EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 1982 No. 202
Issued by the Authority of the Judges of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory
AMENDMENTS OF THE RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY
On 1 September 1982 the Court of Petty Sessions of the Australian Capital Territory will acquire a greatly increased civil jurisdiction: the limit will rise from $2,500 to $10,000. At the same time, a much more effective and detailed procedure for civil proceedings in that Court will come into operation. As a consequence, there will be many more actions which it would be possible to bring either in the Supreme Court or in the Court of Petty Sessions.
There have always been Rules of the Supreme Court which have the effect of discouraging the institution of an action in the Supreme Court if it is possible to institute it in the Court of Petty Sessions. The means of discouraging such actions is the provision for a reduced scale of costs, both as between solicitor and client, and as between party and party, where the action is of this kind. The effect of the present amendments is to make these Rules more effective for their purpose in the light of the expected increased in the number of actions of this kind.
The Rules provide for a discretion in the Supreme Court to order, in the appropriate case, that costs should be on the full scale if for some special reason it is appropriate to bring the action in the Supreme Court,
The amendments also provide for new Rules governing the procedure for transfer of actions from the Supreme Court to the Court of Petty Sessions and vice versa.