New South Wales Consolidated Acts

DISTRICT COURT ACT 1973 - SECT 13

13 Appointment and qualifications of Judges

(1) The Governor may, by commission under the public seal of the State, appoint any qualified person as a Judge.

(2) In this section:
"qualified person" means any of the following persons:

(a) a person who is an Australian lawyer of at least 7 years’ standing,

(b) a person who holds or has held a judicial office of this State or of the Commonwealth, another State or a Territory,

(c) without limiting paragraph (a) or (b), the Chief Magistrate of the Local Court.

(3) The following provisions apply to and in respect of the Chief Magistrate of the Local Court if he or she also holds office as a Judge:

(a) service by the Chief Magistrate in the office of the Chief Magistrate is, for the purposes of this Act (including section 15) and the Judges’ Pensions Act 1953 , taken to be service in the office of a Judge,

(b) the Chief Magistrate may not hear or determine an appeal in his or her capacity as a Judge from any decision made by the Chief Magistrate in his or her capacity as a Magistrate of the Local Court,

(c) nothing in this Act or any other law requires the Chief Magistrate to devote the whole of his or her time to the duties of a Judge.

Note: Section 14 (5) of the Local Court Act 2007 enables a Chief Magistrate who has been appointed as a Judge to exercise the jurisdiction of the District Court while holding office as the Chief Magistrate by arrangement with the Chief Judge.

(4) The Governor may, by the commission of a person’s appointment as a Judge or by a subsequent commission under the public seal of the State, appoint a Judge to be Chief Judge.

(5) Subject to subsection (6), the Chief Judge shall hold office as Chief Judge so long as he or she holds office as a Judge.

(6) With the approval of the Governor, the Chief Judge may resign his or her office as Chief Judge without resigning his or her office as a Judge.

(7) A Judge shall, while he or she holds office as such, be deemed to have been appointed a justice of the peace.

(8) A person who vacates office as a Judge may, despite vacating his or her office, complete or otherwise continue to deal with any matters relating to proceedings that have been heard, or partly heard, by the person before vacating his or her office (including proceedings that were instituted before the commencement of this subsection).

(9) While a person completes or otherwise continues under subsection (8) to deal with any matters relating to proceedings that have been heard or partly heard by the person before vacating office, the person has all the entitlements and functions of a Judge and, for the purpose of those proceedings, is taken to continue to be a Judge.