Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Magistrates' Court Act 1989 - SECT 16

Rules of Court

16. Rules of Court





(1) The Chief Magistrate together with 2 or more Deputy Chief Magistrates may
jointly make rules of court for or with respect to the following-

   (a)  any matter dealt with in the Rules referred to in subsection (5);

   (b)  the prescription of the civil proceedings or class of civil
        proceedings which may be dealt with by the Court constituted by a
        registrar;

   (c)  the prescription of any venue of the court as a civil registry court;





   (d)  appeals in civil proceedings by way of re-hearing or otherwise to the
        Court constituted by a magistrate from the Court constituted by a
        registrar;

   (e)  the payment of money into and out of court in civil proceedings and
        the investment of that money;

   (ea) the service of documents in civil proceedings, including service
        outside Australia;

   (f)  any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Court in
        civil proceedings;

   (fa) the reference of any civil proceeding or of any part of a civil
        proceeding to mediation;



   (fb) the referral of any civil proceeding, or any part of a civil
        proceeding, for a pre-hearing conference and the conduct of
        pre-hearing conferences;

   (fc) judicial resolution conferences, including, but not limited to the
        practice and procedure of the Court in relation to judicial resolution
        conferences;

   (g)  any matter relating to the enforcement of orders made by the Court in
        civil proceedings;

   (h)  the storage, disposal or destruction of documents-

   (i)  filed or lodged with the appropriate registrar in civil proceedings;
        or

   (ii) issued out of the Court in civil proceedings and kept by the principal
        registrar.

(1A) The Chief Magistrate together with 2 or more Deputy Chief Magistrates may
jointly make rules of court for or with respect to the following-

   (a)  prescribing by scale or otherwise the costs of and incidental to
        criminal proceedings in the Court;

   (b)  prescribing a method for the electronic filing of charges;

   (c)  the form in which process may be issued out of the Court and the
        manner in which it may be authenticated, stored, transmitted or
        otherwise dealt with;

   (ca) any matter relating to sentence indications under section 50A;



   (d)  the manner in which orders may be authenticated;

   (e)  any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Koori Court
        Division of the Court;

   (f)  the transfer of proceedings to and from the Koori Court Division of
        the Court;

   (g)  any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Family
        Violence Court Division of the Court;

   (h)  the transfer of proceedings to and from the Family Violence Court
        Division of the Court;

   (ha) the causes of action or claims, or classes of causes of action or
        claims, or proceedings or classes of proceedings, that may be heard
        and determined in the Neighbourhood Justice Division of the Court;

   (hb) any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Neighbourhood
        Justice Division of the Court;

   (hc) the transfer of proceedings to and from the Neighbourhood Justice
        Division of the Court;

        (i)    the procedure to be followed on a proceeding held under an
               order made under section 56A;

   (j)  any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Court in
        committal proceedings;

   (k)  without limiting paragraph (j), steps or processes in the course of a
        committal proceeding, the purpose or objective of any such step or
        process, the prescription of time limits in relation to the taking of
        any such step or process and the procedure applicable to that step or
        process;

   (l)  forms to be used in committal proceedings;

   (la) prescribing persons or classes of persons for the purposes of clause
        8(1)(b) of Schedule 5;



   (m)  prescribing the venue of the Court at which any particular proceeding
        or class of proceeding or procedure set out in the
        Infringements Act 2006 is to be brought;

   (n)  prescribing the rules, practice and procedure applicable to the
        execution of a warrant to seize property issued for the enforcement of
        an order made by the Court in a criminal proceeding;





   (o)  the storage, disposal or destruction of documents-

   (i)  filed or lodged with the appropriate registrar in criminal
        proceedings; or

   (ii) issued out of the Court in criminal proceedings and kept by the
        principal registrar;

   (p)  requirements for the purposes of Part IIA of the Evidence Act 1958 for
        or with respect to-

   (i)  the form of audio visual or audio link;

   (ii) the equipment, or class of equipment, used to establish the link;

   (iii) the layout of cameras;

   (iv) the standard, or speed, of transmission;

   (v)  the quality of communication;

   (vi) any other matter relating to the link;

   (q)  applications to the Court under Division 2 or 3 of Part IIA of the
        Evidence Act 1958;

   (r)  any matter relating to the practice and procedure of the Court under
        Part IIA of the Evidence Act 1958;

   (s)  the forms to be used in criminal proceedings;

   (t)  prescribing the manner of service of any document in a criminal
        proceeding;

   (u)  the recording of proceedings in the Court;

        (v)    generally, any matter relating to the practice and procedure of
               the Court in criminal proceedings.





(1B) Without limiting any other power to make rules of court conferred by this
or any other Act, the Chief Magistrate together with 2 or more Deputy Chief
Magistrates may jointly make rules of court for or with respect to generally
prescribing any matter or thing required or permitted by this Act to be
prescribed by rules of court or necessary to be prescribed by rules of court
to give effect to this Act.

(1C) In exercising a power conferred by subsection (1A)(j), (k) or (l) to make
rules, the Chief Magistrate and the Deputy Chief Magistrates must have regard
to the interests of the community in ensuring the prompt and efficient
disposal of criminal proceedings.

(1D) A power conferred by this Act to make rules may be exercised-

   (a)  either in relation to all cases to which the power extends, or in
        relation to all those cases subject to specified exceptions, or in
        relation to any specified case or class of case; and

   (b)  so as to make, as respects the cases in relation to which it is
        exercised-

   (i)  the same provision for all cases in relation to which the power is
        exercised, or different provisions for different cases or classes of
        case, or different provisions for the same case or class of case for
        different purposes; or

   (ii) any such provision either unconditionally or subject to any specified
        condition.

(1E) Rules made under this Act may be made so as to-

   (a)  require a matter affected by the rules to be approved by or to the
        satisfaction of a specified court official or a specified class of
        court official; and

   (b)  confer a discretionary authority or impose a duty on a specified
        person or a specified class of person; and

   (c)  provide in a specified case or class of case for the exemption of
        proceedings or a class of proceeding from any of the provisions of the
        rules, whether unconditionally or on specified conditions and either
        wholly or to such an extent as is specified.

(2) The power of the Chief Magistrate together with 2 or more Deputy Chief
Magistrates to jointly make rules of court, whether that power is conferred by
this or any other Act, is subject to the rules being disallowed by a House of
the Parliament in accordance with section 23 of the
Subordinate Legislation Act 1994.



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(5) The proposed Magistrates' Court Civil Procedure Rules 1989 approved by a
majority of the magistrates on 17 March 1989-

   (a)  are for all purposes (including the purposes of the Subordinate
        Legislation Act 1962) to be treated; and

   (b)  have effect; and

   (c)  may be revoked or amended-

as if they had been made under this Act on the day on which this Act received
the Royal Assent.