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‘Catastrophic’ court merger must be rejected
The recently-released Senate report into the proposed merger of the Family Court of Australia and Federal Circuit Court “has exposed deep flaws and overwhelming opposition”, argues the Law Council of Australia.
Jerome Doraisamy
Speaking in the wake of the report from the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, which included an interim dissenting report from the Federal Opposition, LCA said that the Family Court’s work was highly specialised with its problems “rooted in chronic underfunding by successive governments”, and that the “overwhelming majority” of those who provided submissions to the inquiry were against the prospect of the amalgamated court.
“Years of underfunding and a lack of resourcing of the family law system teamed with a failure to make timely appointments of judicial officers has resulted in a backlog of cases and long delays. Proper resourcing and prompt appointments is what is desperately needed.”
The comments follow criticism of the bills before the Parliament pertaining to the merged court from the Australian Bar Association, which said that the bills could result in a “re-badging” of the current courts with the appearance of amalgamation.
“Ultimately, it remains the ABA’s position that the most prudent way forward for the government would be to put the bills on-hold and await the upcoming ALRC report into family law and then consider reforms in a holistic manner, rather than the current disjointed, piecemeal approach,” ABA president Jennifer Batrouney QC said.
Mr Moses continued, noting that the recommendations of the majority report did not properly address the chronic underfunding of the system “and will still herald the end of a dedicated, stand-alone Family Court as we know it”.
“The Family Court deals with most difficult and complex family law matters that come before our courts, which directly impact families and children,” he said.
“Maintaining a properly resourced family law system is critical to the administration of justice and to promote the best outcomes for Australian families. The Law Council remains strongly opposed to the proposed merger and we urge the Senate to reject this potentially catastrophic bill. The welfare of Australian families depends on it.”
LCA has called on the Federal Parliament to oppose passage of the bills, consult further with the Australian Law Reform Commission and community, and work towards “meaningful reform and a comprehensive policy response”.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly and HR Leader. He has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. In June 2024, he also assumed the editorship of HR Leader. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of the Minds Count Foundation.
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