Reforms for the Family Law Courts
Queensland Law Society president Ken Taylor on Wednesday 30 May 2018 said he stood with the Law Council of Australia and was interested to hear of plans to amalgamate the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia.
“This morning we heard the news that the Australian Government plan to address growing delays and high costs in the family court system by announcing a dedicated new family court and a new appeals court,” he said.
“At this stage, we are unclear how this fits into the current family law review being conducted by the Australian Law Reform Commission, which we have contributed to on behalf of Queensland solicitors.”
Mr Taylor said that the impending announcement appeared to create a single point of entry for family law matters.
“We do not have a lot of detail at this time, however, we understand the intent is to see cases finalised faster and at a lower cost to Australian families.
“The Society supports change that reduces cost and improves efficiency for Australian families, with the crisis in the court system being well-known.”
Mr Taylor reiterated the need for significant change to the court system to be considered in a holistic manner as part of the large-scale review already in progress.
“The ALRC review is still in its early stages. There must be wide consultation on such a significant change to make sure it hits the mark.
“We support improvements to our court systems but know the devil is always in the detail.
“We will continue to work with the Law Council of Australia and the ALRC on the ongoing review to ensure that all Australians have the best access to justice possible.”
For more information, please visit: https://www.attorneygeneral.gov.au/Media/Documents/Court-reforms.pdf
For more information please contact Media Manager Tony Keim on 0488 433 884 or media@qls.com.au