforced as a judgment against the Government Insurance Office, insurer or other person, and (d) determining the effect on the cause or causes of action on which the proceedings were brought where the plaintiff accepts the money so brought into the Court.
(1) The Rule Committee may make rules, not inconsistent with this Act or any other 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 Court of its criminal jurisdiction or that is necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Part and Division 3 of Part 2 or any Act under or by virtue of which rules under this Part apply, and in particular for or with respect to providing for the procedure and practice to be followed in the Court in all proceedings in which, and with respect to which, the Court has for the time being criminal jurisdiction and regulating or providing for any matters incidental to, or relating to, any such procedure or practice.
(1) The Chief Judge is, by order in writing, to direct that the Court is, during a specified calendar year, to sit in its criminal jurisdiction at such proclaimed places or other places within the State and at such times as may be specified in the order.
(1) A person may apply to the Court in proceedings to which this Part applies for the Court to permit the recording and broadcast of judgment remarks of the Court that are made in those proceedings. Note— Sections 9 and 9A of the prohibit the use of recording devices in courts, and the transmission of court proceedings from a courtroom, except in limited circumstances. One of those circumstances is when it has been expressly permitted by a judicial officer. Court Security Act 2005 (2) If such an application is made, the Court is to permit the recording of the judgment remarks of the Court, and their broadcast by one or more news media organisations (whether or not the organisations are also the applicants), unless the Court is satisfied that:
(a) an exclusionary ground referred to in subsection (3) is present, and (b) except in the case of the exclusionary ground referred to in subsection (3) (d)—it is not reasonably practicable to implement measures when recording or broadcasting the judgment remarks (including by making an order under subsection (5)) to prevent the broadcast of any thing that gives rise to the exclusionary ground.
(1) (2) A person appointed as a judge under section 14 of the and holding office as such immediately before the commencement of this Act, shall be deemed to have been appointed as a Judge under section 13 of this Act. District Courts Act 1912
(1) Subject to subsection (3), in an instrument:
(a) a reference to the Chairman of the District Court Judges shall be read and construed as a reference to the Chief Judge, (b) subject to paragraphs (c) and (d), a reference to a District Court judge shall be read and construed as a reference to a Judge appointed under this Act, (c) subject to paragraph (d), a reference to a District Court judge within whose jurisdiction, or within whose district, or of or for the district where, or having or exercising jurisdiction within the district where, a place, building, institution or any other matter or thing is situated, or an event occurred or is occurring or is expected to occur, or a person has his or her place of abode or resides or carries on his or her business, shall be read and construed as a reference to the new Court sitting at the nearest proclaimed place to the place where that place, building, institution, matter or thing is situated, or that event occurred or is occurring or is expected to occur, or that person has his or her place of abode or resides or carries on his or her business, and (d) a reference to a District Court judge occurring in conjunction with or in relation to a reference to a district shall, if the rules so provide, be read and construed as a reference to the new Court sitting at the proclaimed place specified in or determined in accordance with the rules.
(1) Where any proceedings would, had section 3 (ff) of the not taken effect, have been continued, heard or disposed of after the commencement of that provision in a former Court, those proceedings shall be continued, heard or disposed of, respectively, in the new Court in its criminal and special jurisdiction, sitting at the place at which the former Court was sitting. District Court (Amendment) Act 1975
(1) In this section, contemnor means a person guilty or alleged to be guilty of contempt of court committed in the face of the Court or in the hearing of the Court.(2) Where it is alleged, or appears to the Court on its own view, that a person is guilty of contempt of court committed in the face of the Court or in the hearing of the Court, the Court may:
(a) by oral order direct that the contemnor be brought before the Court, or (b) issue a warrant for the arrest of the contemnor. (3) Where the contemnor is brought before the Court, the Court shall:
(a) cause the contemnor to be informed orally of the contempt with which he or she is charged, (b) require the contemnor to make his or her defence to the charge, (c) after hearing the contemnor, determine the matter of the charge, and (d) make an order for the punishment or discharge of the contemnor.
(1) Offence A person is guilty of an offence against this section if:
(a) the person is an accused person or defendant in, or a party to, proceedings before the Court or has been called to give evidence in proceedings before the Court, and (b) the person intentionally engages in behaviour in the Court during the proceedings, and (c) that behaviour is disrespectful to the Court or the Judge presiding over the proceedings (according to established court practice and convention). Maximum penalty: 14 days imprisonment or 10 penalty units, or both. (2) In this section, behaviour means any act or failure to act.(3) This section does not apply to an Australian legal practitioner appearing in that capacity. (4) Proceedings for offences Proceedings against a person for an offence against this section are to be dealt with summarily before:
(a) if the person is a child—the Children’s Court, or (b) if the person is not a child—the Local Court. (5) Proceedings for an offence against this section may be brought at any time within 12 months after the date of the alleged offence.
(Section 18FA (6))