On 5 May 2009 the Attorney-General announced that the Rudd Government will restructure the federal courts system by merging the Federal Magistrates Court into the Family Court and Federal Court, consolidating all family law matters under the Family Court and consolidating all general federal law matters under the Federal Court.
The Family Court will be the single court dealing with all family law matters:
- The restructured Family Court will have two tiers
- Existing judges of the Family Court will operate in the first tier and undertake appeals and other complex work
- Federal Magistrates will operate in the second tier and undertake the bulk of the family law work, including some work previously done by judges
- Family law matters will generally be heard initially by a judge in the second tier of the Court, with complex matters being redirected to the first tier
- Federal Magistrates integrated into the Family Court will be renamed ‘judges’.
These changes will take time and clients of the Court are unlikely to experience any disruption or significant change, particularly in this early stage.
More information
Attorney-General’s media release and fact sheet (Attorney General's website)
Future Governance Options for Federal Family Law Courts in Australia (PDF Size 300 KB)