FAMILY LAW ACT 1975
FAMILY LAW RULES (AMENDMENT)
(STATUTORY RULES 1989 NO 266)
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
FAMILY LAW RULES (AMENDMENT)
Commencement
Clause 1 is a commencement provision. The pleadings rules are to commence on 1st October so that the commencement of provisions amending those rules has been scheduled for the following day. Since that is a Monday there will be no working period when the superseded provisions will operate.
Miscellaneous Amendments
Clause 2 brings Rule 4 of order 1 (the interpretation provision) into line with the changes made to various requirements for service covered by Order 18.
Clause 3 amends Rule 2 Order 2 to provide for the fact that all documents to be filed in the Court will have the same cover sheet, to be known as Form 1.
Clause 4 repeals Rule 3 of order 2 which is now unnecessary since the Government Printer no longer prints forms prescribed by the Family Law Rules or Regulations.
Clause 5 amends Rule 3 of order 3 to provide that extension or abridgement of time may be made by a Registrar or by consent in situations not only provided by the Rules, but also where an order as to time has been made by the Court.
Clause 6 repeals Order 3 Rule 3 and substitutes a new Rule 3 to provide for the fact that all documents are to be titled in accordance with Form 1, thus eliminating a number of forms which provided for the titling of particular documents.
Clause 7 amends Rule 2 of order 9 as a consequence of the amendments to order 16.
Clause 8 amends Rule 5 of order 14 to substitute the correct nomenclature to refer to form 15B and to provide that the respondent rather than the Registrar should have responsibility for serving a copy of the third party claim and notice.
Service
Clause 9 repeals Rule 2 of Order 18 and substitutes a new rule which in addition to providing for the filing of an address for service includes (i) provision that a previous address for service filed in relation to proceedings between the same parties other than for principal relief in which some action has occurred in the previous 6 months may be deemed an address for service and (ii) consolidates the provision for change of address for service into the same rule.
Clause 10 repeals Rule 4 of order 18 consequent on the amendment of Rule 2 above.
Clause 11 amends Rule 5 of order 18 so as to provide in addition for service on a natural person service on a body corporate. In doing so it provides a complete new comprehensive regime for service on persons and bodies corporate.
Clause 12 repeals Rules 7, 8 and 9 of Order 18 consequent upon the changes in Clause 11 above. A new Rule 7 provides for an acknowledgement of Service to accompany the document to be served otherwise than personally pursuant to Rule 5 of order 18 and for service outside Australia to be by air mail.
Clause 13 amends Rule 12 of order 18 to reflect the amendments of and renumbering of Rule 5 in Clause 11.
Clause 14 amends Rule 13 of order 18 to reflect the amendments and renumbering of Rule 5 in Clause 11.
Clause 15 repeals Rules 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 consolidates all provisions for acknowledgement and proof of service in a complete new regime through new rules 15 and 16.
Powers of Registrars and Judicial Registrars
Clause 16 amends Rule 2 of order 36A to clarify the power of registrars to hear and determine applications for change of venue.
Clause 17 amends Rule 3 of order 36A to increase the limit on property matters to be determined by judicial registrars from $100,000 to $300,000.
Clause 18 inserts a provision in Rule of order 36A to ensure that a Judicial Registrar may continue to hear and determine a matter begun within the property limit of $300,000 where it becomes apparent during the course of the proceedings that in fact the gross value of the property exceeds $300,000.
Forms
Clause 19 amends schedule 1 to the Rules
(i) by substituting a common Form 1 to be used on all documents and deleting the previous title forms.
(ii) by making Form 7 compatible with the need to collect information through the Court’s Computer (square brackets) and by adding to paragraph 3 the date of separation of the parties and to clause 7 the opportunity to make a positive statement as to there being no operative orders, proceedings or agreements between the parties.
(iii) deleting title forms consequent upon the introduction of amendments to Order 18.
(iv) deleting forms related to service and substituting new forms consequent upon the amendments to Order 18.
Minor Amendments
Clause 20 effects minor amendments to the Rules consequent upon the other changes describe in clause 1-19 above.