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    Federal Magistrates Court of Australia

    About the Court

    Jurisdiction of the Federal Magistrates Court

    The jurisdiction of the Federal Magistrates Court includes family law and child support, administrative law, bankruptcy, human rights, consumer protection and trade practices, privacy, migration, copyright, industrial law and admiralty law. The Court shares those jurisdictions within the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Court of Australia. Some work in those jurisdictions will also continue to be done in state courts.

    Introduction

      The jurisdiction conferred on the Federal Magistrates Court is concurrent with that of the Family Court and the Federal Court. That is, the Federal Magistrates Court has no exclusive jurisdiction and in some areas its jurisdiction is less extensive than that of the Federal Court and Family Court.

      The Federal Magistrates Court does not deal with criminal matters.

    Family Law and Child Support

      In the Family law area, the Federal Magistrates Court has jurisdiction in the following matters:

      applications for divorce

      applications concerning spousal and de facto maintenance

      property disputes

      all parenting orders including those providing for where a child lives, who a child spends time and communicates with, maintenance or specific issues

      enforcement of orders made by either the Federal Magistrates Court or the Family Court.

      location and recovery orders as well as warrants for the apprehension or detention of a child.

      determination of parentage and recovery of child bearing expenses.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has the same jurisdiction as the Family Court of Australia in relation to matters under the Child Support Act.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has no jurisdiction to determine matters relating to adoption or applications concerning nullity or validity of marriage.

      For comprehensive information on family law, including forms and publications, please visit www.familylawcourts.gov.au.  The Family Law Courts comprise the Family Court and the Federal Magistrates Court.

    General Federal Law

      In general federal law matters, the Federal Magistrates Court shares jurisdiction with the Federal Court in areas such as administrative law, bankruptcy, human rights, consumer protection and trade practices, privacy, migration, copyright, industrial law and admiralty law.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has an identical jurisdiction to that of the Federal Court of Australia in matters arising under the Bankruptcy Act 1966 and the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986.

      The Federal Magistrates Court also has an identical jurisdiction to that of the Federal Court in matters under the Administrative Decision (Judicial Review) Act 1977 and in relation to appeals from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal that are transferred to the Federal Magistrates Court by the Federal Court.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has concurrent jurisdiction with the Federal Court to review visa-related decisions of the Migration Review Tribunal, the Refugee Review Tribunal and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

      In trade practices matters the Federal Magistrates Court has jurisdiction under several parts of the Trade Practices Act, including consumer protection, unconscionable conduct, industry codes, unfair practices, product safety, pyramid selling and the manufacture and importation of defective goods. The Court may award damages up to a maximum of $750,000.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has jurisdiction to hear and determine civil copyright matters under the Copyright Act 1968, as amended by the Copyright Amendment (Parallel Importation) Act 2003. In particular, the court can deal with matters arising under Parts V, VAA, IX and section 248J of the Copyright Act 1968.

      The Federal Magistrates Court has jurisdiction to hear and determine matters under the Workplace Relations Act 1996. In particular, the Court can hear matters under Section 170 CP of the Act, including unlawful terminations, unfair contracts and breaches of agreement making.

      Under the Admiralty Act (1988), the Federal Magistrates Court shares jurisdiction with the Federal Court and state courts in respect of proceedings commenced as actions in personam (against a person) on a maritime claim or on a claim for damage done to a ship. The Federal Court and State Supreme Courts can remit actions in rem (against a ship or other property) to the Federal Magistrates Court for determination.

    For more information see:

Administrative Law,
Bankruptcy,
Consumer Protection and Trade Practices,
Copyright,
Family and Child Support,
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Law (Unlawful Discrimination)
Migration,
Privacy Law,
Industrial Law,
Admiralty Law

See also:

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