Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia

10 July 2023

By Alex Mondia

Current at May 2023

On 1 September 2021, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia officially became the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA).

The Chief Justice of Division 1 of the FCFCOA and Chief Judge of Division 2, the Honorable Will Alstergren, has said that “the new court provides an opportunity to change the conversation about family law litigation”.  

The new court has therefore brought with it a number of major changes, the goals of which are to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of justice (including an increased focus on the use of alternative dispute resolution) by applying common approaches in a simplified court system.

Here is what you need to know about the key changes and what they mean.

How does the FCFCOA operate?

The FCFCOA was established by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 and deals with family law and general federal law matters (such as migration and bankruptcy).

There no specialist family law court in Australia which deals exclusively with family law matters (other than the Family Court of Western Australia (FCWA)).  Whilst the FCFCOA is not a specialist family law court, there are a minimum number of specialist family judges at all times and all judges dealing with family law matters must satisfy additional appointment criteria that they have the “necessary knowledge, skills, experience and aptitude” to do so.

The FCFCOA is made up of two divisions.

Division 1 deals exclusively with family law matters (including family law appeals either by single judge or as part of a Full Court).  This division will have a minimum 35 specialist family law judges.

Division 2 deals with family law matters and general federal law matters.  This division has at least 55 specialist family law judges.  All family law matters start in Division 2.

Both divisions of the FCFCOA exercising family law jurisdiction are governed by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Court) Rules 2021 and all matters aim to follow a nationally consistent case management pathway aiming to ensure that 90% of matters are resolved within 12 months of filing.

How will the changes impact Western Australia?

Western Australia decided to establish its own court to deal exclusively with family law matters, namely, the FCWA.

The FCWA has both state and federal jurisdiction in family law matters and deals with all aspects of family law for married and de facto couples for litigants who are either living in Western Australia or are sufficiently connected to the state.

Until recently, the FCWA was governed by the Family Law Rules 2004 (which were the same rules which governed the former Family Court of Australia) and the Family Court Rules 1998, however, recently the FCWA has adopted and is now governed by its own new rules, namely, the Family Court Rules 2021.

The formation of the FCFCOA and the changes made to the family law system applicable in the other states have had little impact on Western Australian litigants. In fact, the only circumstances in which a Western Australian litigant may find themselves in the FCFCOA would be if they were a party to a marriage who was appealing a decision of the FCWA.

In the rare circumstance that a Western Australian litigant finds themselves needing to commence proceedings in the FCFCOA, there is a FCFCOA Appeals Registry located at the FCWA. The FCFCOA Appeals Registrar may make some procedural orders, however, more complex hearings will need to be heard by a Judge of the FCFCOA or the Full Bench of the FCFCOA (three judges of the FCFCOA sitting together).

We’re Here to Help

Family law matters can be difficult and complex. If you require any assistance with a family law dispute, always contact a legal practitioner who will be able to help.

O’Sullivan Davies has practitioners experienced in dealing with all family law issues. More information about our services can be found at our About Us page here.

Disclaimer

This article is not legal advice and the views and comments are of a general nature only. This article is not to be relied upon in substitution for detailed legal advice.

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