Western Australian Consolidated Acts Western Australian Consolidated Acts (1) If an application
made under this Act is, or involves, a claim for an amount over the prescribed
amount, any court that is competent to hear and determine a claim founded on
contract for the amount of that claim has jurisdiction to hear and determine
the application.
(2) To the extent that
subsection (1) confers jurisdiction on the Magistrates Court, that
jurisdiction is not to be exercised in accordance with Part 4 of the
Magistrates Court (Civil Proceedings) Act 2004 .
(3) Despite
subsection (2), the parties to an application referred to in
subsection (1) in respect of which the Magistrates Court has jurisdiction
may consent in writing (which consent is irrevocable) to the proceedings being
heard and determined by the Magistrates Court in accordance with Part 4
of the Magistrates Court (Civil Proceedings) Act 2004 .
(4) In respect of the
hearing and determination of an application referred to in subsection (1)
—
(a) the
practice and procedure applicable in the court dealing with the application
shall, subject to subsection (3), apply and this Part (other than this
subsection) and regulations made for the purposes of this Part shall not
apply; but
(b)
subject to paragraph (a), this Act shall apply.
(5) If on an
application referred to in subsection (1) the plaintiff recovers an
amount that is not more than the prescribed amount, the plaintiff shall not be
awarded any costs unless the court is satisfied that at the time of making the
application there were reasonable grounds for the plaintiff to believe that he
had a claim for an amount over the prescribed amount.
[Section 13 inserted by No. 59 of 2004
s. 119.]