Program 3.1: FCFCOA (Division 2)

The FCFCOA (Division 2) is a federal court of record and a court of law and equity established by Parliament as an independent federal court under Chapter III of the Constitution.

The jurisdiction of the Court is best described by reference to three main areas: family law and child support, migration law, and a broad range of general federal law areas of jurisdiction including administrative law, admiralty law, bankruptcy, consumer law, human rights, industrial law, intellectual property, and privacy. The Court shares these jurisdictions with the FCFCOA (Division 1) (in respect of family law and child support) and the Federal Court of Australia (in respect of migration and general federal law).

Since 1 September 2021, the Court operates as the single point of entry for the filing of all family law applications, and matters may be transferred to the FCFCOA (Division 1) where considered appropriate based on their complexity.

The objective of the Court is to provide timely access to justice and resolve disputes in all areas of law in an efficient and cost-effective manner, using appropriate dispute resolution processes. The provisions of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Act 2021 (Cth) enable the Court to operate as informally as possible in the exercise of judicial powers, use streamlined procedures and make use of a range of dispute resolution processes to resolve matters without the need for judicial decisions, where appropriate.

The Court sits in all capital cities and some major regional centres in all of the areas in which the Court has jurisdiction. The Court also regularly circuits to a number of regional and rural locations in family law. It deals with a high volume of matters and delivers services to regional Australia, in addition to utilising technology to facilitate remote access to the Court where appropriate.

The Chief Judge is responsible for managing the business and administrative affairs of the Court, assisted by the Deputy Chief Judge (Family Law) and the Deputy Chief Judge (General and Fair Work). The Chief Judge is assisted by the CEO and Principal Registrar, who is appointed by the Governor-General on the nomination of the Chief Justice.

Performance and key activities

Purpose

To provide timely access to justice and resolve disputes in all areas of law in an efficient and cost-effective manner, using appropriate dispute resolution processes.

Outcome

Apply and uphold the rule of law for litigants in the FCFCOA (Division 2) through the just, safe, efficient, and timely resolution of family law and general federal law matters according to law, through the encouragement of appropriate dispute resolution processes through the effective management of the administrative affairs of the Court.

Guiding principles

• Deliver just, efficient, and effective dispute resolution in family law, migration and general federal law matters.
• Ensure best practice in judicial and non-judicial processes.
• Protect vulnerable parties and children.
• Build public trust and confidence.
• Improve access to justice.

Key activities

For 2024–25 (and the outlook period through to 2028), the Listed Entity will provide support for the FCFCOA (Division 2) to progress the following key activities:

Table 5. Program 3.1 key activities, 2024–25 to 2027–28.

2024–25 significant initiatives

• Ongoing review of the new case management pathway, with a focus on timeliness, efficiency of the new case management pathway and outcomes for vulnerable litigants and children.
• Ongoing revision and improvement of Lighthouse, with a focus on refining all aspects of risk screening and assessment, safety planning and service referral, and bespoke risk-based case management, including the high-risk Evatt List. Currently funding until 30 June 2026.
• Expansion of PPP to additional registries nationally, with an expanded criterion, to enable a cost-effective means for the resolution of property disputes with smaller asset pools, in a way that addresses all aspects of family violence, including coercive control.
• Continued engagement of Indigenous Family Liaison Officers and development of tailored case management processes for matters involving Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander litigants and children, including specialist Indigenous Lists. Currently majority of funding for Indigenous Family Liaison Officers until 30 June 2026.
• Continued expansion of the information sharing and co-location initiatives in family law.
• Timely delivery of judgments by both judges and registrars.
• Ongoing review and update of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) (General Federal Law) Rules 2021 to create a complete set of rules applicable to the general federal law jurisdictions of the Court that are consistent with the Federal Court Rules 2011 where appropriate.
• Ongoing review and refinement of case management processes and procedures in the migration jurisdiction to address the backlog of pending migration cases.
• Ongoing implementation of changes to small claims matters within the Court’s fair work jurisdiction.
• Establish a common platform based on the modernised Digital Court File to incorporate case management, workload management and dashboards within a single application.

Performance measurement

The key outcome measures for the FCFCOA (Division 2) are contained in Outcome Three of the Portfolio Budget Statements.

The FCFCOA (Division 2) Court maintains three goals related to timely completion of cases to measure the performance of its work. All strategies, priorities and key activities are designed to support the achievement of these performance goals. Performance against these goals is reported in the Court’s annual report and in the Annual Performance Statement, published in the Listed Entity annual report.

Measures of success

• Improved efficiencies and access to justice in family law through clear and harmonised rules and case management procedures.
• Improved case management through early registrar triage and safely conducted dispute resolution, resulting in increased judicial time to focus on the most complex disputes and judgment writing.
• Reduced delays and backlogs of pending family law cases, assisting litigants to resolve their disputes in a just and timely manner with simplified court procedures.
• Positive outcomes for children and families through increased information sharing and engagement with relevant stakeholders and other jurisdictions.
• Improved protection of at-risk parties and children exposed to family violence and other risks through early risk identification, screening, and assessment.
• Improved support and cultural responsiveness in proceedings involving Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander litigants and children, through ongoing engagement with relevant communities and stakeholders as well as growth within the Courts’ Indigenous Family Liaison Officer cohort.
• Improved efficiencies and access to justice in general federal law and migration cases through clear, comprehensive, and updated rules, case management procedures and increased registrar support.