Bill
Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2018
lapsed, as at 2019-07-01. Attorney-General portfolio.
- Sponsor
- Not recorded
- Portfolio
- Attorney-General
Recorded stages
- introduced — 2018-08-23
- second reading — 2018-08-23
- second reading — 2018-11-26
- second reading — 2018-11-27
- second reading — 2018-11-27
- committee — 2018-11-27
- third reading — 2018-11-27
- introduced — 2018-12-03
- second reading — 2018-12-03
- other — 2019-07-01
Divisions
- Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2018 - Second Reading - Agree with the bill's main idea — 2018-11-27, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 76, noes 68
- The majority voted in favour of [amendments](https://www.openaustralia.org.au/debates/?id=2018-11-27.100.1) introduced by Liberal MP Stuart Robert, which means they succeeded. These amendments related to the commencement date and court fees. ### What does this bill do? This [bill](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:legislation/billhome/r6168), together with the [Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Bill 2018](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6167), was introduced to: > *bring the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia together into an overarching, unified administrative structure to be known as the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.* Note that on 23 August 2018, the Senate referred the provisions of these two related bills to the [Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Legal_and_Constitutional_Affairs/FederalCourts) for inquiry and report by 15 April 2019. — 2018-11-27, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 76, noes 68
- Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2018 - Third Reading - Pass the bill — 2018-11-27, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 76, noes 68
Plain-language summary
Written by a model from the explanatory memorandum; not the record, as at 2018-08-23.
This bill makes technical changes to other laws and sets transition rules needed for the merger of the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court into a single court with two divisions.
Most appeals from the new court would be heard by a new Family Law Appeal Division inside the Federal Court, leaving only a small appeal role for Division 1.
The bill would take effect when the main merger act starts, and it preserves existing judicial appointments and handles appeals already filed at that date.
- The bill amends the Federal Court of Australia Act 1976 to create the Family Law Appeal Division.
- The bill amends the Family Law Act 1975 so it works with the new court structure.
- The bill removes most of the Family Court’s appellate function and gives it to the Federal Court’s new division.
- The bill provides a framework to transition the titles and appointments of judges and other personnel from the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court to the new divisions.
- The bill sets transitional arrangements for family law appeals that are ongoing or eligible to be filed when the new court starts.
- The bill ensures that any first-instance cases already in the Family Court or Federal Circuit Court continue in the corresponding new division.
Australian families involved in federal family law disputes, judges and court personnel of the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court, and the federal court system as a whole.
Sources
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