Complaints policy

How can I make a complaint?

You can send your written complaint by post or email.

Generally complaints should be addressed to:

Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar
GPO Box 9991, Melbourne Vic 3001
Email: customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au

You will need to include the following details with your complaint:

Your full name 
Postal address
Contact telephone number
Case name and file number (if applicable).

Complaints about delays in delivery of reserved judgments and the conduct of judges should be addressed to the Chief Justice or Chief Judge (see ‘Delay in delivery of reserved judgments by judges’ and ‘Judicial conduct’ below).

Please note, the Chief Justice/Chief Judge or the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar cannot intervene in Court proceedings outside of the appeal or review process. Making a complaint cannot stay proceedings or vary, amend or revoke orders made by the Court. The Court can only make further orders in relation to proceedings where there is an appropriate application filed with the Court. You should seek legal advice in relation to what application may be appropriate.

If your complaint relates to the decision of a judicial officer or the conduct of proceedings, this is not a matter that the Chief Justice/Chief Judge or the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar can investigate. Allegations of errors by a judicial officer in the conduct of proceedings, the evidence relied upon or decisions made can only be determined by way of the formal appeal process (for judges) or the review process (for Registrars).

There are time limits for the filing of an appeal or review. You may wish to seek legal advice to determine whether appealing or reviewing the decision in your case is appropriate. Court staff cannot provide legal advice.

The Court will acknowledge your complaint

The Court will generally acknowledge your complaint upon receipt and will endeavour to provide a formal response within 20 working days.

Types of complaints that can be made to the Court

Complaints about judges

Judicial conduct

The Court has a judicial complaints procedure which establishes procedures for the handling of complaints about judicial conduct.

Complaints relating to judicial conduct should be addressed to:

Chief Justice 
Owen Dixon Commonwealth Law Courts
305 William Street
Melbourne Vic 3000
Email: customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au

Delay in delivery of reserved judgments by judges

The Court's judicial complaints procedure also establishes a protocol relating to the delivery of reserved judgments by judges. The protocol is designed to ensure that decisions are handed down, and reasons are given, as expeditiously as possible. The benchmark for the handing down of reserved judgments is within three months of the hearing or receipt of written submissions.

If a judgment has not been delivered within the established protocol, a complaint may be submitted to the Court after a period of six months from the date of the hearing or receipt of written submissions.

The time taken for a matter to be determined is dependent on a number of factors. As such, complaints submitted within six months of the date of the hearing or receipt of written submissions will not be referred to the Chief Justice/Chief Judge, or otherwise considered by the Court.

Complaints relating to the delivery of reserved judgments should be addressed to the Chief Justice/Chief Judge, whose details are provided below, or to the President of the appropriate State or Territory Law Society/Institute or Bar Association. 

Chief Justice
Owen Dixon Commonwealth Law Courts    
305 William Street 
Melbourne Vic 3000
Email: customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au

Complaints about registrars

Registrar conduct

Formal complaints regarding a registrar’s conduct should be addressed to the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar. A clear explanation of the conduct complained of must be provided, together with the case name and file number. It is again noted that complaints regarding the decisions made or conduct of the proceedings are not matters that can be considered under the Complaints Policy. These are matters that can only be determined by way of the review process.

A complaint regarding registrar conduct can be made to:

Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar
Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia
GPO Box 9991, Melbourne Vic 3001
Email: customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au

A legal practitioner may also raise a matter informally via their relevant Law Society/Institute or Bar Association.

Delay in delivery of reserved judgments by registrars

The benchmark for the handing down of reserved judgments by Registrars is within three months of the hearing or receipt of written submissions. A party should therefore not seek to make an enquiry, or raise a concern or complaint in relation to a reserved judgment of a registrar until that period has expired. If a judgment has not been delivered within the three-month period, a complaint may be submitted to the Court addressed to the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Registrar (email: customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au). A legal practitioner may also raise a matter via their relevant Law Society/Institute or Bar Association.

Complaints about Family Consultants

Court Children’s Service (CCS) is responsible for overseeing the work of family consultants (Court Child Experts and Regulation 7 Family Consultants). Assessments undertaken by family consultants form part of the evidence presented in court proceedings. If you are concerned about the conduct of a family consultant, or the report they have provided to the Court, the appropriate forum for raising this is within the proceedings.

If your concern is in relation to a report prepared by a family consultant for a final hearing (such as a Family Report) then the mechanism for raising this concern is by cross-examination of the family consultant in Court. This is where you, or your lawyer (if you have one) ask the family consultant questions about the contents of the report and their assessment of your family.

If you wish to cross-examine the family consultant who prepared your report, you (or your lawyer if you have one) must write to the family consultant at least 14 days before the hearing in order to ensure they are available.

If your concern is in relation to a preliminary assessment (such as a Child Impact Report), that is undertaken for an interim court event, then you (or your lawyer) are still able to raise your concerns within the proceedings.

If you are seeking to have the family consultant assigned to your case replaced with a new family consultant, this can only be done by applying to the Court within the current court proceedings. You should seek legal advice about this. Court staff cannot provide legal advice, however procedural advice may be obtained by contacting the Court.

Complaints about family consultants, or the assessment they have conducted, cannot be investigated nor brought to the attention of the family consultant while the matter is currently before the Court. This is because the family consultant is an expert witness and doing so could be considered to be interfering with a witness in a matter.

Complaints about family consultants should be made by email to customer.service@fcfcoa.gov.au. Complaints about a family consultant will be directed to a senior CCS staff member for review. The senior officer reviewing your complaint will provide you with a written response. Family consultants work within a clinical governance framework, are subject to quality assurance mechanisms and are required to participate in regular professional development and supervision. Feedback by way of complaints can assist CCS in ensuring the ongoing quality of its service.

Please note that if your concerns relate to a Single Expert Witness or a report writer that was otherwise not employed by or engaged by the Court, you should refer to the section “Single Expert Witnesses” below.

Administrative issues

You may make a complaint about the services delivered by registry staff and other administrative staff of the Court. Such complaints are generally referred to the manager of the registry in which the complaint arose.

Types of complaints the Court cannot deal with

Complaints in current proceedings

Generally, it will not be appropriate for the Court to investigate complaints about the conduct of current proceedings. In most cases it will be appropriate for you to raise your complaint in court when your matter is next listed for hearing.

Child abuse

If you believe a child is at risk or has been abused, you should report it to the relevant welfare authority in your state or territory. Unlike welfare authorities, the Court does not have the power to investigate abuse.

Criminality and corruption

The Court has no power to investigate allegations of criminality. These are matters that should be reported to the relevant authority.

Allegations of serious or systemic corruption by a Court staff member may be reported to the National Anti-Corruption Commission.

Single Expert Witness

Please note that if your concerns relate to a Single Expert Witness or a report writer that was otherwise not employed by or engaged by the Court through CCS (but was engaged and funded by the parties or a legal aid commission), the Court is not able to consider your complaint under the Complaints Policy. However, you may raise this concern in the context of your ongoing court proceedings, including by cross-examination of the report writer. If there are no ongoing proceedings, you may wish to make enquiries about the complaints process for any professional bodies that the Single Expert Witness/report writer may be a member of.

Lawyers, Independent Children’s Lawyers, and legal costs

You may bring to Court’s attention issues relating to the conduct of another party’s lawyer or an independent children’s lawyer only if the conduct has adversely affected your current case. This concern must be raised in the context of your court proceedings, and not by way of correspondence or complaint.

The Court cannot deal with such complaints after final determination of your matter. If you have a complaint about the conduct of your lawyer, about a bill you have received from your lawyer, or about the conduct of another lawyer, including an Independent Children’s Lawyer, you should contact the relevant body in your state or territory – see below for contact details.

In relation to complaints about Independent Children’s Lawyers, you may wish to also notify the relevant state or territory legal aid body responsible for appointment of the Independent Children’s Lawyer in your matter.

Australian Capital Territory
Level 4, 1 Farrell Place
Canberra ACT 2601
GPO Box 1562, Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6274 0300
Website: www.actlawsociety.asn.au

New South Wales
Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner
Level 9, 75 Castlereagh Street
Sydney NSW 2000
GPO Box 4460, Sydney NSW 2001
Phone: 02 9377 1800 or 1800 242 958
Fax: 02 9377 1888
Website: www.olsc.nsw.gov.au

Northern Territory
Law Society NT
3/6 Lindsay Street
Darwin NT 0800
PO Box 2388, Darwin NT 0801
Phone: 08 8981 5104
Website: lawsocietynt.asn.au

Queensland
Legal Services Commission
Level 30, 400 George Street
Brisbane Qld 4000
PO Box 10310, Brisbane Adelaide St Qld 4001
Phone: 07 3564 7726
Outside Brisbane: 1300 655 754
Website: www.lsc.qld.gov.au

South Australia 
Legal Profession Conduct Commissioner
Level 10, 30 Currie Street
Adelaide SA 5000
GPO Box 230, Adelaide SA 5001
Phone: 08 8212 7924 or 1800 337 570 (free call)
Fax: 08 8231 0747
Website: lpcc.sa.gov.au

Tasmania
Law Society of Tasmania
28 Murray Street
Hobart TAS 7000
GPO Box 1133, Hobart Tas 7001
Phone: 03 6234 4133
Website: www.lst.org.au

Victoria 
Victorian Legal Services Board & Commissioner
Level 5, 555 Bourke Street
Melbourne Vic 3000
GPO Box 492, Melbourne Vic 3001
Phone: 03 9679 8001 or 1300 796 344
Fax: 03 9679 8101
Website: www.Isbc.vic.gov.au

Western Australia
Legal Practice Board of Western Australia
Level 6, 111 St Georges Terrace
Perth WA 6000
Phone: 08 6211 3600 
Fax: 08 6211 3650 
Website: www.lpbwa.org.au

Vexatious complaints and complainant misconduct

The Court may not respond to your complaint if it is vexatious, repetitive or lacks substance. If a complaint raises issues which have already been responded to then no further response will be provided.

0823 V1