FAMILY LAW RULES (AMENDMENT) 1994 NO. 25

FAMILY LAW RULES (AMENDMENT) 1994 NO. 25

STATUTORY RULES 1994 No. 25

Issued by the authority of the Judges of Family Court of Australia

AMENDMENT OF THE FAMILY LAW RULES

Section 123 of the Family Law Act 1975 provides that the Judges of the Family Court of Australia, or a majority of them, may make Rules of Court providing for the practice and procedure to be followed in the Family Court and other courts exercising jurisdiction under the Family Law Act.

Section 123 (2) of the Family Law Act provides that sections 48, 48A, 48B, 49 and 50 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 apply in relation to the Rules of Court as if references in those sections to regulations were references to Rules of Court.

The present Family Law Rules came into operation on 2 January 1985. They have been regularly reviewed since that date.

DETAILS OF THE PROVISIONS

Rule 1 provides the commencement date.

Rules 2 & 3 are not substantive amendments. It corrects a drafting error in Statutory Rule 1993 No 160 which placed the rules relating to filing a document by facsimile transmission in Order 2 rule 5 instead of Order 2 rule 7. This amendment has already been rectified in various Family Law publications by way of the slip rule.

Rule 4 limits the operation of the rule relating to undertakings to those undertakings given in Court. This ensures the rule does not apply to those undertakings of an administrative nature which are given by letter or upon lodgement of documents, eg, undertaking to file a marriage certificate within a specified time.

Rule 4.2 is a stylistic amendment only.

Rule 5 requires an appellant to provide sealed copies of a notice of appeal under Section 96 of the Act by assured service to each other party to the appeal within two days. The sealed notice must also be filed in the court appealed from within two days. This is to ensure that appeals can be heard without undue delay.

Rule 6 ensures that once a notice of appeal under Section 96 of the Act has been filed in a Court of summary jurisdiction that that Court forward as soon as practicable all documents in its possession that relate to the appeal to the Registrar of the Court in which the appeal has been lodged.

Rule 7 omits the requirement that a sealed copy of a breached order or subpoena be served on a respondent at the time that a warrant is executed. This amendment overcomes the difficulties that have arisen in the past especially when warrants are issued outside of normal court hours.

Rules 8.1 - 8.3 amends Forms 36, 37 and 38 by omitting the penalty of $500 and substituting the sum of $5 000. This sum is now the maximum sum that applies for all breaches of a statutory rule.

Rule 8.4 amends the form relating to undertakings given in court (Form 41A) in a way that more accurately reflects the provisions in Order 31 rule 10.