Review of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 – Terms of Reference

Publication date

Objective

In accordance with s 284 of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 (FCFCOA Act), a review is to be conducted to consider the operation of the FCFCOA Act over the first three years since its commencement.[1]

Context

On 1 September 2021, through the enactment of the FCFCOA Act and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2021, the then Family Court of Australia and the then Federal Circuit Court of Australia were brought together under a single administrative structure known as the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA) comprising two divisions.

Division 1 of the FCFCOA differs from the previous stand-alone Family Court of Australia in several key respects, including that it does not have original jurisdiction in family law matters and does not have an Appeal Division.

Matters to be considered

The review is to consider and provide a written report on:

  1. The impact of the structural reforms to the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, including with respect to:
    • dual appointments
    • the operation of the FCFCOA (Division 2) as a single point of entry for federal family law matters
    • the allocations of original and appellate jurisdiction in federal family law matters
    • the level of specialisation of judicial officers exercising family law jurisdiction
    • any impact of the change of name to FCFCOA Division 1 and Division 2.
  2. Any aspects of the FCFCOA Act that have had unintended impacts on the operation or the effectiveness of the court's federal family law and general federal law jurisdiction, procedure or jurisprudence.
  3. With respect to the above matters, whether the operation of the Act can be improved through legislative amendments or other non-legislative changes, including structural changes.

Broader consideration of the family law system and Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) outside of the impact of the FCFCOA Act, resourcing for the courts, or an economic evaluation of the efficiency of the courts, are not to form part of the review.

Conduct of the review

The review should consult as widely as the reviewer considers necessary, including with the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, the Family Court of Western Australia, government funded legal assistance providers, the legal profession more broadly – including peak representative bodies – and the community.

In the event that there is more than one reviewer, the reviewers must provide a single, agreed report, including only joint recommendations.

Timing of the review

The review will commence after 1 September 2024 and must be completed on or before 1 March 2025. A copy of the report will be tabled in each House of the Australian Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after the report is given to the Attorney-General.

[1] The review date was brought forward from the fifth anniversary of the commencement of the FCFCOA Act to the third anniversary following an amendment of s.284 made by the Family Law Amendment Act 2023 (Schedule 8, item 1).